Successive Governors have reported to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) their concerns about rumours of corruption. The FCO has taken these reports seriously and monitored the situation closely. The challenge has always been to gather sufficient credible information to warrant further investigation. For example, a police investigation into allegations of corruption collapsed in March 2006 owing to a lack of evidence.
As a result of substantive allegations of corruption reported to the Governor, together with the key role played by the Foreign Affairs Committee in encouraging people in the Turks and Caicos Islands to provide further information, the Governor established a Commission of Inquiry in July 2008.