Financial Crime and Development

HC 847, Eleventh Report of Session 2010-12, Volume I: Report Together with Formal Minutes, Oral and Written Evidence

Author:

House of Commons - International Development Committee (IDC)

Publisher:

TSO (The Stationery Office)

Price: £13.50

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'Financial Crime and Development (HC 847)' calls on the Government of Tanzania to bring individuals to court to answer allegations that corrupt payments were made during the sale of an air traffic control system by British Aerospace Engineering (BAE) Systems. The Select Committee successfully pressured BAE Systems in the summer to honour its agreement with the Serious Fraud Office and make a full transfer instead of phased payments of £29.5 million.

The Committee believes it is essential that all those involved in financial crime are dealt with appropriately, and that where there is a case to answer individuals are brought before the courts. The Committee welcomes the Government of Tanzania's plans to bring individuals before the courts. The Committee recommends that future settlements made by the Serious Fraud Office - as a result of plea bargaining in relation to financial crimes - should be drawn much more tightly than the agreement concluded with BAE Systems.

Future settlement agreements should be explicit about what the company is required to do and by when. The report raises concerns that the payment for the 'benefit of the people of Tanzania' remained outstanding more than eight months after the Court hearing, and that BAE Systems envisaged spreading payment over a period of years, describing the payments as 'our money'.

After pressure from the Committee, BAE has now agreed to make the £29.5 million payment to the Government of Tanzania to provide textbooks and school equipment. The Department For International Development (DFID) is finalising the necessary arrangements for the procurement and delivery and the IDC has pledged to monitor how the money is spent and help ensure that the funds are used for the benefit of the people of Tanzania.

The report also recommends that the Government publish an annual Anti-Corruption Report listing what the Government is doing to combat international corruption, including transnational financial crimes.

Extent	65 pages	ISBN	9780215038845
Size	A4	Price	£13.50
Format	Paperback	Published	30 Nov 2011
Availability	Colour copy: 3 - 5 days	Delivery	Delivery options and charges