This just makes me wonder how some people get their jobs. And how some people can have so little sense of probity and morals. Now whilst the accused in this actual criminal trial are entitled to their presumption of innocence, there appears to be little dispute that some Council staff attended extremely lavish lunches that were obviously paid for by a supplier over whom they exercised procurement, commercial and contractual management responsibility. And even if some of these people genuinely didn't know at the point of sitting down that the lunch was paid for by a supplier, by the time the bottles and bottles of expensive alcohol came, people's bells should have rung. Bosses just don't shout such expensive things.
I have always absolutely hated any work-related functions that aren't arranged by my own work for this reason. I just don't wish to be placed in any situation where there's a slightest hint of conflict of interest or lack of probity on my or my team's part. Thankfully, all of my managers have been extremely supportive over my decisions to decline almost every/any kind of gift, perk/social gathering offers by clients and suppliers. Admittedly, working in risk/compliance roles (mostly) makes taking this stance a lot easier. All the places that I have worked in also had very strict policies about us giving gifts of any sort, i.e. there's basically none.
What are your experiences and views?