UK companies believe corruption is a way of life in some countries
Survey reveals half of businesses aren't bothering with anti-corruption controls
UK companies are not bothering to check on whether their contractors are
involved in corruption, believing underhanded practices are a way of life in
some countries, a survey has found.
Audit firm KPMG said UK companies could be violating anti-bribery and
corruption rules by doing business in countries ‘where it is not possible to do
business without being involved in bribery and corruption’.
The survey found only one in three businesses stopped operating in a country
because of bribery and corruption risks, and four out of ten companies say they
conducted regular audits of third party business partners.
Alex Plavsic, head of KPMG’s fraud investigations, said companies might be
blinded to corruption risks in their drive to win new work in the recession.
‘With the recession companies are having to fight harder than ever to win new
contracts and, as a result, there could be an increased pressure on those in the
front line to over-ride anti-bribery and corruption laws,’ he said.