The House of Lords Bribery Act 2010 Committee today heard
evidence from Rolls-Royce and British Aerospace.
Witnesses were:
Philip Bramwell – Group General Counsel, BAE Systems plc
Joanna Talbot – Chief Counsel, Compliance & Regulation, BAE
Systems plc
Mark Gregory – General Counsel, Rolls-Royce plc
Acting committee chairman opened
the session by asking witnesses how often their companies had
encountered bribery and corruption since the Bribery Act came
into force. Philip Bramwell said almost never. The Bribery Act
was clear about expectations and standards that needed to be
adhered to. Mark Gregory said all companies that operated
internationally, especially in the defence sector, faced the
challenge of bribery and corruption, which was why the Bribery
Act was of critical importance and had had such a good effect.
Replying to , Mr Bramwell said the
Bribery Act had enabled BAe to ensure it did not return to the
problems of the past. Mark Gregory said compliance programmes
only worked if everyone in the organised felt ownership of the
issues. Rolls-Royce was a very different company since the
Bribery Act. There was now a zero-attitude.
asked whether the act had had a
bearing on competition. Mark Gregory could not think of an
example where Rolls-Royce had suffered or stepped away from a
jurisdiction of a high-risk nature. said that, according to
surveys, companies had lost 30% of their business because of the
Bribery Act. Joanna Talbot contended that BAe had not lost
business, but had walked away from certain contracts.
asked what the government
had done and could do to help. Ms Talbot said government guidance
was helpful. Local embassies were also a source of assistance.
Replying to , Philip Bramwell said
BAe would not make facilitation payments unless an employee’s
personal safety was at risk. Mark Gregory added that clarity was
important for employees. He added that global consistency would
be welcome.
Lord Stunnell asked how the companies knew that anti-bribery and
corruption programmes were working. Mark Gregory said
Rolls-Royce had put into place various measures to make that
assurance. The tone from the top was critical. Every board member
and executive took ownership of the issues and drove the message
consistently.
Replying to about self-reporting, Mr
Gregory said Rolls-Royce “has been on a journey” and believed it
was appropriate to recognise the efforts made by companies to
uncover wrong-doing and to put mechanisms in place to tackle
compliance issues.
The full transcript of proceedings will be sent as soon as
possible
