The travel industry is not unique in facing challenges in doing business overseas. All businesses face occasional demands for commissions, grease payments or administrative fees which all concerned know are actually demands for payments to influence decisions. That is just how business is done, and always has been.
Well, not any more. The UK government has come under enormous pressure in recent years to help achieve the OECD aim to reduce corruption in the developing world. In response, the UK Bribery Act was introduced last year and became enforceable from April 2011.
Essentially the Act makes it an offence to offer, give or receive a bribe in order to influence an individual to improperly perform an activity. The Act is very wide and very comprehensive in its approach. The legal draftsman who put it together appeared especially keen not to allow any form of bribery to fall through the net. Accordingly its impact on many businesses, particularly those with overseas operations, will be draconian.
It is important to understand that this is not just about brown envelopes stuffed with cash. A bribe can include gifts, honours or awards, endorsements or any other benefit bestowed by one person on another, whether directly or through third parties.
How UK companies interact with officials and the business community at home is just as important. Commission payments should be carefully considered. Gifts and lavish hospitality are a familiar feature in the sector, but these benefits in kind could also be considered bribes. When bestowing them, be careful how this might be perceived. The test under the Act is whether a reasonable UK citizen would consider the conduct to meet their reasonable expectations as to how things should be done. Would a reasonable person consider that an all-expenses paid family trip to a luxury villa to help you to decide whether to include that resort in your brochure was reasonable?
Guilty as charged
The Act has serious teeth. Any person found guilty of bribery can land themselves in prison for up to ten years. Any business that fails to take adequate steps to prevent bribery in its organisation can face an unlimited fine. The stakes can be high.
The first prosecution is approaching: a local court clerk took a bribe to try and smooth through a driving offence. Large businesses are writing to their suppliers and agents demanding to know what anti-bribery procedures they have in place. You cannot ignore it.
Don’t worry, we’ve got it covered
Clearly it’s in the interests of all affected companies to develop and communicate a comprehensive zero-tolerance policy towards bribery that includes all employees and agents, and to install adequate procedures, train staff and instil a tangible culture of compliance. In conjunction with ABTA we have produced a one-stop solution tailored to the needs of the travel industry, which will enable you to achieve basic compliance in a cost effective way.
The solution includes policy documents and other legal wording to help protect your business, together with an e-learning product that will help you to train, test and monitor your staff. Watch this space!
asb-law, FusionExperience partner
For more details, visit www.asb-law.com/bribery and www.briberyactuk.com
