Anti-fraud and bribery Policy

Transcription

1 Anti-fraud and bribery Plicy IIED Plicy: Anti-Fraud and Bribery Plicy Cntact: Debrah Harris Issued/updated: January 2016 Plicy Statement In carrying ut its wrk, IIED is cmmitted t preventing fraud and bribery, and has a cmmitment t zer tlerance f fraud and bribery frm its staff and partners. Synpsis Fraud is a frm f dishnesty, invlving either false representatin, failing t disclse infrmatin, r abuse f psitin, undertaken in rder t make a gain, r cause lss t anther 1. A bribe is a financial r ther type f advantage, that is ffered r requested with the intentin f inducing r rewarding imprper perfrmance f a functin r activity; r knwledge r belief that accepting such a reward wuld cnstitute the imprper perfrmance f such a functin r activity 2. Fr the avidance f any dubt, this als explicitly prhibits the practice f facilitatin payments, bth by IIED and its partners. A facilitatin payment is a small payment, als called a speed r grease payment, made t secure r expedite the perfrmance f a rutine r necessary actin t which the payer has legal r ther entitlement. A cmmn example is where a gvernment fficial is given mney r gds t perfrm (r speed up the perfrmance f) an existing duty. The plicy als cvers the practice f gifts and hspitality, whether intended r nt t influence behaviur. This plicy dcument utlines the risks f fraud and bribery t which IIED is expsed t by the nature f ur peratins. It explains the standards and criteria, set ut in the Bribery Act 2010, t which all emplyees and assciates are required t cmply. The dcument als sets ut the prcedures fr reprting suspected fraud r bribery, and fr declaring an interest, if there is a cnnectin between yu and anther party assciated with IIED. Scpe This plicy applies t all emplyees and fficers f IIED, and t temprary wrkers, cnsultants, cntractrs, agents and subsidiaries acting fr, r n behalf f, IIED ("assciated persns ) within the UK and verseas. Every emplyee and assciated persn acting fr, r n behalf f, IIED is respnsible fr maintaining the highest standards f business cnduct. Any breach f this plicy is likely t cnstitute a serius disciplinary, cntractual and criminal matter fr the individual cncerned and may cause serius damage t the reputatin and standing f IIED. 1 Charity Cmmissin: Cmpliance Tlkit: Prtecting Charities frm Harm 2 Bribery Act

2 IIED may als face criminal liability fr unlawful actins taken by its emplyees r assciated persns under The Act. All emplyees and assciated persns are required t familiarise themselves and cmply with this plicy, including any future updates that may be issued frm time t time by IIED. Nte: This Plicy was develped and apprved by the Internatinal Institute fr Envirnment and Develpment (IIED) fr internal use. It is believed t be an accurate reflectin f the legislatin and ther regulatry requirements at the time it was apprved. It shuld nt be incrprated int r used by ther rganisatins withut permissin. It applies t all staff and vlunteers wrking fr IIED. Cntents Plicy Statement 1 Synpsis 1 Scpe 1 Plicy 3 The need fr an Anti-Fraud and Bribery Plicy 3 Fraud and bribery risk at IIED 3 Standards 4 The Bribery Act Criteria 4 IIED s Obligatins 5 Prcedures 5 Reprting and Managing suspected fraud and bribery 5 Guidance 5 Staff Interests 5 Gifts and hspitality 5 Related plicies 6 Status 6 Related Frms 6 2

3 Plicy The need fr an Anti-Fraud and Bribery Plicy By instituting an active anti-fraud and bribery plicy we shall: Rehearse actin in the event f discvery f suspected fraud r bribery Actively engage staff and partners in fraud and bribery awareness, which may encurage better prject management Help t prtect IIED and partners against charges f cmplacency in the face f this risk indeed the institutin f adequate prcedures is the nly effective defence t the ffence under the Bribery Act f failing t prevent assciated persns frm engaging in bribery. Fraud and bribery risk at IIED The types f fraud t which IIED is expsed by the nature f its peratins include: 1. Inflated expenses and csts such fraud is difficult t detect and culd arise in a number f ways: Misreprting r reprting csts up t budget withut regard t actual csts Fr example, there are instances f partners miscnstruing the nature f grant funding and treating budgets as entitlements rather than limits t spend, and submitting reprts identical t budget. This is fraudulent use f dnr funds, albeit the partner may miscnstrue the nature f the grant as a full payment fr utput, and needs t be addressed in the develpment f the partnership relatinship and/r in develping clearer terms f reference r requirements, e.g. the requirement fr transactin listing may be cnsidered, depending n the nature and materiality f the reprt Over claiming by trustees, staff, partners r cnsultants n csts and expenses Rigged prcurement prcedures (faked dcumentatin, neptism). 2. Nn-cmpliance with lcal tax and emplyment law 3. Mney laundering 4. Misapprpriatin f prject assets The types f Bribery t which IIED is expsed by the nature f its peratins culd, in thery, arise where: IIED is seeking t influence dnrs t make funding decisins in IIED s favur where the expenditure was lavish r n activities irrelevant t the purpse making the business case Facilitatin payments are made, bth by IIED (and/r its partners) Any gifts r hspitality are accepted r given by IIED (and/r its partners) that are disprprtinately generus r that culd be seen as an inducement t affect a business decisin. IIED is inherently in a riskier psitin n many f the abve items because: Operatins are remte and IIED staff nly visit partners peridically Many partners are small and therefre d nt have established systems r audit We ften perate in a milieu f passing grants thrugh intermediary partners t smaller implementing rganisatins IIED is reliant n restricted dnr funding. Where the bjective is t spend grant funds, the desire t spend can utweigh decisins as t wh, hw and when. 3

4 The risk t IIED is nt limited t internal fraud r fraud n IIED s funds. Shuld a partner be shwn t be invlved in fraud, IIED s management f grants thrugh that partner culd be called int questin and have an indirect reputatinal impact n IIED. On the ther hand, risks are less where we have Built up a lng-standing relatinship which allws fr pen interactin An independent ability t justify the quality f wrk, are well netwrked int verlapping relatinships with multiple checks and balances. IIED shuld thus wrk t develp and maximise the value f such relatinships. Standards The Bribery Act 2010 IIED is cmmitted t cmplying with The Bribery Act 2010 in its business activities in the UK and verseas. Under The Act, a bribe is a financial r ther type f advantage that is ffered r requested with the: Intentin f inducing r rewarding imprper perfrmance f a functin r activity; r Knwledge r belief that accepting such a reward wuld cnstitute the imprper perfrmance f such a functin r activity. A relevant functin r activity includes public, state r business activities r any activity perfrmed in the curse f a persn s emplyment, r n behalf f anther cmpany r individual, where the persn perfrming that activity is expected t perfrm it in gd faith, impartially, r in accrdance with a psitin f trust. A criminal ffence will be cmmitted under The Act if: An emplyee r assciated persn acting fr, r n behalf f, the Cmpany ffers, prmises, gives, requests, receives r agrees t receive bribes; r An emplyee r assciated persn acting fr, r n behalf f, IIED ffers, prmises r gives a bribe t a freign public fficial with the intentin f influencing that fficial in the perfrmance f his/her duties (where lcal law des nt permit r require such influence); and IIED des nt have the defence that it has adequate prcedures in place t prevent bribery by its emplyees r assciated persns. Criteria 1. Fr the purpses f deciding whether a functin r activity has been perfrmed imprperly the test f what is expected is a test f what a reasnable persn in the UK wuld expect in relatin t the perfrmance f that functin r activity. 2. A freign public fficial includes fficials, whether elected r appinted, wh hld a legislative, administrative r judicial psitin f any kind f a cuntry r territry utside the UK. It als includes any persn wh perfrms public functins in any branch f the natinal, lcal r municipal gvernment f such a cuntry r territry r wh exercises a public functin fr any public agency r public enterprise f such a cuntry r territry, such as prfessinals wrking fr public health agencies and fficers exercising public functins in state-wned enterprises. Freign public fficials can als be an fficial r agent f a public internatinal rganisatin, such as the UN r the Wrld Bank. 3. The ffence f bribery f a freign public fficial des nt require prf f imprper perfrmance it r an intentin t induce it; the payment f a bribe is sufficient t establish the ffence. 4

5 4. Reasnable and prprtinate" hspitality and prmtinal expenditure "made in gd faith" as an "established and imprtant part f ding that business" will nt be penalised (see further guidelines belw). All emplyees and assciated persns are required t cmply with this plicy, in accrdance with The Act. IIED s Obligatins IIED trustees need t prtect the rganisatin against fraud and the risk f invlvement in bribery IIED is required t reprt any actual r suspected serius (there is n threshld stipulated) incidents f fraud r theft t the charity cmmissin Additinally many dnr cntracts als require IIED t reprt t them fraud r suspicin f fraud The Act requires that cmmercial rganisatins (IIED is included in the definitin) have adequate prcedures in place t prevent bribery by its emplyees r assciated persns. Prcedures Reprting and Managing suspected fraud and bribery It is the respnsibility f IIED staff t reprt at the earliest pprtunity t the COO r alternatively t the Directr - any suspected cases f fraud r bribery relating t IIED s business (including the use f IIED funds by a cntractee fr these purpses). Where staff member is in any dubt abut the legitimacy f any payment t a third party, they shuld seek advice frm their Line Manager r a Grup Directr, r therwise the COO. Any decisins arising shuld be recrded, with a cpy made available t the HR department. The Directr, COO r Grup Directr will meet t agree and mnitr the fllw-up actin fr any suspected case f Fraud r Bribery invlving IIED s business. The COO will maintain a register f suspected Fraud and Bribery incidents, which will recrd actins and utcmes. The register will be reprted t the Bard s Finance, Risk & Audit Cmmittee (FARA). Guidance Staff Interests Where staff (r their immediate families) have prfessinal r persnal relatinships with partners r cnsultants ther than thse relating t nrmal IIED business, these will need t be declared s apprpriate decisins can be taken abut managing the relatinships. It is especially imprtant t d this as it will prtect the staff member where a partner is invlved in a case f suspected fraud r bribery. Staff interests shuld be declared where there is a relatinship between the Institute and an rganisatin with which a staff member has a separate relatinship, fr example as emplyee, cnsultant r trustee, r, where a member f the staff member s immediate family 3 has such a current relatinship with the rganisatin. The declaratin shuld be made t the COO. Gifts and hspitality The fllwing is intended t help staff t judge what srt f gift, and what level f hspitality is acceptable (whether giving r receiving): 3 Defined here as partner, parents, siblings, children, parents, and, parents, siblings and children f partner 5

6 T accept r give gifts r hspitality shuld always be the exceptin, hwever in general gifts r hspitality f a tken value f less than are acceptable and s any member f staff shuld ntify the COO f any gifts r hspitality abve this value fr entry n the Gifts and Hspitality Register. Exceptins t this are: Where IIED is recipient, the ffer shuld always be rejected where: It is believed the giver has an ulterir mtive; r The ffer is frm anyne wh is, r may be in the freseeable future, tendering fr any cntract with, seeking emplyment with r is in dispute with IIED, even if the specific recipient is nt directly invlved in that area. Where IIED is the giver, the ffer shuld nt be made where: It culd be perceived by a reasnable bserver that IIED has an ulterir mtive; r The recipient is smene wh is, r may be in the freseeable future, ffering dnr funding fr which IIED may be interested in applying, even if the specific recipient is nt directly invlved in that area. It is recgnised that given the nature f IIED s relatinships with its partners, it will regularly pay fr accmmdatin, subsistence, etc. as part f prject delivery (r ccasinally prvide these things in kind). Staff must therefre assess each specific set f circumstances and use their discretin in determining either that: Any f the abve exceptinal circumstances culd apply in which case the ffer shuld nt be made; r The ffer either cannt be categrically linked t the specific aims f the prject r it culd be cnstrued by an bserver as disprprtinate in which case it shuld be reviewed by the line manager invlved and if the ffer ges ahead then it must be added t the Gifts and Hspitality Register. If any member f staff is in dubt abut the acceptability f any gift r ffer f hspitality it is their respnsibility t cnsult the COO. Related plicies Whistleblwing Plicy Status Plicy apprved by Operatins Management Team n 24/03/16. Anti-Fraud and Bribery Mitigatin Measures will be reviewed and updated by OMT. T be reviewed and updated every three years by OMT and FARA. Related Frms Nne 6