Government confirms Bribery Act will come into force April 2011

During the passage of the Bribery Bill through Parliament, the previous Government had indicated that its guidance on "adequate procedures" would be likely to be published early in the new parliamentary session and that businesses would then be given at least three months to ensure their procedures met the requirements of the legislation. This had led to speculation that the corporate offence would come into force in October or by the end of the year at latest. The timetable appears to have slipped slightly and the new Government have taken the view that it would be best to bring all the offences into force at the same time.

The Ministry of Justice has also confirmed that a "short consultation exercise" will commence in September 2010 concerning the guidance, suggesting there will be an opportunity for interested parties to comment on the Government's proposals in this regard. The statutory guidance will then "be published early in the New Year to allow businesses an adequate familiarisation period before the Act commences". The Ministry of Justice press release can be found here.

This announcement gives welcome certainty concerning the timetable for the offences under the Bribery Act to come into force. It will assist businesses to plan for meeting the new demands of the legislation and ensure their policies and procedures will be adequate to prevent bribery. However, the announcement does not provide any further clarity as to the content of the guidance and it remains to be seen whether the Government's proposals will go beyond broad principles. In the meantime, a number of industry bodies and organisations are publishing their guidance on implementing "adequate procedures" and this announcement should not deter businesses from taking steps now to review and implement any necessary changes to their systems and controls.