In response to the Bribery Act (2010), the University has developed a policy against bribery and corruption. The Department in turn has established procedures for the registration of interests, gifts and hospitality in order to manage and avoid the potential for conflict.
Training
The University has developed a short online course that guides you through the scope of the Act and highlights some of the situations that you should be aware of. The course is aimed at all members of staff – especially those involved at any level in procurement or in seeking donations or research funding, or those involved in international activities. It should take about 20 minutes to complete (followed by a short assessment) and should be completed annually.
Registration of gifts and hospitality
Staff must ensure that: (a) neither their conduct of University Business; nor (b) the conduct of any person or organization entering into any contract or arrangement with the University contravenes the Bribery Act 2010. There are four offences under the Bribery Act:
- bribing another person;
- being bribed;
- bribing a foreign public official; and
- failure to prevent bribery.
Staff must not use their authority or office for personal gain and must always seek to uphold and enhance the standing of the University. (Extract from Paragraph 2.2, Financial Regulations, Chapter XIII, University of Cambridge Ordinances).
You must register any gifts received/given in excess of GBP25 or any hospitality received/given in excess of GBP50. An exemption will be granted for a gift or hospitality that exceeds these limits if it is clear that they could not create nor have created a conflict. Advice will be given in other cases.
If you have no gifts or hospitality to register, a ‘null return’ should be made using the link below.
The information you register will be held by the Department, with access restricted to the Head of Department and designated members of the Research and Finance Office.
Registration of interests
Staff must declare to their Head of Department any personal interest, which may affect any University Business and act in accordance with the instructions given as to management of any conflict (Paragraph 2.3, Financial Regulations, Chapter XIII, University of Cambridge Ordinances).
You must register any interest that has the potential to conflict with the interests of the University (e.g. directorship, consultancy, shareholding).
When considering whether there is the potential to conflict, the following guidelines may be helpful. A shareholding in a single company that is greater than or equal to 5% must be declared. Any shareholding of less than 5% in a single company must also be declared, if there is potential for the University to engage in business with the company, unless the shareholding forms part of a managed investment/pension fund and the investor plays no role in directing the manager to buy or sell specific shares within the portfolio.
If you have no interests to register, a ‘null return’ should be made using the link below.
The information you register will be held by the Department, with access restricted to the Head of Department and designated members of the Research and Finance Office.