23rd February 2022
Another day, another phrase for us to examine.
Today the phrase is ‘due diligence’ – a phrase that appears to be used in politics by those hoping it means something that it does not.
Here is the example from today:
Boris Johnson’s press sec says she is “completely comfortable” with £2m of Russian-linked donations to Tory Party since he came to power.
She ruled out any review of CCHQ policy because “we believe all due diligence is in place."
— Pippa Crerar (@PippaCrerar) February 23, 2022
The phrase is a nod-along word in politics, something said to reassure the listener.
It sounds impressive, even formal.
But.
Those who invoke the phrase need to be able to explain what they mean by it.
And it seems they cannot:
Boris Johnson’s spokesperson repeatedly says the Conservative Party does “appropriate due diligence” on all donors to the Conservative Party, but is then apparently unable to explain what that due diligence actually involves.
— Adam Bienkov (@AdamBienkov) February 23, 2022
The phrase – to state the obvious – comprises two words.
Taking the second word first, it means that a person is being careful in respect of a certain matter: [x] is being diligent.
The first word ‘due’ then qualifies that diligence, so it means that person is not only being careful but that the person is being appropriately careful in a given circumstance: [x] is being duly diligent.
And so, anyone claiming to be duly diligent needs to be able to explain exactly how they are applying their diligence in a given situation.
In commercial and corporate legal practice, what constitutes being duly diligent can vary according to the nature of the investigation or inquiry in hand.
Some issues will require anxious scrutiny while others warrant less intense scrutiny.
And once the lawyers have done their ‘due diligence’ – that is, been duly diligent – they can advise their clients on the risks of a certain transaction or other course of action.
In all cases, those being duly diligent will be able to not only assert they have been careful but how they have gone about being careful.
So, coming back to Boris Johnson’s spokesperson and their buzz phrase of the day: what did they mean by ‘due diligence’?
It should mean that the Conservative party has not only been diligent in respect of donations to the Conservative party, but that the Conservative party also has method in its diligence: that certain questions have been asked and that certain risks have been assessed.
That the Conservative party has been – well – duly diligent.
And if the party has been duly diligent it then should be able to explain what that means in these circumstances.
For if that cannot be explained, it indicates that nothing is actually meant by the term – and it is mere flapdoodle.
And we can work this out by ourselves being – well – duly diligent about those who use the phrase ‘due diligence’.
If you cannot explain exactly how you are being duly diligent then it is not ‘due diligence’ https://t.co/Sc0Rp6sEi5
— davidallengreen (@davidallengreen) February 23, 2022
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If political parties where subject to the same AML rules as banks, then at the very least their due diligence on these payments would generate a SAR…
Noting correct use of the technical term “flapdoodle”.
A small drawing or cartoon applied to a flap or flange in an absent minded way?
Unduly unscrupulous is what they are.
Due diligence comes with checklists and boxes to tick.
Then comes sampling and verification of some of these checklists together with personal signatures.
People are being sold b******t.
Just wait for PAYE payslips to arrive in May to awaken people.
David Henig summed up the Tory party process today in his Twitter feed as due diligence meaning ‘making sure the money arrived’
Well, here is a starter for 10: an NAO report for the DCMS, published in 2017, on due diligence processes for potential donations. https://www.nao.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/Due-diligence-processes-for-potential-donations.pdf
The recommendations include written policies and procedures, proper risk assessment, clear lines of responsibility and communication, record keeping and audit trails, peer and external reviews, and involvement of senior people in decision making, perhaps even an ethics committee.
So, does the Conservative Party live up to the expectations that as the present government it sets out for museums and galleries?
Always fascinated by how slapdash politicians are both in planning and implementing. In my world, due diligence involved four separate strands:
Financial due diligence (are records correct, do we know where the money is coming from),
Commercial due diligence (suppliers, customers, market trends),
Legal due diligence (agreements, liabilities),
Personnel due diligence (history of key employees, attitudes).
But as always in politics, money comes before principles in the dictionary.
It’s just another example of phrases that demand elaboration – Value for money, fit for purpose, spring to mind and there are many others. Flapdoodle on the other hand needs no further definition.
Huh. Yesterday evening one reader left a long and (in my opinion) helpful comment detailing various ways in which the Tory party treasurer had been found to have failed in his duty of, ahem, due diligence. I and others commented in reply to that comment. That comment and the ensuing thread now seem to have disappeared.
Yes, because it contained a couple of things I need to check before I publish it. “Huh.”
Thank you.
When anyone uses the phrase “appropriate due diligence” you know immediately that something is wrong since “appropriate” adds nothing. It suggests that “due diligence” has transformed into a meaningless term for them, so they feel the need to qualify – as if it might be possible to have inappropriate due diligence