Ms Oonagh McPhillips:

It is a very difficult balance. I agreed with the Vice Chairman's point earlier that once one gets into the process it is difficult to get a good outcome for the discloser at the end of it because, between audit and then quite a legalistic process around investigation and so forth, it can become almost adversarial for the person, and that is not what it is supposed to be. I have some reservations about the path we have gone down in terms of independent investigation because I think there is a risk. While it gives us the arm's length and the independence and confidence to which the director general referred, we have to make sure, as the Vice Chairman said, that that kind of mediation approach is our principle concern. How do we safeguard the individual and his or her future within the organisation? So many people are totally committed to both the organisation and their work within it and making the organisation better. How do we uphold and safeguard that? The mediation approach is something HR will look at, as is my suggestion as to how the Department should process disclosures in the near future.