THE GUARDIAN: The arms company BAE failed to pay sufficient attention to ethical standards, laying itself open to accusations of misconduct that have tarnished its reputation, Lord Woolf said today in a report.
BAE, which successfully lobbied to end a Serious Fraud Office inquiry into its multi-billion pound deals with Saudi Arabia, appointed the former lord chief justice to lead an independent committee in a review of current policies and practices.
"Critically, both the chairman and chief executive, in discussions with us, acknowledged that the company did not in the past pay sufficient attention to ethical standards and avoid activities that had the potential to give rise to reputational damage," the report said.
"Combined with this was its acceptance of conditions which constrained its ability to explain the full circumstances of its activities.
"These contributed to the widely-held perceptions that it was involved in inappropriate behaviour. They recognise that, justly or otherwise, these perceptions have damaged the company's reputation." BAE Paid Too Little Heed to Ethics, Says Report >>> By Sadie Gray, David Leigh and Rob Evans | May 6, 2008
The Dawning of a New Dark Age (Paperback - UK)
The Dawning of a New Dark Age (Hardback - UK)
