UK Parliament Introduces Bill to Establish Office of the Whistleblower
A bill introduced in the UK Parliament seeks to establish an independent Office of the Whistleblower, which would build upon the current statutory framework and improve whistleblower protections and support.
The Office of the Whistleblower Bill, introduced on January 28th by Baroness Susan Kramer, incorporates the recommendations and guidance offered in the 2019 report by the All Party Parliamentary Group on Whistleblowing, of which Baroness Kramer is co-chair. The APPG on Whistleblowing concluded that the Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998 (PIDA) “has not lived up to expectations and has failed to provide adequate and comprehensive protection to whistleblowers or the public.” The report went further, stating: “Every Whistleblower headline exposes another failure of existing legislation and as we look to the future, we must ensure that the UK is a secure and ethical place to do business and to work.” The report offered a 10 Point Plan to address and correct the failures of PIDA. Baroness Kramer’s bill incorporates the report’s recommendations.
The Bill would give the Office of the Whistleblower the powers to: give direction to and monitor activities of relevant bodies; act as a point of contact for whistleblowers; form and maintain a panel of legal firms and advisory bodies to advise and support whistleblower; maintain a fund to support whistleblowers; provide financial redress to whistleblowers whose disclosure is deemed by the Office to have harmed their employment, reputation or career; and to publish an annual report to Parliament regarding its activities.
If enacted, the Secretary of State will have one year from the Bill’s passage to establish the Office of the Whistleblower. The full text of the Bill can be found here.
Constantine Cannon is a proud sponsor of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Whistleblowing.
Read More:
Tagged in: Importance of Whistleblowers, International Whistleblowers,
After my concerns were ignored by CQC and LA, I installed a camera in my mother’s nursing home and evidenced the serious neglect and abuse she was subjected to.
As a result the home made up allegations against me and used this as reason to ban me from their premises thus denying me and my mother contact. The home admitted they wanted to ban me because I had evidenced concerns. Although, contrary to the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014 no one was willing to challenge the home to protect either me or my mother.
So if this Office does its job correctly Melanie and others should be free and compensated for the injustice they have suffered, Malanie was kept in isolation for months which is against her human rights, intimidated by prison staff in prison went through kangaroo courts (as was Tommy Robinson) sentenced without due process (as were others) it’s time this body took action not speeches these people have suffered while trying to help children in council care enough is enough
Good so hopefully those who have done and are now imprisoned mental institutions will be set free ie Melanie Shaw, Ricky Edwards, Carol Woods all of the above have whistle-blower and are now being held in mental institutions or prison of charges that to be quite frank are minor, compared to what they are or have said!!
It is about time that and independent body looks at these cases. Know one as the right to en-casarate another human, being for speaking out, and then try to move the goal post by using the court to do so. We fought two world wars so that we had the right to freedom of speech did we not!