Don’t let arms traders off the hook
Don't let the rich and powerful buy exemptions from justice, says Symon Hill
The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) has dropped their corruption investigations into the arms company BAE Systems in return for an admission of guilt over ‘accounting irregularities’ and a payout of over £30 million. Given the millions that they rake in each year, this is roughly the equivalent of the Inland Revenue fining someone £100 for submitting a late tax return. The situation is a slight improvement on 2006, when BAE lobbied Tony Blair’s government into pressurising the SFO to drop its investigation into Saudi arms deals. At least this time a (tiny) payout and a (ludicrous) confession were required.
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