The Waugh Room

Wednesday 30th March 2011 | 10:54

Ken defiant on Bribery Act

Ken Clarke's not a man to bow to tabloid campaigns, let alone broadsheet or middle market ones.

The Justice Secretary is today putting out his guidance on the Bribery Act and I'm told that there has been no "watering down" of its provisions.

Clarke did put a team of senior officials on the Act (passed under Labour but with the guidance unpublished until today) to ensure that it would operate effectively and not wrap up small firms in red tape.

The CBI certainly had a strong lobbying campaign and its chief John Cridland deemed the Act "not fit for purpose" earlier this year.

Yet, while careful not to annoy business, Clarke has made clear in Whitehall that he was not backing down in his determination to bring the UK into line with global best practice on anti-corruption measures.

Allies stress that the regulations have not been delayed, as commonly reported, as they were always due in "the Spring". "We're still in March, I think that's the Spring," said one, acidly.

Some in Government are blaming Number 10 for sending mixed messages on the Act, messages that prompted the OECD to warn against any weakening of the changes.

It sounds unfashionable to say it, but apparently some businesses such as Balfour Beatty and BAe actually wanted the Act because it would help them to meet stringent US regulations, which some have seen as a gentle form of protectionism. The Germans too have tough anti-bribery rules.

At a time when we're taking the moral high ground in Libya, watering down this act would have sent a terrible signal, some in Government say. As with his principled insistence on adhering to the ECHR ruling on prisoner votes, he thinks the UK has to show some consistency and respect for global rules.

Clarke was aware that some firms were worried about the Act, but insiders say that there have been plenty of red herrings with false claims that hospitality and gifts would be made illegal.

The key safeguard is that no prosecution can take place without passing a tight 'public interest' test and would anyway need the DPP's personal approval.

Today's guidance makes clear that a "risk based" approach will apply to small businesses so they needn't worry about offering Wembley boxes or free tickets to the O2 to clients. I hear that some of those lobbying hardest against the Act were really worried that they couldn't give freebies to pals in their director's boxes at big events - or even invite them to country shoots.

Yet what Clarke was most infuriated by was the recent huge industry that grew up among lawyers selling advice on how to protect your business from the Act. The 'compliance' lobby were stuffing the red herrings into businesses' mouths and pocketing £1,500 an hour for the privilege.

Let's see how today is spun. But in Clarke's eyes, it's certainly not even a partial U-turn.