ICC's Excluded Persons Policy: Checkmate To Manipulation In Cricket?

With effect from January 1, 2021, the International Cricket Council Anti-Corruption Code for Participants[1] (Code) has been amended to include a new policy: the Excluded Persons Policy (Policy). The Policy was approved by the International Cricket Council’s (ICC) board in November 2020[2] and is included in Annex 2 of the current version of Code[3].

The underlying purpose of the Policy is to enable the ICC’s Anti-Corruption Unit (ACU) to prevent individuals who would not ordinarily come within the remit of the Code, i.e. those who do not meet the definition of “Participant” in Article 1.4 of the Code, from being involved in the game of cricket if they threaten the integrity of the sport. In addition, a new offence has been inserted in Article 2 of the Code which effectively prohibits Participants from associating with an Excluded Person (defined below).

These amendments strengthen the ICC’s ability to achieve its objective under clause 5(f) of its Memorandum of Association[4], i.e. the preservation of the integrity and ethics of cricket.

This article will consider the following:

1. The Background To The Policy;
2. The Process For Issuing An Exclusion Order;
3. The Effect Of An Exclusion Order;
4. The Public Disclosure Of Excluded Persons;
5. The Right To Appeal An Exclusion Order;
6. The Right To Apply For A Review Of An Indefinite Exclusion Order; And
7. The New Offence Laid Under Article 2.4.9 Of The Code.