January Newsletter

We start the year with a scandal that has forced the government into action to address what has been called the biggest miscarriage of justice in UK history. The press has covered the ongoing investigation into how more than 900 sub-postmasters and postmistresses were wrongly prosecuted after faulty computer software made it look as if money was missing from their branches, but it took an ITV drama to thrust the story into the limelight.  

As outlined in our blog on the matter as much as it’s been called an IT scandal, human beings made the decisions. Once again people inside Fujitsu and the Post Office must have known something was wrong, and either raised concerns that were ignored, or were too afraid to say something. None of these options suggests proper governance and accountability. 
 
The scandal also shows whistleblowing protection is in dire need of reform. As sub-postmasters are self-employed, they aren't covered by the current legal protections. We're campaigning to include everyone in the workplace - whether you’re self-employed, a trustee, non-exec director, volunteer or even a job applicant. 
 
Parliament needs to bring consistency to the law.  A whistleblowing claim by a job applicant failed at the Employment Appeal Tribunal this month. However, a different EAT agreed that an Associate Hospital Manager (who sat on panels making determinations on detention under the Mental Health Act) was entitled to protection, despite her Trust arguing she should not. 

Looking overseas, there’s good and bad news to share. As a member of Whistleblowing International Network – we are supporting their work calling on members of the Slovak Parliament to reject their government’s proposed changes to the Whistleblower Protection Act. The proposals will exempt police officers from protection, and restrict the rights of whistleblowers, which may also contradict the EU Directive. More positive news comes from the United Nations Convention against Corruption which has just passed a new resolution put forward by the Serbian delegation. This affirms the vital role whistleblowers play and commits member states to take action to support them.  

And finally, we’re delighted to have been nominated in the prestigious Lexis Nexis Legal Awards for a rule of law award. More details below. 

Elizabeth Gardiner, Chief Executive 

Transparency International has released its annual corruption perceptions index ranking countries by experts’ views of possible corruption in public services. The UK has fallen to its lowest-ever position since the research was overhauled in 2012 dropping from 18th (out of 181 countries) in 2022 to 20th in 2023. From partygate and the FCDO Josie Stewart case to the awarding of PPE contracts during the pandemic we know that civil service whistleblowers are vital in exposing wrongdoing in government, but currently have no independent body or external route to raise concerns - something we believe needs to change.

When settlement is the preferred outcome.

Helena* worked in the distribution factory of a well-known food company. She was an agency worker, so effectively worked for both her agency and the distribution factory as both played a role in determining the terms of her engagement. At work, Helena noticed a culture of racism including racist language being used by senior members of staff, as well as working practices which disadvantaged Muslim workers.

Who regulates the regulator? Blowing the whistle when you work for a regulator.

If a whistleblower can’t disclose their concerns directly to an employer, or they have been ignored, or are not satisfied with their response, then they can escalate concerns to a relevant regulator to investigate. But, if your employer is a regulator, who do you raise concerns to?  

Are you a Whistleblowing Champion and responsible for ensuring and overseeing the integrity and effectiveness of your organisations whistleblowing policies and procedures?

Book onto our upcoming training, Thursday 15 Feb 2024, 9:30 AM - 12:00 PM.

Protect recognised as whistleblowing experts.

We are immensely proud to be nominated as one of the 5 finalists for the 2024 Halsbury Rule of Law award, celebrating our "sustained and recognised contribution to promoting the rule of law" and our commitment to "the spread of fair and ordered government, law and justice". This is a fantastic recognition of our work supporting organisations to ensure their governance and whistleblowing systems are effective, our free legal advice line helping whistleblowers present their concerns in the most effective way and our policy work, making whistleblowing law work better for businesses, workers and society as a whole. We’re also shortlisted for the Award for Sustainability for our Environmental Whistleblowing Tookit.

Our toolkit is also nominated in the Environmental Sustainability Initiative category in the Women and Diversity in Law Awards where we’re also nominated for Not For Profit Organisation of the Year.  

A whistleblowing bookshelf.

And, if you’re looking for your next read, do check out this handy list of the best books about whistleblowers put together by the Guardian.