12.1 Penalties under Bribery Act 2010
The maximum penalty for an individual committing bribery is ten years’ imprisonment (section 11, Bribery Act 2010). For a commercial organisation that is involved in bribery, the penalty could be an unlimited fine. If the prosecuted organisation agrees to the conditions set by the prosecutor, such as paying a financial penalty, the prosecutor may suspend the prosecution under a deferred prosecution agreement (DPA). In this case, the organisation does not offer a formal admission of guilt. However, if the organisation did not satisfy the conditions, the prosecution would continue.
In Activity 5, you will need to identify whether bribery exists in the given scenario.
Activity 5 Bribery
The purpose of this activity is to test your understanding of bribery.
Consider this scenario.
A manager at Brighton plc, who has overall responsibility for the procurement of a service that is subject to tender, is approached by the current supplier, Kent plc. Kent plc offers the manager a day trip to Liverpool, including dinner at a fine dining restaurant and a trip on a ferry cruise. Kent plc says this is to thank the manager for his business relationship.
Using the text box below, write about 100 words advising the manager as to whether accepting this offer constitutes bribery, explaining your reasoning.
Feedback
This could be interpreted as an attempt to influence the manager’s actions in the current tendering process, asking the manager to act contrary to their duties. Therefore, this is not corporate hospitality and may be considered as bribery under the Bribery Act 2010. Only reasonable and proportionate hospitality and gifts used to promote the business are allowed. This offer should not be accepted.