Our research covered in the i newspaper
The Centre's latest briefing, on the revolving door between government and the private sector, is covered in this morning's i newspaper.
The briefing – Redefining corruption – by Professor David Whyte and Dr David Ellis of the University of Liverpool – reports on an online survey of 1,745 people, conducted by the polling organisation YouGov.
According to the briefing:
- 73% agreed that ex-ministers should be banned from joining company boards if it meant they were profiting from experience gained while in office.
- 75% felt that ex-civil servants should not become paid advisers to companies they have had a close working relationship with while in government.
- 62% wanted a ban on accountancy companies using insider knowledge to advise clients on how to avoid tax.
The briefing also looks at public attitudes towards government contracts with private sector providers:
- 68% were in favour of a ban on Private Finance Initiative (PFI) contracts for buildings like new hospitals and schools, because of the large profits made on such deals by the private sector.
- In the case of private companies being found to breach agreements with the government to boost profits, 10% said they felt the government should be held accountable for such failure, 33% said the company should be held responsible and 44% said both government and company should be brought to account.
The issues raised by the briefing are also covered in a Daily Mail investigation into ministers and officials who have picked up lucrative jobs in the private sector after leaving government.
