Last month, the Bribery Prevention Network (BPN) held its official Melbourne launch at KPMG offices, bringing together representatives from government, the private sector and law enforcement to share perspectives on how businesses can best navigate bribery and corruption risks.
Businesses are facing increasing scrutiny in how they respond to foreign bribery and corruption risks and regulatory requirements in today’s global markets. Legislative reform, a changing regulatory landscape and substantial financial penalties for non-compliance make strong corruption and bribery frameworks essential for businesses. This is especially the case for small to medium enterprises who may have limited resources to address bribery risk.
The Melbourne launch event featured a panel discussion moderated by KPMG’s Dean Mitchell (Partner, Audit, Assurance & Risk Consulting Forensic) with guest speakers:
- Jeldee Robertson, Coordinator, Corporate Crime and Foreign Bribery, Crime Command, Australian Federal Police, and
- Nigel Incoll, Group Anti-Bribery & Corruption Officer, Financial Crime, Compliance and Conduct, Westpac
Following the panel, participants engaged with a case study produced by Allens about the prosecution of conduct involving bribery of foreign public officials that had occurred in a high risk jurisdiction. The facts in the case were distilled from a recent real-life conviction of a company for foreign bribery in the NSW Supreme Court and Court of Criminal Appeal.
The need to prevent, detect and address foreign bribery risks was discussed in the context of the case study. Attendees were also asked to consider questions around how foreign bribery risks could have been mitigated. This encouraged thinking about enhancing compliance, conducting appropriate risk assessments and ensuring effective monitoring and auditing of business activities. This practical, group discussion-based experience provided valuable information to participants about how they can address foreign bribery and corruption risk in their own industries.
Attendees had the opportunity network with each other in small groups and share their perspectives on how their organisations manage bribery risks. The BPN looks forward to organising more in-person events that equip SMEs with the skills and tools to prevent, detect and address bribery and corruption in their organisations.
Subscribe to the Bribery Prevention Network here.
About the Bribery Prevention Network
The Bribery Prevention Network is a public-private partnership that brings together business, civil society, academia and government with the shared goal of supporting Australian business to prevent, detect and address bribery and corruption and promote a culture of compliance.
The BPN offers a free online portal of accessible, relevant and reliable resources, curated by Australia’s leading anti-bribery experts, to support Australian business to manage bribery and corruption risks in domestic and international markets.
UN Global Compact Network Australia is the host organisation of the BPN, and the contributing organisations are: Australia-Africa Minerals and Energy Group (AAMEG), Australian Federal Police (AFP), Allens Linklaters, ANZ, Australian Government Attorney-General’s Department, BHP, Commonwealth Bank, KPMG, Minerals Council of Australia, NAB, Transparency International Australia, Westpac.
