Sussex Salon returns to discuss corruption in the UK
By: Eleanor Griggs
Last updated: Wednesday, 8 June 2016
The Sussex Salon series returned to the Brighton Dome’s Studio Theatre this month, as a panel of experts and academics tackled the issue of corruption in the UK.
Robert Barrington from Transparency International UK joined Dr Liz David-Barrett and Professor Dan Hough, both from the Sussex Centre for the Study of Corruption, on a panel chaired by former Pro Vice Chancellor Professor John Dearlove on 4 November 2015.
Introducing the panel to a packed Studio Theatre, Professor Dearlove quickly invited them to share initial observations about the presence of corruption in the UK.
Robert Barrington, whose areas of professional expertise include the Bribery Act and corruption in the UK, was the first to concede that the country has a corruption problem.
He said: “Every single country in the world has a corruption problem – to different degrees, but fundamentally, it’s always there.”
He pointed to “corrupt capital” – money flowing into the country from other corrupt nations – as an example, going on to explain that such money has been used to pay for a range of goods and services in the UK, including houses, football clubs and private school education.
Robert’s comments were echoed by the other members of the panel, with Dr Liz David-Barrett also citing the allocation of social housing and the award of local government contracts as areas which have been blighted by corruption.
As with previous Sussex Salon events, the audience were also asked for their input throughout the evening.
Before inviting questions from the floor, Professor Dearlove asked attendees if they thought the UK had a corruption problem. Of the respondents, 46% thought it “definitely” did; 51% agreed that it did “to some extent”; and 2% were unsure.
It was later revealed that the UK charted as the fourteenth least corrupt country in Transparency International’s Corruption Perceptions Index, a league table which measures the perceived levels of public sector corruption in 175 countries and territories.
The UK’s rank in the Index places them ahead of Denmark (1), Switzerland (5), Canada (10) and Germany (12) in the corruption stakes. An alarming 60% of the audience believed they have experienced corruption first hand, with attendees later suggesting that money laundering and favouritism are the most serious types of corruption the UK faces.
The event concluded with a lively discussion between the audience and the panel, with issues such as corruption in local government and the MPs’ expenses scandal among the hot topics.
The evening was the latest in the Sussex Salon series, which was launched by the School of Law, Politics and Sociology in 2010 as an “alternative evening out”, highlighting research at the University of Sussex that engages with contemporary issues.
The series will return on Tuesday, 1 March 2016, as a fresh panel debates whether the UK should adopt a right to die principle.