With huge contracts and high secrecy, the defence and security sectors have a high risk of corruption. Protecting national security is often used as an excuse to hide information that should be available to the public.

Everyone pays the cost of corruption. Money wasted on defence corruption could improve corruption-resources-corruption-resources-education or corruption-resources-corruption-resources-healthcare, or be used to provide soldiers and police officers with the equipment they actually need. Corruption in defence and security destroys trust in the government and puts soldiers’ lives at risk.

The lecture will be given by Mark Pyman, Director of Transparency International UK's Defence and Security Programme, based on ten years of active work in this area. It will review how governments, police and armed forces, working together with civil society, can make much more progress than is the case today. It will also cover the need for a new approach to corruption issues in national security policy for nations of all sizes and explore a new approach to preventing conflict, strengthening institutions and reducing social grievance.

Timings
18.00 Registration
18.30 Mark Pyman - 'FIghting Corruption in the Defence Sector'
19.10 Question and Answer session
19.45 Drinks reception
20.30 Close