Serious Fraud investigations into two British companies

This entry was posted on Saturday, July 30th, 2011 at 6:25 pm

A publishing firm has been ordered to pay £11.3 million after the Serious fraud office began an investigation into a report made by the World Bank.

Macmillan Publishers were ordered to pay the substantial fine by the High Court for its ?unlawful conduct? relating to its education division in East and West Africa. The report made by the World Bank said that Macmillan had made bribery payments when setting up a deal to print text books in Sudan.

The BBC reported that Macmillan?s chief executive Annette Thomas said: ?The company deeply regrets what has passed, but has learned from the experience and has emerged strong as an organisation.?

The Serious Fraud Office has also been investigating the alleged corruption of another British company. BAE Systems, the arms and aircraft manufacturer has been heavily criticised by a UK parliamentary inquiry surrounding an air traffic control deal with Tanzania, labelled a ?complete sham.?

The firm admitted not keeping full financial records of an £8 million payment it made to an agent who brokered the deal. Neither BAE or the Serious Fraud Office could say whether the £8 million was used for bribery to seal the sale of the air traffic control system. BAE agreed with the Serious Fraud office to make a £30 million payment to the Tanzanian people.

BAE?s lawyer, Philip Bramwell said the company sincerely apologised for events of the past and he agreed it would not make payments similar to the £8 million again.