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Bribery deep-set as anti-fraud efforts lose ground, European survey finds

Almost one in five employees, irrespective of seniority, believe that bribery is an acceptable means to win or retain business according to the Ernst & Young European Fraud Survey 2011. Two thirds of the 2,300 respondents from 25 countries said that bribery and corruption was widespread in their jurisdiction, although only a quarter thought it prevalent in their own sector. There was a strong divide between mature markets, where 46% regarded bribery as commonplace in local business, and emerging markets, where the figure was 81%. A similar pattern was evident below the national level: 20% in mature markets agreed with the proposition that bribery was common in their sector, while 38% shared this view in emerging economies. Just over half (53%) of respondents thought that bribery and corruption were too widespread to be tackled, while 70% said that tougher legislation would have little or no impact on economic growth.