Global Solutions Ltd.: Influence / Lobbying

GSL is a member of the British Security Industry Association (BSIA), a lobbying group with over 500 members. BSIA says its aim is 'to help its member companies succeed in an ever-changing and highly competitive business environment. A vitally important element of this is ensuring its members provide the highest possible standard of products and service to their customers.' BSIA's activities include lobbying government bodies and organisations in attempts to influence legislation and policy, establishing working relationships with the Home Office, the Association of Chief Police Officers and the Association of British Insurers.1

GSL is also a member of the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) 2. In 2003 the CBI put out a report called 'Competition: a catalyst for change in the prison service', modestly subtitled 'A decade of improvement'3. Unsurprisingly, the report concludes that privatisation has been generally beneficial to the prison industry, in flat contrast to stories from some other sources. One issue the report marks for further consideration is 'exporting public services': having noted that the UK prison privatisation model is already being transferred overseas, it suggests that 'the DTI could assist the custodial services sector in establishing domestic policy settings favourable to the export of these services.' This comes in stark contrast to most other pieces of research referenced in this profile.

Along with Costain, Balfour Beatty, Serco and Carillion, GSL is listed as a corporate sponsor of the PPP Forum4, a body established in 2001 to 'promote the benefits of public private partnerships in the UK.' It does this by lobbying the government, generally promoting PFI/PPP projects and answering criticisms of PFI/PPP in the press.

The PPP Forum happily notes that Gordon Brown has said 'there should be no principled objection to PFI expanding into new areas, such as the provision of employment and training services, the renovation of schools and colleges, major projects or urban regeneration and social housing'.5

Partnerships UK (PUK) is the agency that helps PPP/PFI projects6. It was developed in 2000 'to accelerate the development, procurement and implementation of private public partnerships.' PUK is itself a PPP: it is 49% government owned, 44.6% by HM Treasury and 4.4% by the Scottish Ministers. The rest of its shareholders are nine private companies, each owning about 2–9% – including GSL Joint Ventures Ltd, which has a 2.2% stake. The others are: Uberior Infrastructure Investments Ltd, The Prudential Assurance Company, Abbey National Treasury Services, Sun Life Assurance Society, Barclays Industrial Investment, the Royal Bank of Scotland, Serco and Boldswithc Ltd (The British Land Company).7

GSL makes no recorded political donations.

Corporate Social Responsibility

GSL has a 'corporate responsibility' page on its website where it assures us of its 'good corporate citizenship' and records its achievements and awards it has won in the past years. You can download a copy of its human rights policy from the same page.8

GSL has a 'single union agreement' with GMB commercial services sector, which means the company only recognises the one union.

Corporate Watch's favourite GSL quote: 'mandatory detention is not imprisonment.'9

References

1. www.bsia.co.uk/

2. Website www.cbi.org.uk

3. www.cbi.org.uk/pdf/prisonsreport.pdf, CBI website www.cbi.org.uk

4. www.pppforum.com/

5. www.pppforum.com/faq.html

6. www.partnershipsuk.org.uk/index.html

7. www.partnershipsuk.org.uk/aboutpuk/Shareholder.html

8. www.gslglobal.com/corporate/corporate_response.asp

9. www.gslpl.com.au/gsl/contracts/contracts.asp#ds