Britain became the first western country to take this step, following pressure from former Labor Secretary and anti-apartheid campaigner Peter Hain. In January, the Guardian revealed that Lord Hayne had called on Boris Johnson’s government to punish Boston, Massachusetts-based Bain & Co for its “despicable” role in its biggest post-apartheid corruption scandal South Africa. The UK’s move puts pressure on the US to follow suit. A Cabinet Office spokesman said: “Following a review of Bain’s role in the alleged capture and corruption by the former South African government, taking into account the evidence and conclusions of the South African Government Commission, the Minister for Government Efficiency found Bain guilty of serious professional misconduct. Consequently, we excluded them from competition for cabinet office contracts for a period of three years. “This decision was made in light of Bain’s responsibility as a global brand for its South African division and the company’s failure to clarify the facts and circumstances of its involvement.” A South African judicial commission investigating state capture and corruption concluded in January that there was “collusion” between the Boston-based global consultancy and former South African President Jacob Zuma to overhaul entire sectors of the economy. The committee found that between 2012 and 2015, Bain helped draw up plans to “seize and restructure” the South African Revenue Service (Sars) and centralize procurement processes – changes the report said would facilitate corruption. Jacob Rees-Mogg, a Cabinet minister, told Bain that the scandal had made the company’s integrity “questionable” and that he was not convinced it had taken its role in the scandal “seriously enough”. In a letter seen by the Financial Times, Rees-Mogg told James Hadley, Bain’s UK managing director, that the three-year ban would apply retroactively from January 4, 2022. “I believe that after three years Bain & Co he will have restored his reputation,” he wrote. The Cabinet Office will notify all government agencies that Bain and its affiliates are to be excluded from bidding for contracts for the three-year period. He said the UK strongly supports the efforts of the South African authorities to tackle corruption and promote accountability. The Cabinet Office also noted that Bain is not a strategic supplier to the government. Lord Hayne said: “I am pleased that the UK Government has agreed to suspend Bain from public procurement at my urging.” He added that global companies such as Bain needed to “feel the pain” of the consequences of their role in South Africa’s state capture and corruption scandal. “Otherwise, other companies will be tempted to do the same,” he said. Hayne proposed legislation in July to allow ministers to ban companies that have acted illegally or unethically from bidding for public contracts. It also called on the US government to immediately suspend all public sector contracts with Bain and bar the company from entering into new contracts. Subscribe to the Business Today daily email or follow Guardian Business on Twitter @BusinessDesk Bain said he was “disappointed and surprised by the minister’s decision”. He added: “We will be responding to express our concern about the process and its outcome, where Cabinet recommendations were apparently overruled, and to address inaccuracies in the minister’s letter. If necessary, we will then consider other options for revising the decision. In the meantime, we will continue to work with Cabinet to ensure we do what is required to restore our place in the UK government. “Bain has apologized for the mistakes made by our South African office in dealing with the South African Revenue Service (Sars) and we have returned all fees from the job, with interest, in 2018. Bain South Africa did not act illegally in Sars or elsewhere, and no evidence to the contrary has been shown. No commission of inquiry in South Africa has recommended that charges be laid. We have offered our full cooperation to the relevant authorities and will continue to do so.”
