The Minister of Finance, Audley Shaw said he sees no reason to take issue with Transparency International’s 2009 Corruption Perception Index which suggested increased corruption in Jamaica.

This week the global anti corruption watchdog downgraded Jamaica for the third consecutive year.

Transparency International ranks countries in terms of the degree to which corruption is perceived to exist among politicians and public officials.

In its 2009 CPI Rankings, Jamaica was scored at 3.0 out of a possible 10 and ranked at 99 out of 180 countries.

Mr Shaw who was addressing the opening ceremony of the Jamaica Association of Young Professionals’ (JAYP) Leadership Conference earlier this week said he has no intention of arguing with the ranking accorded Jamaica.

He acknowledged that corruption is a reality in Jamaica and pointed to the reminders to the personnel in the tax department about illegal activity as well as action taken against some workers at the department.

According to Mr Shaw the threats to the integrity of national institutions like the tax and customs departments and the police force, is a clear and present danger to the future of the country.

The finance minister further cautioned that if the danger is not confronted, it can become a threat to democracy and stability.

In its response to Jamaica’s downgrade the Office of the Contractor General has said that the Cabinet and legislators are not doing enough to fight corruption in Jamaica.