Personnel Risk:

Very Low

Score:

87/100

Leadership Behaviour

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Q34 58/100

Do the Defence Ministry, Defence Minister, Chiefs of Defence, and Single Service Chiefs publicly commit, through, for example, speeches, media interviews, or political mandates, to anti-corruption and integrity measures?

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Chiefs/Ministers: Internal communications Score: 75 / 100
According to the MoD, senior officials regularly refer to anti-corruption in strategic internal communications. Officials are heavily involved in awareness raising campaigns and provide…
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Chiefs/Ministers: Public commitment Score: 50 / 100
Public statements by the Secretary of Defence and other top officials demonstrating a commitment to integrity and anti-corruption measures are rare [1]. In 2016,…
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Unit commanders and leaders Score: 50 / 100
Values & Standards training (which includes Integrity) is mandatory for Service personnel. Elements of the MoD are required to undertake mandatory fraud awareness training…
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Q35 100/100

Are there effective measures in place for personnel found to have taken part in forms of bribery and corruption, and is there evidence that these measures are being carried out?

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Sanctions Score: 100 / 100
The Bribery Act 2010 [1] criminalises bribery and sets clearly defined offences in law that apply to the defence sector. These offences cover the…
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Enforcement Score: 100 / 100
The Ministry of Defence Police investigate corruption involving the Ministry’s employees (including members of the UK’s armed forces) or contracts [1]. Instances of bribery…
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Q36 75/100

Is whistleblowing encouraged by the government, and are whistle-blowers in military and defence ministries afforded adequate protection from reprisal for reporting evidence of corruption, in both law and practice?

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Legal provisions Score: 75 / 100
The main legal framework through which whistleblowing is addressed in the UK is the Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998 (PIDA), however, it only applies…
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Prioritisation Score: 100 / 100
The Ministry of Defence has a confidential hotline that can be used to raise concerns about fraud, damage to the environment, breaches of legal…
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Effectiveness Score: 50 / 100
A recent report by the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) has expressed concern regarding PIDA’s capability to adequately protect whistleblowers [1]. Drawing upon the findings…
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Q37 58/100

Is special attention paid to the selection, time in post, and oversight of personnel in sensitive positions, including officials and personnel in defence procurement, contracting, financial management, and commercial management?

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Coverage of sensitive (higher-risk) positions Score: 75 / 100
Personnel in sensitive positions are vetted to ensure operational effectiveness, and mitigating corruption risk falls within scope of this objective. However, there is limited…
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Selection process Score: 75 / 100
MoD fraud prevention mechanisms include “the rotation of staff through posts, the separation of duties between those authorising and paying for work and well-established…
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Oversight Score: 25 / 100
DE&S runs CE chaired Function Performance panels which provides top level oversight of the effective operation of the Functions. In DE&S the Function matrix…
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Payroll, Promotions, Appointments, Rewards

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Q38 100/100

Is the number of civilian and military personnel accurately known and publicly available?

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Accuracy Score: 100 / 100
The number of civilian and military personnel is updated on a quarterly basis. The UK Armed Forces Quarterly Service Personnel Statistics publication provides information…
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Transparency Score: 100 / 100
The UK Armed Forces Quarterly Service Personnel Statistics publication contains information on the number of civilian and military personnel, disaggregated by rank bracket [1].
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Ghost soldiers Score: 100 / 100
A review of media sources, Hansard, as well as an interview, indicate that there is no evidence to suggest that the UK military has…
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Q39 100/100

Are pay rates and allowances for civilian and military personnel openly published?

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Pay rates Score: 100 / 100
Pay rates for all civilian and military personnel, disaggregated by rank, are publicly available [1, 2, 3].
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Allowances Score: 100 / 100
The ‘Tri-Service Regulations for Expenses and Allowances’ and the ‘Guide to expenses and allowances for service personnel’ contain information on allowances for all civilian…
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Q40 92/100

Do personnel receive the correct pay on time, and is the system of payment well-established, routine, and published?

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Timeliness Score: 100 / 100
With the exception of a payroll glitch that delayed receiving of a bonus in 2018, there is no indication to suggest that there are…
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Accuracy Score: 75 / 100
The majority of the time, military personnel receive the correct pay on time and there are no systemic issues in the salary payment system…
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Transparency Score: 100 / 100
The payment and allowances system is openly published. It includes all of the following: pay brackets for all ranks, disaggregated by seniority; details on…
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Q41 92/100

Is there an established, independent, transparent, and objective appointment system for the selection of military personnel at middle and top management level?

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Formal process Score: 100 / 100
Section 10 of the Constitutional Reform and Governance Act 2010 requires the selection of people for appointment to the Civil Service to be ‘on…
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Scrutiny Score: 75 / 100
Some high-level appointments at the MoD are subject to pre-appointment scrutiny by the House of Commons [1]. The People Committee was established to provide…
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Transparency Score: 100 / 100
Information on the appointment process is publicly available and includes the selection criteria for each rank [1, 2].
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Q42 81/100

Are personnel promoted through an objective, meritocratic process? Such a process would include promotion boards outside of the command chain, strong formal appraisal processes, and independent oversight.

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Formal process Score: 100 / 100
Personnel promotions are conducted through formal appraisal processes and promotions boards for all personnel, and rank promotion is clearly defined [1]. Promotions to senior…
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Exceptions Score: 100 / 100
Promotion Selection Boards will consider, very exceptionally, any Captain/Colonel, Commander/Lieutenant Colonel, Lieutenant Commander/Major or Lieutenant/Captain who, although above or below the zone, is recommended…
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Comprehensiveness Score: 50 / 100
The list of senior military personnel is publicly available and it includes name, rank, job title as well as other details (not relevant for…
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Frequency Score: 75 / 100
Research did not identify any centralised portal/database where posted promotions would be regularly published. Promotions are occasionally reported in the news section of the…
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Conscription and Recruitment

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Q43 NA/100

Where compulsory conscription occurs, is there a policy of not accepting bribes for avoiding conscription? Are there appropriate procedures in place to deal with such bribery, and are they applied?

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Policy Score: NA / 100
Compulsory conscription does not occur in the UK [1]. This is therefore Not Applicable.
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Sanctions Score: NA / 100
Compulsory conscription does not occur in the UK [1]. This is therefore Not Applicable.
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Enforcement Score: NA / 100
Compulsory conscription does not occur in the UK [1]. This is therefore Not Applicable.
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Q44 100/100

is there a policy of refusing bribes to gain preferred postings? Are there appropriate procedures in place to deal with such bribery, and are they applied?

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Policy Score: 100 / 100
The Bribery Act 2010 [1] criminalises any type of bribery (including for soliciting preffered postings) and sets clearly defined offences in law that apply…
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Sanctions Score: 100 / 100
The penalties for committing a crime under the Act are a maximum of 10 years’ imprisonment, along with an unlimited fine, and the potential…
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Enforcement Score: NA / 100
This indicator has been marked Not Applicable, as no cases of bribery were identified. Out of the few UK military-related corruption cases reported in…
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Salary Chain

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Q45 100/100

Are chains of command separate from chains of payment?

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Score: 100 / 100
Pay16 – ‘The Armed Forces Pay Model’, separates chains of command and chains of payment throughout the ministry and armed forces [1].
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Values and Standards

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Q46 81/100

Is there a Code of Conduct for all military personnel that includes, but is not limited to, guidance with respect to bribery, gifts and hospitality, conflicts of interest, and post-separation activities? Is there evidence that breaches of the Code of Conduct are effectively addressed?

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Code of conduct Score: 100 / 100
The Army Leadership Code [1] makes reference to integrity as one of the Army’s core values, however it does not address corruption or offer…
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Transparency Score: 100 / 100
The Queen’s regulations for the Army, Air Force, and Navy, are available for public access online. The Army, Air Force, and Navy’s Values and…
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Enforcement Score: 50 / 100
The Army’s Values and Standards document states that ‘every breach of Values and Standards requires prompt and unambiguous action to be taken’ [1]. Similarly,…
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Training Score: 75 / 100
Evidence suggests that guidance on the Army’s Values and Standards document, which covers integrity as one of the core values, is provided upon induction…
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Q47 88/100

Is there a Code of Conduct for all civilian personnel that includes, but is not limited to, guidance with respect to bribery, gifts and hospitality, conflicts of interest, and post-separation activities? Is there evidence that breaches of the Code of Conduct are effectively addressed?

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Code of conduct Score: 100 / 100
Civilian Personnel are subject to the Civil Service Code [1], which has statutory underpinning by virtue of the Constitutional Reform and Governance Act 2010…
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Transparency Score: 100 / 100
The Civil Service Code, the Civil Service Management Code as well as the Personnel Manual are publicly available [1][2][3]. These codes are also available…
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Enforcement Score: 50 / 100
There is little publicly available information on the enforcement of the Civil Service Code of conduct within defence institutions. The Civil Service Commission hears…
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Training Score: 100 / 100
Guidance on the Civil Service Code is publicly available on various government websites [1, 2]. In addition, the MoD’s Fraud, Bribery and Corruption training…
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Q48 83/100

Does regular anti-corruption training take place for military and civilian personnel?

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Comprehensiveness Score: 75 / 100
The UK is part of “Building Integrity”, a NATO-led capacity building programme providing practical tools to help nations strengthen integrity, transparency and accountability, and…
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Regularity Score: 75 / 100
Evidence suggests that the training provided within ‘Building Integrity’ is delivered five to six times annually for senior military officers and officials [1]. Outside…
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Coverage of personnel Score: 100 / 100
Evidence suggests that the training provided within ‘Building Integrity’ is delivered only for senior military officers and officials [1]. Other rank brackets receive some…
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Q49 100/100

Is there a policy to make public outcomes of the prosecution of defence services personnel for corrupt activities, and is there evidence of effective prosecutions in recent years?

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Policy Score: 100 / 100
There is a policy to make outcomes of all prosecutions publicly available. The Military Court Service publishes court martial results from the military court…
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Transparency Score: 100 / 100
Both the charges and results of prosecutions are made publicly available [1]. For court martials, information is released to public as matter of course.…
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Effectiveness Score: 100 / 100
There is no evidence to incidate that there is any undue political influence when cases are investigated [1]. Cases are investigated through formal processes.
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Q50 83/100

Are there effective measures in place to discourage facilitation payments (which are illegal in almost all countries)?

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Legal framework Score: 75 / 100
The law is insufficiently clear on the issue of facilitation payments. As per Sect.13 of chapter 23 of the Bribery Act: 13. Defence for…
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Enforcement Score: 75 / 100
Cases are investigated through formal processes and prosecutions are made publicly available [1]. There is no substantive concern expressed from independent commentators over undue…
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Prevalence Score: 100 / 100
A review of the list of prosecutions under the Bribery Act for the last 6 years suggests that faciliation payments in general are very…
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