Responsibility

At GMG an awareness of the wider responsibilities of business has always been at the heart of what we do. The Manchester Guardian was founded to promote the liberal interest in the early 19th century, and the ethos of public service has long been part of the Group’s DNA.

In 1921 the great Manchester Guardian editor CP Scott wrote a leading article to mark the centenary of the paper, in which he asserted that newspapers have ‘a moral as well as material existence’.

He listed the essential attributes he believed should form the character of a newspaper. GMG’s owner, the Scott Trust, adopted these values as its own, and they continue to inform the way in which we run our business – operating GMG as a commercial enterprise while always seeking to adhere to principles of decency and public service.

The Scott Trust values are: honesty; cleanness (now interpreted as integrity); courage; fairness; and a sense of duty to the reader and the community.

We aim to put these principles into action and fulfil our responsibilities primarily through our day-to-day business conduct and the editorial content of our newspapers, websites and other media.

In addition, the Scott Trust Foundation (the Scott Trust’s charitable arm) and GMG’s subsidiaries and joint ventures are involved in a range of other activities designed to support the wider community, manage our environmental impacts and promote press freedom in the UK and abroad.

Our core businesss, Guardian News & Media, has led the way for the UK newspaper industry in terms of corporate responsibility and sustainability reporting with the award-winning Living Our Values social, ethical and environmental audit.

In March 2010 GMG launched a new sustainability vision and strategy for the entire group, taking in all of its various businesses and joint ventures. ‘The Power of 10′ committed the group to ten areas of change, from addressing its impact on climate change to ethical procurement.

The GMG Code and report on its corporate governance can be viewed on the GMG board page.

The terms of reference for GMG committees can be downloded using the following links: Nominations Committee, Audit Committee and Remuneration Committee.

Guardian Media Group has an Anti Bribery and Corruption Code of Conduct which applies to all GMG and GNM staff, as well as the staff of GNM subsidiaries. It also applies to third parties that perform services on behalf of GMG, GNM and GNM subsidiaries. The policy complies with the Bribery Act 2010 and has been effective since July 2011.