Corruption in the United Kingdom
The United Kingdom has a corruption problem
UK plunges to lowest-ever position in Corruption Perceptions Index - Transparency
International - Results published today show the UK’s score fell sharply to 73 this year – its lowest since the Index underwent a major revamp in 2012 – resulting in a seven-place tumble in the global rankings from 11th to 18th. Only five of the 180 countries assessed for the 2022 Index saw their year-on-year scores drop by five or more points: the UK (-5), Qatar (-5), Myanmar (-5), Azerbaijan (-7) and Oman (-8).
Daniel Bruce, Chief Executive of Transparency International UK, said:
“This sharp fall in the UK’s score is a powerful indictment of a recent decline in standards in government and controls over the use of taxpayer money. These findings should set alarm bells ringing in Downing Street. The underlying data clearly indicate that business executives and other experts are concerned about insufficient controls on the abuse of public office and increasingly view corruption and bribery as a real issue in Britain. This is the strongest signal yet that slipping standards are being noticed on the world stage.”
Robert Barrington, Professor of Anti-Corruption Practice at Sussex University’s Centre for the Study of Corruption. referred to:
"a wonderful British complacency which claims that corruption happens in lots of other places, and their parliaments, but not here."
This problem will not fix itself. The powerful who benefit from corruption have no motive to expose it, on the contrary, they have a motive to ensure it is not exposed. Many private actors and global bodies are now playing a very significant role in public life. But their status makes them immune from public scrutiny. These are conditions under which corruption can flourish.
There is increasing evidence of media organisations receiving very large sums of money in the form of donations. But a media organisation will not wish to prejudice the possibility of future large donations by writing stories which are adverse to the interests of the donor. It is hard to see how such arrangements are compatible with the press being truly free expose wrongdoing in society. Libel law in the UK, together with the adverse costs rule in civil proceedings, can make exposing corruption difficult for journalists. Wrongdoers with deep pockets can even find ways to intimidate law enforcement organisations such as the police and the SFO.
