Ms Stephanie Casey:

I manage the integrity at work programme at Transparency International Ireland. It is a programme of support that is provided to employers around the whole area of whistleblowing and protected disclosures.

On the question around channels for reporting, the facilitation of reporting and is there enough out there, it is quite interesting to understand how people want to report. We carried out the first national survey on attitudes towards whistleblowers and whistleblowing in 2016 before we launched this programme. We found that the majority of workers want to report to their line manager in the first instance, which is a view that is reflected in international research.

When we consider internal whistleblowing systems, or the external systems Mr. Clifford talked about which can involve reporting to journalists or Deputies, it is very important to recognise that the work must start within the organisation to build a culture where staff feel safe enough to come forward and raise a concern in the first instance, and where that report can be dealt with rapidly because that is where people want to go. They want to go to their line managers and report internally, which we have seen in some of the cases that have been referenced, such as the case in the Department of Health and other cases in the public domain.

Deputy Farrell is right that the increase in the volume of calls to the Speak Up helpline reflects a growing awareness or, indeed, a growing need among workers to speak up. It also reflects the work that we have done through the programme and through our work in Transparency International Ireland to promote the helpline as an additional resource that is there for workers. They can call the helpline before they report. We do not want people to approach us as their last course of action. We want to be their first course of action and our promotion of that also explains some of the increase in calls.