James Moore: Why BP is relieved at being £3bn lighter
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Outlook The reaction of the stock market to BP's admission of what amounts to corporate manslaughter while agreeing to pay nearly £3bn in penalties is instructive. Shares in the oil giant barely blinked. They finished down just 0.35p.
What the enormous settlement should do is get the United States Department of Justice off the company's back. It is impossible to say the DoJ takes no prisoners because it has secured lots of them. If it's the monkey on your back, you're dealing with a silverback gorilla.
The majority of shareholders in this "British" oil company (copyright USA Today) are Americans, who are well aware of this. It's also run by one, so it's no wonder the reaction to this enormous penalty was much sighing of relief.
Even though this isn't over – there are still civil claims outstanding and other regulatory agencies sniffing around – the deal struck yesterday has got to be worth it for a company that still hasn't cleaned the dirty oil from its reputation. Even if it comes at the price of the liberty of a couple of scapegoats.
Did I say scapegoats? Maybe I'm jumping the gun, but there have been two arrests of individuals to accompany the charges.
I'm not for an instant seeking to defend anyone found to have behaved negligently. Eleven people lost their lives, and the environmental damage wreaked by the Deepwater Horizon spill was disgusting.
But it strikes me that if individuals were at fault, so was a corporate culture that prioritised presenting fancy-looking cost cuts to the City at the expense of safety. The responsibility for that was high up within the BP's corporate headquarters.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments