Former fraud chief Richard Alderman quits OECD bribery group

A former director of the UK's Serious Fraud Office, Richard Alderman, has stepped down from an OECD advisory group on bribery after anti-corruption campaigners complained about his appointment.

The campaigners wrote last week to the Paris-based OECD, which aims to promote sustainable growth, to express "serious disappointment" over Mr Alderman's selection.

Corruption Watch's UK and South African arms, Global Witness, Right2Know South Africa, The Corner House and Campaign Against Arms Trade said, in a letter to OECD secretary-general Angel Gurria, that the former SFO director should not be a part of the panel because he championed opaque civil settlements with companies over prosecutions and agreed to "irregular" redundancy payments for senior staff members without Whitehall approval, a move that led to a parliamentary inquiry and heavy criticism

"We do not believe that Richard Alderman's appointment will instil confidence in the OECD's review process," the campaign groups said. "We believe it will undermine confidence in the impartiality and integrity of the OECD's bribery work and in its ability to oversee the implementation of the anti-bribery convention."

Mr Alderman did not respond to requests for comment.

He led the SFO from 2008-12, when several big cases were opened, only to be quietly shut several years later. Several senior staff departed for private practice during his tenure.

The OECD said the role was not a paid post and the members were asked to provide advice on how governments could create effective anti-corruption policies. Other members include Nancy Boswell, the former president and chief executive of Transparency International USA; Peter Solmssen, the former general counsel of Siemens; Neville Tiffen, the former global head of compliance at Rio Tinto; and Jorge Hage, a former minister of state and comptroller-general of Brazil.

"The group, which currently comprises 10 members from various countries, is expected to play a consultative role to the secretary-general of the OECD," the Paris-based group said. "It is an informal group."

Mr Alderman tried to usher in a new era at the SFO during his tenure, where companies were urged to come forward and co-operate with admissions of overseas corruption in exchange for leniency in civil settlements. The move was partly driven by the SFO's shrinking budget, which Mr Alderman said made it difficult to pursue cases.

In a settlement he negotiated with BAE Systems, closing a long-running probe into allegations of bribery around the world, Mr Alderman gave the company immunity from any further probe on previous conduct.

The BAE deal "was criticised by the judge in the sentencing court and by the OECD working group on bribery itself", the campaign groups said in their letter. "There was considerable outcry over the settlement and the perception that justice was not done in any meaningful way with regards to BAE's alleged corruption."

The groups said the OECD should appoint experts who could review the effectiveness of civil settlements in bribery cases, "and who do not have pre-existing bias towards them".

Mr Alderman has also been criticised over a botched investigation into the Tchenguiz brothers, which was dropped and led to a £300m damages claim against the agency; over several incidents of lost documents; and for a fine last year over wrongly-reclaimed value added tax on fees paid to barristers during his tenure.

The agency, now led by David Green, has tried to rebrand itself as a tough prosecutor. It is investigating alleged wrongdoing at Tesco, Barclays, Rolls-Royce, ENRC and GlaxoSmithKline, and prosecuting several Alstom units and former directors. The first trial over alleged rigging of the London interbank offered rate (Libor), against a former UBS trader, is scheduled to begin in London this month.

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