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2024 has undoubtedly been one of the most important years in Western politics, with both the US and the UK having a general election and a change in power. Though both political climates are vastly different, there is an underlying theme of corruption, lobbying, and cronyism. This article aims to raise awareness about political corruption, its impact, and how it can be tackled. Awareness which would lead to the increasing of political integrity, trust within governments, and general politics within the UK and the US.
What is Political Corruption?
Corruption is generally defined as the misuse of public authority, political corruption in this article will be defined as the use of powers by government officials or their network contracts for illegitimate private gains. Forms of corruption vary but can include: bribery, lobbying, extortion, cronyism and embezzlement. It is worth noting that some practices are illegal but are not defined as corruption as they are not linked to political power, these include: money laundering, fraud, the narcotics trade, and smuggling.
Why Should You Care?
Political corruption is not just within the halls of Westminster, it can manifest anywhere; from businesses to the courts, media to civil societies, involving anyone and happening in the shadows. A Politician’s role is to represent their constituents, we as voters should be able to hold the power to make decisions for the common good. Political integrity means the consistent exercise of political power in the public interest, independently of private interests, and not using power to preserve their own wealth and position.
Corruption Within the United Kingdom
A key legislative Act tackling corruption in the UK is the Bribery Act 2010, which provides a comprehensive scope of cover regarding bribery in both the public and private sectors. Including the prohibition of: offering, giving, receiving, or requesting bribes, and introduces a new corporate offence for failing to prevent bribery. The Act applies to UK citizens, residents, and companies, regardless of international boundaries as to the occurrence of the bribery, boasting an extraterritorial reach. The Act possesses the capability to enforce strict penalties, where individuals can face up to 10 years in prison for their actions, with corporations also able to face unlimited fines. With the Act’s focus on corporate governance, it promotes the implementation of “adequate procedures” to prevent bribery by companies.
However, the view can be taken that the Act fails to cover the ‘grey’ areas of corruption, particularly within politics, particularly the issues of lobbying, gifts, or campaign financing, with these matters concerning the subtle influencing of Politicians. These issues are recurring ones, with the press recently not shying away from criticising UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer for, most notably the receipt of gifts, resulting in his later repayment of the alleged that he received. Lobbying plays a significant part in political corruption, especially when it comes to issue-focused groups, at times very much known to directly lobby and target ministers. Across the board, lobbying and campaign finance in the UK often comes with a bad connotation. When considering the ethical implications of lobbying, it is worth noting the nuanced nature of it. Political candidates typically run a relatively small campaign, focusing primarily on their constituents, donating to a campaign does not necessarily mean corruption or bribery. It can be said that there’s a fine line between corruption and lobbying, and campaign financing. Individuals should have the ability to donate and support causes that they are passionate about without being ostracised. The issue often comes when individuals or think-tanks expect a favour in return of their donation.
In the United States
A widely understood phenomenon is the significance of campaign funding, which blurs the lines of political corruption and donations. However, funding a candidate does not directly translate that the ideal policy would be in their manifesto. Though there is a strong relationship between the ideological position of the interest groups and the ideological position of the candidates to whom they offer contributions, most interest groups have been seen to donate to both candidates, particularly ones with a sector focus.
A contentious issue of campaign finance in the US are super PACs, officially known as “independent expenditure-only political action committees”, practically running the American elections and bankrolling political campaigns. While Super PACs enable significant political participation and free speech, as protected by the First Amendment, their influence can contribute to perceptions of political corruption. super PACs can raise and spend unlimited amounts of money to support or oppose candidates, provided they do not coordinate directly with the candidates, or their campaigns. With them often relying on large donations from wealthy individuals and/or corporations.
A few factors should be considered on whether super PACs add to political corruption . Firstly, they demonstrate a disproportionate influence as they allow wealthy individuals and organisations to exert outsized influence over elections, and policy outcomes. This was mostly recently seen at the US election, with the super pac ‘America PAC’, which has been receiving amounts ranging from $500,000 to $1 million, from tech giants like Elon Musk. This creates a perception that political decisions favour donors over the general public. Secondly, Super PACs have a lack of transparency, with some are funded through “dark money” organisations, which do not disclose their donors.
It is worth considering that super PACs do not directly represent corruption as they are independent entities, with no direct evidence that donations explicitly “buy” political decisions or policies, though indirect influence is much harder to measure. Additionally, supporters argue that super PACs embody free speech rights, with their enablement of individuals and organisations to express their views and support for candidates.
Concluding Thoughts
Before making up your mind about whether super PACs or lobbyist groups equate to the occurrence of political corruption, it is important to highlight that neither constitute outright corruption in the legal sense, but they can be seen to contribute to an environment where access to wealth often translates into political power. This results in the causation of an erosion of trust in democratic institutions and gives the appearance of a political system that is skewed towards the elite’s interests.
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