@sussexscsc
The UK's first academic centre dedicated to interdisciplinary research and teaching on corruption (Univesity of Sussex) https://www.sussex.ac.uk/research/centres/centre-for-study-of-corruption/
KB – Episode 145🎙️
@csc-barrington.bsky.social speaks with @marianizzero.bsky.social about research reframing kleptocracy as a transnational criminal enterprise, and the implications for UK asset recovery and national security.
🎧 Spotify bit.ly/SpotifyKBep145
🎧 SoundCloud bit.ly/SoundCloudKB...
It also reflects on South Africa’s response to state capture - including the Zondo Commission - and the personal costs of standing up to systemic corruption.
🎧 Listen now:
SoundCloud: bit.ly/KBep144sound...
Spotify: bit.ly/KBep144Spotify
#corruption #statecapture #illicitfinance #KickBack
🎙️ New KickBack episode
Why do liberation movements that fight for freedom so often succumb to corruption once in power? 🧵
Read the full analysis here:
bit.ly/3M9SFz6
#Corruption #CPI #PoliticalIntegrity #Governance #UKPolitics #PublicTrust
Beyond the individual case, the blog asks a broader question:
What does it mean for public trust when allegations involve blurred lines between political office, private advantage, and elite social networks?
The analysis considers:
• entrusted power and alleged misuse
• harm to the public interest
• private benefit
• and the role of informal elite networks
It also reflects on “chumocracy” and whether repeated patterns of political–economic exchange weaken institutional safeguards.
Prof @csc-barrington.bsky.social examines the Mandelson–Epstein affair through the lens of corruption analysis.
Using CSC’s definition- the abuse of entrusted power for private gain which harms the public interest- the blog asks whether the term “corruption” is analytically appropriate in this case
Why is the UK now just scraping into the top twenty of Transparency International’s Corruption Perceptions Index, when a decade ago it was comfortably in the top ten?
Political integrity - and perceptions of corruption - may be part of the answer.
🧵⬇️
Read Professor Barrington’s full analysis here: bit.ly/3M9SFz6
#Corruption #PoliticalIntegrity #Governance #PublicTrust #UKPolitics #PeterMandelson #EpsteinFiles
Finally, the blog asks why applying the label of corruption matters at all.
The argument is that naming corruption plays a role in accountability, helps set boundaries for acceptable conduct in public life, and supports the case for stronger safeguards.
It also reflects on broader issues raised by the case, including elite networks, informal influence, and practices often described as “chumocracy”, asking what these dynamics tell us about political integrity in the UK.
The blog considers whether alleged actions - such as leaking sensitive government information - would constitute an abuse of entrusted power, and how such behaviour may harm the public interest even in the absence of a criminal conviction.
The analysis applies the Centre for the Study of Corruption’s definition of corruption: the abuse of entrusted power for private gain which harms the public interest.
This provides a structured way to assess allegations involving senior public officeholders.
❓ “Is Peter Mandelson corrupt (assuming the allegations against him are true)?”
In a new blog, @csc-barrington.bsky.social examines this question using corruption analysis rather than focusing solely on criminal liability.
🔗 Read now: bit.ly/3M9SFz6
🎧 Listen:
SoundCloud: bit.ly/SoundcloudKB...
Apple: bit.ly/AppleKB143
Spotify: bit.ly/SpotifyKB143
🎙️ New KickBack podcast episode (Ep. 143)
@csc-barrington.bsky.social speaks with @racheldavies.bsky.social (@anticorruption.bsky.social) and Tom Shipley (CSC) to assess what the government’s UK Anti-Corruption Strategy 2025 prioritises, where it marks progress, and where gaps remain.
What happens to anticorruption reform when resisting corruption carries high individual costs, and the state itself is not a coherent actor? Our latest Kickback episode with Anna Persson reflects on these questions
🎧 bit.ly/SoundCloudKB...
🎧 bit.ly/SpotifyKB142
🎧 bit.ly/AppleKB142
🚨New CSC blog: Prof. Dan Hough examines FIFA’s decision allowing Cristiano Ronaldo to play in all 2026 World Cup matches after his red card, and what this shows about disciplinary processes in football governance.
🔗Read more: bit.ly/4oy6tQR
Earlier this week we launched our 2nd paper looking at the Kenyan real estate sector. Our newest blog dives into how the real estate process works, where it could take action to prevent illicit finance and what are some of the challenges in doing so: cifar.eu/how-does-the...
📢Out today! The 2nd of our reports into money laundering & real estate in Kenya. This report describes in detail the key actors current to 2025 that operate to prevent money laundering in the real estate sector. Read more: cifar.eu/kenyas-real-...
Professional enablers often work behind the scenes—but their influence can drive corruption and state capture. Join our GI ACE roundtable with @lizdavidbarrett.bsky.social, @devipillay.co.za, Alex Cooley, @jheathershaw.bsky.social, Corentin Cohen and @tenaprelec.bsky.social
🔗 bit.ly/GIACERoundtable
Happening today at 1-2 PM UK time!
Register here: bit.ly/GIACEUSISemi...
🚨The Nov GI ACE Newsletter is out!
From real estate money laundering to sanctions evasion & a new blog on anti-money-laundering in the Global South — explore the latest from the GI ACE network.
🔗Read: bit.ly/GIACENewsletter_7
🔗SUB: bit.ly/NewsletterSUB
Crises like pandemics, cholera outbreaks & climate disasters don’t just strain health systems — they amplify corruption risks.
New #GIACE blog by Claudia Baez Camargo & @dinabalabanova.bsky.social explores how overlapping emergencies in Malawi opened space for corruption.
🔗 bit.ly/BaselGIACEBlog
Join the next #GIACESeminar:
Corruption in Paradise: Real Estate Money Laundering in Emerging Markets
📅 Nov 13 | 🕐 1–2 PM UK
🔗 Register: bit.ly/GIACEUSISemi...
This seminar explores what weak enforcement means for housing markets & why global AML rules fall short.
New #GIACE blog by Fanni Gyurko, unpacks how Hungary’s so-called “National Consultations” act as a tool of state capture—using public funds, leading questions & fear-based framing to legitimise government narratives and discredit civil society.
📖 bit.ly/FanniGyurkoB...
📢 CSC Seminar: From London to “Dubai-Kong” (1980–2024)
🗓 Mon 27 Oct, 12:00–13:00 UK | Online
How US-sanctioned networks shifted from Western hubs to a Dubai–Hong Kong axis.
Speaker: Daniel Haberly | Discussant: Tom Keatinge | Chair:
@csc-barrington.bsky.social
Register Here: bit.ly/CSC2webinar
📢 Upcoming Webinar: Shadow Economies: Illicit Financial Flows and Sanctions Evasion in the Balkans & Black Sea
📅 30th October 2025 | 🕑 1 PM - 2 PM UK time | 📍 Online (Zoom)
🔗 Register here: bit.ly/CSDWPLaunch
🔗 Read more about the project here: bit.ly/GIACECSDRese...
New on the CSC blog: the 4th post in our Tasmania series by @robynlewis.bsky.social & Michael Johnston examines “quiet capture” and outlines reforms - independent ACA, stronger transparency/lobbying oversight, public-service capacity, meaningful participation. Read: bit.ly/Tasmania4
We are delighted to announce the upcoming Research symposium on #BeneficialOwnership #transparency, co-organised with @openownership.bsky.social and the World Bank's Beneficial Ownership Transparency Thematic Working Group.
Read More: bit.ly/oo-wb-csc-symposium
