January Newsletter

Dear ,

In this month’s edition: 

• Whistleblowing: What’s on the horizon for 2025? 

• New Protect research into the cost of whistleblowing failures. 

• And what The Traitors tells us about lies and dishonesty  

There is a lot to consider in 2025 that has the potential to impact whistleblowing, from significant legal cases and their impact on the law to the outcomes of public inquiries and the passage of the Employment Rights Bill. Read on below for our guide on what to look out for. 

In February we're launching our latest piece of research entitled "The Cost of Whistleblowing: Assessing the cost of whistleblowing failures to the public purse". While many research efforts have rightly been devoted to the impact on individuals and their employers, this is the first time research has analysed what it means for the taxpayer when whistleblowing fails. We have taken a deep dive into three recent scandals where the government ends up picking-up the pieces: the collapse of Carillion, the Lucy Letby/Countess of Chester and Post Office/Horizon IT scandals. Our report details the costs to the taxpayer and makes recommendations for change. Our thanks to our researcher, Dr Emily Baker, and to the Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust for funding this work. Do keep a lookout for our updates on this in the coming week. 

My most recent blog for People Management outlines the upcoming legislation that is set to clarify that sexual harassment can be the subject of whistleblowing - and why this is so vital. (As a reminder, our next Whistleblowing and Sexual Harassment training masterclass takes place on February 13th.)  

And I’m very proud of my colleagues with our recent nomination in the Employment Law Team of the Year category in this year’s LexisNexis Legal Awards 2025. A great recognition for our wonderful legal team, and a great way to start the year. 

Elizabeth Gardiner, Chief Executive 

Whistleblowing: What’s on the horizon for 2025?  

Continuing to make its way through the corridors of Parliament is the government’s much heralded Employment Rights Bill. We see this as a significant opportunity to improve the law relating to whistleblowing and have been lobbying hard to secure critical amendments and political buy-in to our legal reform campaign. The Bill is currently awaiting its Report Stage in the Commons before it heads to the House of Lords.

One of the big Bills on our watch-list is what’s known as the Hillsborough Law which will place a “duty of candour” on civil servants and public bodies. Designed to avoid future injustices and cover-ups like the infected blood and Windrush scandals, public officials will face prosecution if they mislead or obstruct investigations. Legislation is expected by April to meet the deadline of being introduced before the next Hillsborough anniversary. 

Coming into force in September is the new failure to prevent fraud offence – which puts companies in the frame for fraud that happens on their watch. Employers can mitigate their risk by having clear and demonstrable anti-fraud policies and procedures. Protect is name-checked several times in the government’s new guidance on the offence. Expect a rush of companies updating their fraud risk and uplifting their fraud compliance programmes over the next few months. (We have a free webinar outlining the details of the law – please see below for details). 

Its startling to note it was just over a year ago that the ITV’s “Alan Bates vs the Post Office” drama was aired and catapulted the biggest miscarriage of justice in UK history up the agenda. Who could have known the impact this would have had or that it would make the leading figures in the scandal household names. Following closing statements and the end of live hearings at the end of 2024 the Post Office Horizon IT Inquiry is expected to produce a final report this year which we expect to include key recommendations regarding whistleblowing. 

Closing submissions in the Thirlwall Inquiry - examining the crimes of Lucy Letby - are scheduled for mid-March 2025. Our Legal Director, Sybille Raphael, gave evidence to the inquiry in December and we are expecting key whistleblowing recommendations to feature in Lady Justice Thirlwall’s final report expected in the Autumn. 

This year we are intervening in two critical whistleblowing cases that have the potential to impact on wider employment law. The first comes up in February and concerns whether an external job applicant can bring a whistleblowing claim. 

In Sullivan v Isle of Wight Council the case centres on an unsuccessful job applicant who has not been recognised as a “worker” for the purposes of whistleblowing.  Protect’s intervention will make the case that blacklisting is a common problem for whistleblowers, and that job applicants in the NHS already receive protection against discrimination on the grounds of their whistleblowing. If successful this could open the door to whistleblowing rights for job applicants in the future.   

In the Autumn we’ll be intervening in another Court of Appeal case, Wicked Vision Ltd v Rice, concerning who can be legally pursued for whistleblowing compensation in the Tribunal.  

Elsewhere we’ll be watching another case closely - that of Josie Stewart, the former Foreign Office civil servant who blew the whistle about the chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021 and whose tribunal judgment has important repercussions for whistleblowing and the wider civil service. 

Join us on 25th February for an essential online webinar to explore fraud and whistleblowing, and unpack the new “failure to prevent fraud” offence, coming into effect in September 2025. Fraud is now the most common crime in the UK, accounting for over 40% of all offences and research consistently shows that whistleblowing is the most effective means of detecting occupational fraud, more so than internal audits. Don't miss out!

On the 27th February we are co-hosting a charity sector, in-person breakfast-briefing with law firm Bates Wells. We’ll discuss issues charities face, where they get whistleblowing wrong, and identify 10 key areas where charities can improve their procedures.

Our 2025 whistleblowing training kicks off next month! We have another action packed year dedicated to levelling up your whistleblowing frameworks - take a look at the training schedule.

A new whistleblowing read from Professor Kate Kenny - Regulators of Last Resort: Whistleblowers, the Limits of the Law and the Power of Partnerships. Featuring high-profile cases from Amazon and Facebook the book explores the critical - and often unseen - role that allies play and how working in partnership with advocates, public whistleblowers can find strategies to bring their disclosures to light.

The BBC’s Traitors came to a dramatic end last week with more ups and downs than a theme park rollercoaster. There’s been much written about the programme and what it tells us about ourselves and the state of honesty across the country.  A study released last year suggested the UK was becoming a more dishonest place where disapproval of various underhand activities had fallen noticeably. 

The question is where does this leave whistleblowing? And if people are more willing to be dishonest or turn a blind eye could wrongdoing go unchecked in the workplace? From the volume of calls to our free legal Advice Line the answer would suggest otherwise – but an interesting area to investigate. 

On the flipside, when it comes to recruiting candidates for the next series of The Traitors – it seems the programme makers have their eye on lawyers! (no comment – Ed)  

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