institutional corruption

{{Short description|Phenomenon of placing protection of reputation above fidelity to truth in public bodies}}

{{Use British English |date=August 2021 }}

{{Use dmy dates |date=August 2021 }}

{{Expand Italian|date=November 2024}}

Institutional corruption is the phenomenon in public bodies of placing the protection of reputation above fidelity to the truth, especially in the context of an independent or public inquiry.

Institutional corruption is differentiated from corruption by the institution's willingness to frustrate or slow the work of independent formal inquiries,{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-57497384 |title=Daniel Morgan: Cressida Dick denies institutional corruption |work=BBC News Online |date=2021-06-16 |access-date=2021-09-26 }} even after official reports and documentation recognise that such an inquiry is necessary.{{cite news |url=https://www.mylondon.news/news/south-london-news/senior-police-chief-censured-obstructing-20821229 |title=Met Police top cop censured for obstructing Daniel Morgan murder inquiry |author=Rafi Mauro-Benady |work=MyLondon.news |date=2021-06-15 |access-date=2021-08-25 }}

Institutional corruption is not limited to national-scale institutions. It can be as small as a single recommendation of a report rejected{{cite tweet |user=journo_kituno |number=1413528173313134596 |title=The review came back with 39 recommendations.

Most of them were accepted, implemented or noted, except for one, which was for LGT to "produce a statement which capture[d], in an easy format document, as to what has changed." |date=2021-07-09 |access-date=2021-09-26 }} because an institution wishes not to admit meaningful change,See, for example, Recommendation 26 from: {{cite report |url=https://www.lewishamandgreenwich.nhs.uk/download.cfm?doc=docm93jijm4n5491.pdf&ver=6777 |title=Trust Board Meeting, Tuesday 29th June 2021, 9.30am (Part 1) |publisher=Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Trust |page=47 |access-date=2021-08-25 |quote=26. The Trust to produce a statement that captures in an easy format document as to what has changed in relation to charging so that members of the public can see quickly those positive changes.
Recommendation not accepted: Whilst the Trust is not planning to develop the statement as recommended by the panel, the Trust is committed to the learning enabled by the work of the panel... }} or the misreporting of statistics in the Stafford Hospital scandal.{{cite report |url=https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/279124/0947.pdf |title=Report of the Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust Public Inquiry: Executive Summary |author=Robert Francis QC |author-link=Robert Francis (barrister) |publisher=The Stationery Office |page=41 |date=February 2013 |access-date=2021-08-25 |quote=During the course of both the first inquiry and the present there has been a constant refrain from those charged with managing, leading, overseeing or regulating the Trust’s provision of services that no cause for concern was drawn to their attention, or that no one spoke up about concerns.}}