Corruption and unethical practices in the UK construction industry: practitioners assessment

Purpose: The aim of the study is to investigate the corrupt and unethical practices associated with the procurement of construction projects and propose strategies for extirpating these acts. Corruption is endemic and widespread within the construction and infrastructure sector given the large capital investments involved in procuring construction projects. Despite the growing frequency of occurrences of corrupt and unethical practices in the UK construction industry, scant empirical work exists on this phenomenon. Design/methodology/approach: The study utilised embedded mixed methods, mainly using a questionnaire survey with semi-structured open questions to gather experiences of practitioners directly engaged in the procurement of construction projects. About 57 responses were received from the questionnaire and 42 participants for the semi-structured open questions, which were analysed using descriptive statistical and content analyses, respectively. Findings: The study revealed that the most susceptible stage is the pre-construction stage, particularly the pre-qualification / tendering phase, and the most prevalent forms of corrupt and unethical practices are discriminatory acts (including favouritism, nepotism and patronage), conflict of interest and professional negligence. Key measures for addressing these issues include company-led training and policies, alongside government legislation. However, industry culture poses a significant barrier to the success of anti-corruption efforts. Additionally, the content analysis revealed new factors such as theft on site, cost falsification and deliberate omission and concealment. An additional set of nine critical anti-corruption strategies were identified, including transparency, monitoring and auditing, whistleblowing, enforcement and organisational change. Practical implications: The study provides actionable insights for practitioners, organisations and policymakers to implement corrective measures and foster ethical standards. Originality/value: This study contributes to the body of knowledge on ethics and professionalism, particularly on corruption and unethical practices in the construction and infrastructure sector, which rarely receives attention from researchers and practitioners.