13. Bribery Flashcards

1
Q

What are the Main Principles of the Bribery Act?

A
  • The offences are:-
    o Making a bribe.
    o Receiving a bribe.
    o Bribery of a foreign public official.
    o Failure of a corporate entity to prevent bribery on its behalf.
  • The legislation applies to all UK Entities and includes associated Persons for example sub-consultants
    and external advisors.
  • There are six principles of prevention companies should put in place:-
    o 1. Proportionate Procedures.
    o 2. Top Level Commitment.
    o 3. Risk Assessments.
    o 4. Due Diligence.
    o 5. Communication.
    o 6. Monitoring & Review.
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2
Q

Under the Bribery Act, under what circumstance is a facilitation payment permitted?

A
  • The only circumstance in which it is OK to make a facilitation payment is when you are under duress.
  • For example if there is a real and present risk or danger to “life, limb or liberty”.
  • If you or your companions are under immediate physical threat.
  • You should put safety first, make the payment and report the matter immediately.
  • Or as soon as is practicable to your manager or your ethics compliance contact.
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3
Q

You are attending a Main Contractor organised business conference where it is announced the you have been randomly selected as the winner of this months prize draw. Its an i-pad air. How would you act in this scenario?

A
  • I would be extremely uncomfortable accepting the prize in this scenario.
  • The prize is of a significant value and could be interpreted as a bribe.
  • Furthermore due to working on a project with the Main Contractor at the time of this scenario,
    accepting the prize would have been highly inappropriate and could be interpreted as having an affect
    on my business conduct during the project.
  • I would respectfully decline the prize and suggest that this is made as a charitable donation to a charity of the Main Contractor’s choice.
  • I am aware that bribes are commonly distributed as random prizes and due to the seriousness of this
    incident I would report this to my line manager.
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4
Q

You receive an invite to attend the Theatre with some members of your Project Team but they dropped out due to illness at the last minute, would you still attend?

A
  • In the first instance I would declare this hospitality on my companies’ gifts and hospitality register.
  • Assuming the invite was approved and I was authorised to attend, I would need to decline the invite due to the Project Team dropping out.
  • Since they won’t be present, this will not be a genuine business event.
  • Consequently, I would decline this hospitality at the Project Team’s expense
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5
Q

A contractor invites you to lunch to a restaurant and advises they’ve got two Michelin stars and a wine list second to none. They say they are keen to discuss the details of their tender they are about to submit for the project you are working on. How would you respond?

A
  • Going to what sounds like a lavish lunch paid for by a bidder in the middle of a tender process is
    against Company policy and could be an offence under the UK Bribery Act.
  • If this were the first time, it would be OK just to decline and explain that such an invitation is
    inappropriate.
  • However if this supplier is persistent, there is a red flag in that he wants to discuss things that he cannot put in writing, so we should report this infringement
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6
Q

What is the legislation that governs bribery?

A

Bribery Act 2010

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7
Q

What constitutes of an offence under the Bribery act?

A

An offence of bribing another person
An offence of being bribed
An offence of bribery of foreign public officials
A corporate offence of failing to prevent bribery

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8
Q

What are the obligations of members regarding money gifts?

A

Declare certain items to my employer such as gifts, hospitality, entertainment, expenses

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9
Q

What is a bribe?

A
  • The exchange of something of value in return for someone doing or agreeing to do something improper in a business context
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10
Q

What legislation exists in relation to bribery in the UK?

A

Bribery Act 2010

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11
Q

What is the purpose of the current UK legislation on bribery?

A

Criminalises bribery in the UK, making it a criminal offence to directly or indirectly:

  • Offer, promise or give a bribe
  • Request, agree to receive or accept a bribe
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12
Q

What are the penalties under the current bribery legislation?

A

A maximum 10 years’ imprisonment and/or an unlimited fine

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13
Q

Who does the current bribery legislation affect?

A

Near-universal jurisdiction, allowing for prosecution of UK individuals or companies doing business overseas, as well as overseas individuals or companies doing business in the UK

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14
Q

What standard are judgements under the current bribery legislation based upon?

A

Judgments are decided based on the ‘reasonable person’ test

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15
Q

How can bribes affect surveyors?

A

Can be vulnerable to bribes because of the role they play in facilitating transactions, checking owners/contractors are complying with legislation and awarding construction contracts

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16
Q

Would the offer or acceptance of gifts or hospitality amount to a bribe?

A
  • Could amount to a bribe if they are intended to induce someone to behave in a manner that breaches an expectation that they will act in good faith and impartially
  • However, bona fide hospitality and promotion intended to improve the image of an organisation, better present products and services or establish cordial relations is seen as an established and important part of doing business and is not criminalised under the Act
17
Q

What considerations should RICS members have in relation to offering or accepting gifts and hospitality?

A

RICS members should follow these rules:

  1. Only offer or accept gifts and hospitality that are customary, proportionate and reasonable in terms of value and frequency
  2. Never offer or accept any gift or hospitality if it may improperly influence your decisions/judgement or give the appearance of doing so (e.g. consider the timing of the gift)
  3. Only offer or accept gifts and hospitality that you would be happy for others to know about
  4. Follow the policies and procedures of your employer in relation to gifts, hospitality and promotional expenditure - e.g. record in company’s gifts and hospitality register
  5. Report any concerns about bribery to your employer or to RICS Regulation
18
Q

What procedures should RICS corporate members follow in relation to preventing bribery?

A

RICS corporate members should follow the 6 principles in preventing bribery practices:

  1. Proportionate procedures - procedures should be proportionate to the bribery risks the company faces
  2. Top level commitment - zero tolerance to bribery
  3. Risk assessment - the company should periodically assess the internal and external risks of bribery
  4. Due diligence - systematically investigate employees and business partners (the level of which should be informed by the risk assessment)
  5. Communication (including training) - communicate policies, operate confidential whistle-blowing service, provide training
  6. Monitor and review - periodically review procedures and make improvements where necessary
19
Q

What would you do if a contractor offers you a gift such as a scale rule with the contractor’s name on it?

A

Accept it, as it is a bona fide promotion intended to improve the image of an organisation

20
Q

If a contractor wants to buy you lunch on the day of an interim valuation, how would you respond?

A

Reject the offer, as it may improperly influence your decisions/judgement or give the appearance of doing so

21
Q

A contractor gives you a bottle of champagne at Christmas. Would you accept it?

A
  1. Maybe, however only offer or accept gifts and hospitality that you would be happy for others to know about
  2. Question whether the gift is proportionate and reasonable in terms of value and frequency
  3. Reject if it may improperly influence your decisions/judgement or give the appearance of doing so
22
Q

A contractor invites you to their Christmas dinner dance - would you go?

A
  1. Maybe, however only offer or accept gifts and hospitality that you would be happy for others to know about
  2. Question whether the gift is proportionate and reasonable in terms of value and frequency
  3. Reject if it may improperly influence your decisions/judgement or give the appearance of doing so
23
Q

A client invites you to their Christmas dinner dance - would you go?

A
  1. Maybe, however only offer or accept gifts and hospitality that you would be happy for others to know about
  2. Question whether the gift is proportionate and reasonable in terms of value and frequency
  3. Reject if it may improperly influence your decisions/judgement or give the appearance of doing so
24
Q

If you saw a colleague at the races with a contractor in the VIP area, what would you do?

A
  1. Remind them of the RICS’ rules and procedures on accepting gifts/hospitality
  2. Report any concerns about bribery to your employer or to RICS Regulation
25
Q

If you saw one of your team send out an interim valuation that over values the works, what do you do?

A
  1. Talk to them initially and point out the error
  2. Suggest the error is corrected before issuing
  3. Escalate to a director if the error was purposeful
  4. Consider reporting through firm’s whistleblowing procedure if necessary
26
Q

You have put in a fee bid to a client. They contact you and say that another practice has quoted a lower fee, but they would like you to do the work. They ask you to reduce your fee to match the other practice. What should you do?

A
  1. Avoid price fixing, aggressive fee cutting or collusion with competitors
  2. Original fee quote should have been a reasonable reflection of the works required
  3. Reducing costs may mean corners are cut and quality is reduced in order to make a profit
  4. Client may be expecting the same next time as well and this will not be sustainable
27
Q

If you were self-employed, would you consider adjusting your PII to carry out a piece of work or decline to do the work?

A
  1. Commercial decision based on the opportunity and risk
  2. Never proceed without the sufficient level of PII
28
Q

What are the Main Principles of the Bribery Act?

A
  • The offences are:-
    o Making a bribe.
    o Receiving a bribe.
    o Bribery of a foreign public official.
    o Failure of a corporate entity to prevent bribery on its behalf.
  • The legislation applies to all UK Entities and includes associated Persons for example sub-consultants
    and external advisors.
  • There are six principles of prevention companies should put in place:-
    o 1. Proportionate Procedures.
    o 2. Top Level Commitment.
    o 3. Risk Assessments.
    o 4. Due Diligence.
    o 5. Communication.
    o 6. Monitoring & Review.
29
Q

Under the Bribery Act, under what circumstance is a facilitation payment permitted?

A
  • The only circumstance in which it is OK to make a facilitation payment is when you are under duress.
  • For example if there is a real and present risk or danger to “life, limb or liberty”.
  • If you or your companions are under immediate physical threat.
  • You should put safety first, make the payment and report the matter immediately.
  • Or as soon as is practicable to your manager or your ethics compliance contact.
30
Q

You are attending a Main Contractor organised business conference where it is announced the you have been randomly selected as the winner of this months prize draw. Its an i-pad air. How would you act in this scenario?

A
  • I would be extremely uncomfortable accepting the prize in this scenario.
  • The prize is of a significant value and could be interpreted as a bribe.
  • Furthermore due to working on a project with the Main Contractor at the time of this scenario,
    accepting the prize would have been highly inappropriate and could be interpreted as having an affect
    on my business conduct during the project.
  • I would respectfully decline the prize and suggest that this is made as a charitable donation to a charity of the Main Contractor’s choice.
  • I am aware that bribes are commonly distributed as random prizes and due to the seriousness of this
    incident I would report this to my line manager.
31
Q

You receive an invite to attend the Theatre with some members of your Project Team but they dropped out due to illness at the last minute, would you still attend?

A
  • In the first instance I would declare this hospitality on my companies’ gifts and hospitality register.
  • Assuming the invite was approved and I was authorised to attend, I would need to decline the invite
    due to the Project Team dropping out.
  • Since they won’t be present, this will not be a genuine business event.
  • Consequently, I would decline this hospitality at the Project Team’s expense
32
Q

A contractor invites you to lunch to a restaurant and advises they’ve got two Michelin stars and a wine list second to none. They say they are keen to discuss the details of their tender they are about to submit for the project you are working on. How would you respond?

A
  • Going to what sounds like a lavish lunch paid for by a bidder in the middle of a tender process is against Company policy and could be an offence under the UK Bribery Act.
  • If this were the first time, it would be OK just to decline and explain that such an invitation is inappropriate.
  • However if this supplier is persistent, there is a red flag in that he wants to discuss things that he cannot put in writing, so we should report this infringement