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Roberto Saviano....

Paua oouaarancì Irà chiyeah Ishé galé ma ba oo ah

The measurement of course is in terms of involvement in the laundering of dirty money, so one corrupt person or organization can completely distort the overall picture.

In one sense the argument is therefore false - the UK is still one of the least corrupt countries in the world by most balanced measurements.

But that does not mean we can ignore the point and the reality that the financial institutions in London, our offshore dependencies, and also many US States, are a haven for dirty money. They accept it, they launder it and they make money from it.

We may not be corrupt, as a country, but we are certainly hypocritical. Which is worse?

Just because I don't care doesn't mean I don't understand!

My opinions may have changed, but not the fact that I am right.

(Member of the School of Optimism 1969-2016 inclusive)

I think it depends on how the term corruption is applied. Certainly, many western countries have practices such as 'donations' to political parties and lobbyists, as well as post-political career directorships to corporations that are questionable in terms of 'integrity'. Corruption is rife I suspect in most countries, its just more obvious in others.

By its nature, however, the financial market invites corruption and facilitates it. Its a necessity of money laundering, that black market income, re-enters the economy, and any financial economy is by necessity going to be facilitating that, and the entities involved prone to the affects of corruption and dirty money, by way of the individual incentives and pressure - Especially the more distanced it is from the source.

High level investment firms might be very wary about black market money, but once its 'grey' it becomes a lot easier to move. Of course its not just money, its as much about assets (as money tends to be converted in the washing process into something else).

My suspicion is that a 'lot of blind eyes' get turned once those assets and investments look vaguely legit or deniably in complicity. I suspect an investment company would look very closely a 'clear attempts to launder money' but not at 'grey market money' (mid-stage laundering).

"One Nation Under God, has turned into One Nation Under the Influence of One Drug"
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This should set you all straight the figures [Link]

VOTING OUT - Brexit will allow Britain to embrace the Commonwealth and be GREAT again

Also in terms of corrupt, it also is important to ascertain what you can and cannot buy with 'graft'. In the UK at least corruption, by criminal elements, seems to be 'in the background' more or less (where as my friend, in Italy bought a driving licence by paying a hundred and twenty euros to an employee of their equivalent of the DVLA at the office).

Individual corruption seems to be more the key, rather than wholesale corruption. But then I guess it could be that were so corrupt we don't even know it.

"One Nation Under God, has turned into One Nation Under the Influence of One Drug"
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