George Monbiot is right that corruption poses a vast challenge to all economies (Let’s not fool ourselves. We may not bribe, but corruption is rife in Britain, 18 March), but he is wrong to suggest that institutions such as the World Economic Forum are standing idly by waiting for the problem to solve itself. He correctly points out that one of the major problems with tackling corruption is actually measuring it. Here, our annual survey of global executives has been successful in starting debates in countries where it is commonplace. Far better, though, to fix the international system so that loopholes and opportunities for exploitation are not there in the first place.
Our eyes are on this bigger prize, which is why we convene leaders from business, civil society and government countless times throughout the year to explore and design ways to build institutions, policies and regulatory regimes that not only promote transparency and ethics but guarantee them. It is why we encourage debate in Davos on income inequality and trust in leadership. This is not lip service: it is action in the interests of every stakeholder.
If there is anything business prizes over anything else it is predictability, and responsible corporate citizens have nothing to fear from fairness and transparency and the stable societal and political climate it tends to engender.
Oliver Cann
World Economic Forum, Geneva
• George Monbiot’s article on corruption should have mentioned the gall of the chancellor of the exchequer, George Osborne, last week when he announced that the UK plans to join the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank. As a founding member, “the UK will play a key role in ensuring that the AIIB embodies the best standards in accountability, transparency and governance”.
Dr Alex May
Manchester
