The Rt Hon Chris Grayling MP Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice Ministry of Justice 102 Petty France London SW1H 9AJ 16 September 2013
Dear Secretary of State In response to the recent announcement from the Red Tape Challenge unit about a review of the Bribery Act, we are writing as representatives of business, the investment community and civil society to support the view that the Bribery Act and its accompanying Guidance should remain un-altered. We believe that any attempt to amend the Act or weaken the Guidance should be strongly resisted. We are aware that the Cabinet Office has commissioned officials to examine the Act and Guidance, but believe that in a well-intentioned effort to clarify, the Government risks simply re-opening debates that have already been satisfactorily resolved, leading to a long period of uncertainty for business. We believe that good anti-bribery legislation, fairly enforced, is good for business. We also believe in the importance of a level playing field, and therefore that the UK Government should do as much as possible to ensure that other countries have in place similar legislation, and that it is enforced with equal vigour. Finally, we believe that in the light of concern expressed by Small & Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs), the Government is right to consider placing more emphasis on communicating to SMEs how they can design a proportionate response to bribery risk.
Yours sincerely
Andrew Wilson Interim Executive Director International Chamber of Commerce UK
George S. Dallas Director, Corporate Governance F&C Management Ltd
Robert Barrington Executive Director Transparency International UK