RBS 2011 Annual Report Download - page 302

300 RBS Group 2011
Safety, health and wellbeing
Ensuring the safety, health and wellbeing of employees and customers is
an important responsibility for the Group.
The Group is committed to ensuring legal compliance and managing
health and safety risks. During 2011, increased focus on leadership,
governance and the effectiveness of controls delivered improvements in
health and safety performance.
Awide range of health benefits and services are in place to help
employees maintain good physical and psychological health, and support
them if they do become unwell. A number of these services have been
enhanced and promoted in response to the impact of the economic
environment.
Pre-employment screening
The Group has a comprehensive pre-employment screening process to
guard against possible infiltration and employee-related fraud for all direct
and non-direct staff engaged on Group business.
Code of conduct
The code of conduct applies to everyone who works for RBS. It promotes
honest and ethical conduct, including the handling of actual or apparent
conflicts of interest between personal and professional relationships. The
Group recognises that personal conduct, business integrity and the
Group’s security are crucial, and the code of conduct serves to inform
those who work for us of the Group’s expectations of their behaviour and
practices.
The code of conduct is available on the Group’s website www.rbs.com
and will also be provided to any person without charge, upon request, by
contacting RBS Secretariat at the telephone number listed on page 487.
Sustainability
Sustainability is central to the way the Group is managed. Sustainability
is not just about the many responsibilities and obligations that the Group
has in a legal sense, but about specific issues that need to be addressed
to ensure that the Group is a healthy and respected business operating
on a sustainable basis. There is a clear governance structure for Group
Sustainability that oversees and aligns the Group's approach to the range
of ethical, social and environmental issues which confront the business
on a daily basis. For more information on the governance structure, see
page 30.
The Group continues to do significant work and address challenges
across five key themes: Fair banking, Supporting enterprise, Employee
engagement, Safety and security and Citizenship and environmental
sustainability. For more information on the Group Sustainability
programme, see page 30.
Going concern
The Group’s business activities and financial position, the factors likely to
affect its future development and performance and its objectives and
policies in managing the financial risks to which it is exposed and its
capital are discussed in the Business review. The risk factors which could
materially affect the Group’s future results are set out on pages 451 to
464. The Group’s regulatory capital resources and significant
developments in 2011 and anticipated future developments are detailed
on pages 110 to 115. The liquidity and funding section on pages 116 to
130, describes the Group’s funding and liquidity profile, including
changes in key metrics, the build up of liquidity reserves and the outlook
for 2012.
Having reviewed the Group’s forecasts, projections and other relevant
evidence, the directors have a reasonable expectation that the Group and
the company will continue in operational existence for the foreseeable
future. Accordingly, the financial statements of the Group and of the
company have been prepared on a going concern basis.
BBA disclosure code
In September 2010, the British Bankers’ Association published its Code
for Financial Reporting Disclosure. The code sets out five disclosure
principles together with supporting guidance. The principles are that the
Group and other major UK banks will provide high quality, meaningful
and decision-useful disclosures; review and enhance their financial
instrument disclosures for key areas of interest to market participants;
assess the applicability and relevance of good practice recommendations
to their disclosures acknowledging the importance of such guidance;
seek to enhance the comparability of financial statement disclosures
across the UK banking sector; and clearly differentiate in their annual
reports between information that is audited and information that is
unaudited. The Group’s 2011 financial statements have been prepared
in compliance with the code’s principles.
Corporate governance
The company is committed to high standards of corporate governance.
Details are given in the Corporate governance report on pages 252 to
295. The Corporate governance report and compliance report (pages 296
and 297) form part of this Report of the directors.
Share capital
Details of the ordinary and preference share capital at 31 December 2011
and movements during the year are shown in Note 27 on the
consolidated accounts.
Report of the directors continued