HSBC 2006 Annual Report Download - page 279

277
Group’s Sustainable Risk Advisory Unit has
published policies laying down minimum standards
for lending and investment covering relationships
with clients in energy, forest land and products,
freshwater infrastructure and the chemicals industry,
all focusing on how HSBC’s involvement in these
environmentally sensitive industries can contribute
to sustainable development.
Community involvement
HSBC sees value and opportunity from aligning its
longstanding commitment to the environment with
its core strategic themes. In 2006, for example, the
HSBC Global Education Trust launched ‘Future
First’, a five-year programme designed to help street
children, children in care and orphans, under which
HSBC’s operations around the world will collaborate
with local charitable organisations to make a lasting
and beneficial difference by supporting projects that
bring these children into the mainstream of society.
The programme complements HSBC’s sustainable
business development focus on poverty, for which a
microfinance strategy was developed during 2006.
In recognition of its leadership in merging
social, environmental and business objectives,
HSBC was named as overall winner in the first
Financial Times Sustainable Banking Awards in
2006. The awards, in association with the
International Finance Corporation, drew 90 entries
from 48 financial institutions around the world. In
addition to initiatives noted above, HSBC
highlighted ‘Investing in Nature’, its US$50 million,
five-year eco-partnership with Earthwatch Institute,
WWF and Botanic Gardens Conservation
International.
Also in 2006, HSBC’s Group Head Office
building in London achieved an overall rating of
‘Excellent’ for site management and operation under
the Environmental Assessment Method run by the
Building Research Establishment, the UK’s leading
environmental standards authority.
Health and safety
The maintenance of appropriate health and safety
standards throughout HSBC remains a key
responsibility of all managers and HSBC is
committed to managing actively all health and safety
risks associated with its business. HSBC’s objectives
are to identify, remove, reduce or control material
risks of fires and of accidents or injuries to
employees and visitors.
Health and Safety Policies, Group standards and
procedures are set by Group Corporate Real Estate
and are implemented by Health, Safety and Fire
Co-ordinators based in each country in which HSBC
operates.
Despite the considerable international pressure
on terrorist networks over the past few years, the
global threat from terrorism persists. HSBC remains
committed to maintaining its preparedness and to
ensuring the highest standards of health and safety
wherever in the world it operates.
Group Security provides regular risk
assessments in areas of increased risk to assist
management in judging the level of terrorist threat.
In addition, Regional Security functions conduct
regular security reviews to ensure measures to
protect HSBC staff, buildings, assets and
information are appropriate for the level of threat.
Supplier payment policy
HSBC Holdings subscribes to the Better Payment
Practice Code for all suppliers, the four principles of
which are: to agree payment terms at the outset and
stick to them; to explain payment procedures to
suppliers; to pay bills in accordance with any
contract agreed with the supplier or as required by
law; and to tell suppliers without delay when an
invoice is contested and settle disputes quickly.
Copies of, and information about, the Code are
available from: The Department of Trade and
Industry, 1 Victoria Street, London SW1H 0ET; and
the internet at www.dti.gov.uk/publications.
It is HSBC Holdings’ practice to organise
payment to its suppliers through a central accounts
function operated by its subsidiary, HSBC Bank.
Included in the balance with HSBC Bank is the
amount due to trade creditors which, at 31 December
2006, represented 20 days’ average daily purchases
of goods and services received from such creditors,
calculated in accordance with the Companies Act
1985, as amended by Statutory Instrument 1997/571.
Donations
During the year, HSBC made charitable donations
totalling US$86.3 million. Of this amount,
US$32.8 million was given for charitable purposes
in the UK.
No political donations were made during the
year.
At the Annual General Meeting in 2003,
shareholders gave authority for HSBC Holdings and
HSBC Bank to make EU political donations and
incur EU political expenditure up to a maximum
aggregate sum of £250,000 and £50,000 respectively
over a four-year period as a precautionary measure