The Group conducts all its business in an honest and ethical manner and takes a zero-tolerance approach to bribery and corruption. We are committed to acting professionally, fairly and with integrity in all business dealings and relationships wherever we operate, and we will implement and enforce effective systems to counter bribery and corruption.
This policy applies to all persons working for the Company or on our behalf in any capacity, including employees at all levels, directors, officers, agency workers, casual workers, seconded workers, freelancers, volunteers, interns, agents, contractors, external consultants, third-party representatives and business partners, sponsors, or any other person associated with us, wherever located.
Any employee who breaches this policy will face disciplinary action, which could result in dismissal for gross misconduct. Any non-employee who breaches this policy may have their contract terminated with immediate effect.
The purpose of this policy is to:
Under the Bribery Act 2010, bribery and corruption are punishable for individuals, including employees and Managers by up to ten years’ imprisonment and/or an unlimited fine. In addition, if the Company, or any employee or business associate of the Company, is found to have been in breach of the Bribery Act it could face an unlimited fine as well as suffering damage to its reputation. The Company therefore takes its legal responsibilities very seriously and will uphold all laws relevant to countering bribery and corruption in all the jurisdictions in which we operate. However, we remain bound by UK laws, including the Bribery Act 2010, in respect of our conduct both at home and abroad.
In this policy, ‘third party’ means any individual or organisation you come into contact with during the course of your work for us, and includes actual and potential clients, on-screen and off-screen talent, customers, suppliers, distributors, business contacts, agents, advisers, and government and public bodies, including their advisors, representatives and officials, politicians and political parties.
The Group’s Board of Directors has overall responsibility for ensuring that this policy complies with the Company’s legal and ethical obligations, and that those under its control comply with it.
Management at all levels are responsible for ensuring that those reporting to them understand and comply with this policy.
A bribe is a financial or other inducement or reward for action which is illegal, unethical, a breach of trust or improper in any way. Bribes can take the form of money, gifts, loans, fees, hospitality, services, discounts, the award of a contract or any other advantage or benefit. Bribery includes offering, promising, providing, accepting or seeking a bribe. It is often in order to gain any commercial, contractual, regulatory or personal advantage.
All forms of bribery are strictly prohibited. If you are unsure about whether a particular act constitutes bribery, raise it with your manager or HR.
There are four types of offence set out in the Bribery Act:
You must not give or offer any payment, gift, hospitality or other benefit in the expectation that a business advantage will be received in return, or to reward any business received.
You must not accept any offer from a third party that you know, or suspect is made with the expectation that we will provide a business advantage for them or anyone else.
You must not give or offer any payment (sometimes called a facilitation payment) to a government official in any country to facilitate or speed up a routine or necessary procedure.
| Example | Giving a bribe
You offer a potential client tickets to a major sporting event, but only if they agree to do business with the Company. This would be an offence as you are making the offer to gain a commercial and contractual advantage. The Company may also be found to have committed an offence because the offer has been made to obtain business for the Company. It may also be an offence for the potential client to accept your offer. |
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| Example | Receiving a bribe
A supplier gives your nephew a job but makes it clear that in return they expect you to use your influence in the Company to ensure that it continues to do business with them. It is an offence for a supplier to make such an offer. It would be an offence for you to accept the offer as you would be doing so to gain a personal advantage. |
| Example | Bribing a foreign official
You arrange for the Company to pay an additional payment over and above what is legally required to a foreign official to speed up an administrative process, for example to obtain a filming permit, access to a location or other facilitation payment. The offence of bribing a foreign public official has been committed as soon as the offer is made. This is because it is made to gain a business advantage for the Company. The Company may also be found to have committed an offence. It is not a valid defence to say such types of additional payment are routinely made in the country in question. It is important that due diligence is carried out in relation to the identity and reputation of any fixer employed as well as the custom and practice in the country in which they are employed. Organisations such as Transparency International (www.transparency.org ) can be used in this regard. |
| Example | Bribery by an associated person
You hire a freelance cameraman to film a project in 3D using the latest technology. In fact, the technology is so new that there are only a limited number of cameras available in the UK and there is a waiting list for their use. Because of a strict shooting schedule, the cameraman offers a supplier of one of these cameras an “extra inducement” to allow him to go to the top of the waiting list, in the form of a sum of money. This constitutes a bribe made by the cameraman as an associated person to obtain a benefit for the Company and is therefore an offence under the Act. However, if the Company can show that all staff were aware that the Company does not tolerate any form of bribery and are made aware of this policy, this could be a valid defence |
Gifts and hospitality form a legitimate part of conducting business and this policy does not prohibit the giving or accepting of reasonable and appropriate hospitality for legitimate purposes such as building or maintaining good business relationships, maintaining our image or reputation, or marketing our products and services. However, if they are excessive, unduly lavish or extravagant, or could be seen as an inducement or reward for any preferential treatment, gifts and hospitality can constitute a bribe and so you must ensure that whenever you give or receive gifts and hospitality, you do so in accordance with the Company’s Gifts and Hospitality Policy set out at 6.9 below.
Any charitable donations made by or on behalf of the Company must only be made to registered charities and must be approved by the COO of the Company and recorded in the relevant part of the Gifts and Hospitality Register.
Proof of receipt of all charitable donations must be obtained from the recipient organisation. A charitable donation must not be made at the request of any party where that donation may result in improper conduct such as using the donation to bribe a third party or for any other illegal purposes.
The Company does not make political donations and the Company is not affiliated with any political party, independent candidate, or with any other organisation whose activities are primarily political and, accordingly, no donations should be made to any political organisation or individual by, or on behalf of, the Company.
You must ensure that you read, understand and comply with this Anti- Corruption and Bribery Policy together with the Gifts and Hospitality Policy and Whistleblowing Policy.
| Example | If a client or potential client offers you something to gain a business advantage with the Company or indicates to you that a gift or payment is required to secure their business. |
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It is not acceptable for you (or someone on your behalf) to:
You must avoid any activity that might lead to a facilitation payment or kickback being made or accepted by us or on our behalf, or that might suggest that such a payment will be made or accepted. If you are asked to make a payment on our behalf, you should always be mindful of what the payment is for and whether the amount requested is proportionate to the goods or services provided. You should always ask for a receipt which details the reason for the payment. If you have any suspicions, concerns or queries regarding a payment, you should raise these with the COO of the Company.
The Company must keep financial records and have appropriate internal controls in place to evidence the business reason for making payments to third parties.
You must declare and keep a written record of all hospitality or gifts accepted or offered over an estimated value of £250 in the Company’s Gifts and Hospitality Register in accordance with the Gifts and Hospitality Policy, which will be subject to a managerial review.
You must ensure all expenses claims relating to hospitality, gifts or expenses incurred to third parties are submitted in accordance with the usual expenses procedure and Gifts and Hospitality Policy operated by the local company at which you are employed or engaged and specifically record the reason for the expenditure.
All accounts, invoices, memoranda and other documents and records relating to dealings with third parties, such as clients, suppliers, and business contacts, should be prepared and maintained with strict accuracy and completeness. No accounts must be kept “off-book” to facilitate or conceal improper payments.
You are encouraged to raise concerns about any issue or suspicion of malpractice at the earliest possible stage. Concerns should be reported by following the procedure set out in the Company’s Whistleblowing Policy which is set out in this Handbook at 6.7.
If you are unsure whether a particular act constitutes bribery or corruption, or if you have any other queries these should be raised with HR. It is important that you tell a member of Human Resources as soon as possible if you are offered a bribe by a third party, are asked to make one, suspect that this may happen in the future, or believe you are a victim of another form of unlawful activity.
Anyone who refuses to accept or offer a bribe, or those who raise concerns or report another’s wrongdoing, are sometimes worried about possible repercussions. The Company encourages openness and will support anyone who raises genuine concerns in good faith.
The Company is committed to ensuring that no-one suffers any detrimental treatment as a result of refusing to take part in bribery or corruption, or because of reporting in good faith their suspicion that an actual or potential bribery or other corruption offence has taken place or may take place in the future. Detrimental treatment includes dismissal, disciplinary action, threats or other unfavourable treatment connected with raising a concern. If you believe that you have suffered any such treatment, you should inform HR.
Training on this policy will be provided as necessary by the Company.
Where appropriate, the terms of this Anti-Corruption and Bribery Policy will be brought to the attention of any supplier, contractor or business partner who deals with the Company.
This policy applies to all persons working for us or on our behalf in any capacity, including employees at all levels, directors, officers, agency workers, casual workers, seconded workers, freelancers, volunteers, interns, agents, contractors, external consultants, third-party representatives and business partners, sponsors, or any other person associated with us, wherever located.
Gifts and hospitality form a legitimate part of conducting business and this policy does not prohibit the giving or accepting of reasonable and appropriate gifts and hospitality for legitimate purposes such as building or maintaining good business relationships, maintaining our image or reputation, or marketing our products and services. However, if they are excessive, unduly lavish or extravagant, or could be seen as an inducement or reward for any preferential treatment, gifts and hospitality can constitute a bribe and so you must ensure that whenever you give or receive gifts and hospitality, you do so in accordance with this Gifts and Hospitality Policy.
Gifts include any item of value provided to a third party or their employees or received from a third party by us or our employees.
Hospitality includes any business entertaining, such as travel, accommodation, meals and invitations to events given to us and our employees or contractors by third parties or given by us to third parties.
The purpose of this Gifts and Hospitality Policy is to:
We accept that the occasional modest giving and acceptance of gifts and hospitality may be a legitimate contribution to good business relationships. However, it is essential that they do not influence, nor could be perceived as influencing, business decision making. We must all consider whether the giving or receiving of a gift or hospitality is appropriate. The giving or receipt of gifts is not prohibited if the following requirements are met:
Promotional gifts of low value such as branded stationery may be given to or accepted from existing customers, suppliers and business partners.
It is prohibited to offer or receive gifts or hospitality that could:
The Company recognises that there may be exceptional instances when refusing a gift will cause significant offence or embarrassment. In such cases, it may be more appropriate to accept the gift and then donate it to a charity of the Company’s choice. However, before doing so you must have regard to the principles of this Policy and the Anti-Corruption and Bribery Policy and ensure that in accepting any gift you are not in breach of such policies. If in doubt, please discuss with Director of HR.
The Gifts and Hospitality Policy does not prohibit normal and appropriate hospitality (given and received) to or from third parties.
The Company appreciates that the market practice of giving business gifts and corporate hospitality varies. The test to be applied is whether in all the circumstances the gift or hospitality is reasonable and justifiable. In determining this, you should consider the intention behind the gift and hospitality, taking into account the following principles:
All gifts and hospitality over an estimated value of £250, whether given or received, must be recorded in the Gifts and Hospitality Register.
Any failure by you to declare any gift or hospitality over the value of £250 will be treated as a breach of this Policy and could lead to disciplinary action being taken against you up to summary dismissal or in the case of individuals who are not employees, your engagement may be terminated forthwith. If you are unsure about the estimated value of any gift or hospitality or whether it should be recorded in the Gifts and Hospitality Register, then you should speak to the Head of Finance and/or the Finance Director of your individual production company.
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