'Failure to prevent fraud' offence could include false or misleading ESG statements

With climate change among the most urgent concerns of our time, pressures on firms to meet regulatory, investor and consumer demands for sustainability are only going to grow. Annabel Reoch and Sophia Devaney of KPMG explore how organisations that make ESG misrepresentations could fall foul of the UK's new 'failure to prevent fraud' offence.

Annabel Reoch (www.kpmg.com/uk/en/home/contacts/r/annabel-reoch.html) is a partner and UK head of Anti-bribery and Corruption investigation and compliance for KPMG LLP. Sophia Devaney is a London-based manager with the firm.

With climate change among the most urgent concerns of our time, pressures on firms to meet regulatory, investor and consumer demands for sustainability are only going to grow. Annabel Reoch and Sophia Devaney of KPMG explore how organisations that make ESG misrepresentations could fall foul of the UK's new 'failure to prevent fraud' offence.