Legal review of overseas bribery

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Bribing officials in foreign countries should be made a criminal offence, a report by the Law Commission has said.

The government advisory body believes British citizens and UK residents should be held liable for bribes used to promote business overseas.

The commission said claiming it was local custom to bribe officials in a country should not be a defence.

The report authors, who are reviewing all bribery laws, said the current legislation was "causing confusion".

Global business

Professor Jeremy Horder, the commissioner in charge of the review, said he wanted to sort out the problem of bribing in foreign countries "once and for all".

"At present the numerous and overlapping statutes are causing confusion.

"Furthermore, personal liability for bribery committed outside England and Wales is confined to British nationals, despite the fact that many foreign nationals now reside in London and conduct their global business from there."

There is general agreement that the law is in need of reform but little consensus on how it can best be achieved Law Commission spokeswoman

The Anti-Terrorism, Crime and Security Act 2001, brought into force in 2002, made it illegal to carry out a corruption offence overseas.

But, in its report, the Law Commission has highlighted what it sees as shortcomings in the current legislation.

A foreign citizen living in England and Wales cannot be convicted of overseas bribery offences, and neither can a Briton who helps a foreigner living in the UK to commit such a crime, the report said.

Instead, the commission is proposing a new offence of bribery, which would be clearly-defined and would apply to both British citizens and residents whether the crime was committed in the UK or abroad.

Those receiving or soliciting the bribe would also be liable for prosecution.

'Different interpretations'

A defence claiming bribes were local custom or that such activities were tolerated by local authorities would not be accepted.

However, one possible defence could be that it was an "emergency payment", such as in a bid to avoid physical harm, the report said.

A spokeswoman for the Law Commission said concepts used in current laws were not "clearly defined, leaving them open to very different judicial interpretations".

She added: "In addition, although bribery in the public and private sectors is in some respects treated differently under the law, it is not at all clear where the boundaries lie.

"There is general agreement that the law is in need of reform but little consensus on how it can best be achieved."

The Law Commission paper is open to consultation until 20 March, when it will prepare a final report for ministers.