As a concept, corporate social responsibility (CSR) is not new; what is new is the increasing emphasis it has been given. In 1993, the then president of the European Commission (EC) Jacques Delors exhorted businesses to develop policies to promote lifelong learning, equal opportunities for all, social inclusion and sustainable development.
More recently, in July last year, the EC issued the green paper, Promoting a European Framework for Corporate Social Responsibility. On 23 October, 2001 the Association of British Insurers (ABI) issued its guidelines to put pressure on companies to sign up to the principles of CSR.
