Petition STOP WATERING DOWN ANTI-CORRUPTION LEGISLATION

Anti-bribery laws are designed to stop corruption by bribery. The laws act as a deterrent for unlawful behavior and protect the innocent offering a means of recourse for victims. All countries must comply with the OECD Anti-Bribery Convention. Bribery has long been illegal for UK companies under UK law, certainly illegal under the local laws in their export markets, and illegal under the US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, whose reach encompasses many UK companies. The Bribery Act brings the UK in line with its international obligations to not distort the free market, which cannot be in the long-term interests of a well-run company. If a company only wins a contract by breaking national and international law, then the board should question whether its executives are bribing others to obtain or retain business or a business advantage or committing false accounting offences or under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 which is not a sustainable business model.