Mr. John Farrelly:

I can speak to that as chief executive of the MHC. I have been a regulator for many years, regulating State bodies in the health sector, the charities sectors and, now, the mental health sector. I have also encountered many private businesses that worked in the charitable sector such as accountants, financial professionals and so on. The protections in the general scheme for people who blow the whistle are key. I am talking about protections for ordinary citizens to allow them to identify relevant wrongdoing. Many of the acts of wrongdoing listed in the general scheme are criminal offences. The idea is that if a good citizen spots a criminal offence or wrongdoing, they should be able to come forward. The reason we are bringing in this proposed Bill is that most people do not seem able to just go to the Garda. We are trying to protect them because they are within a big construct.

With regard to public service bodies, there is a misconception about what protecting the State means. Many people seem to think that protecting the State means protecting politicians. It is about ensuring that our Constitution and our laws are adhered to. I will pass over to my colleagues soon but I genuinely believe that an independent office is required to support this culture of transparency and openness. You can protect the recipients but we should add in the ability to publish the reports. If bodies act glacially and are not prepared to meet the law, offences could be introduced. We could be a little bit more robust in that way. It is really just a recognition. We have to understand that, in fairness, Ireland is changing but the bottom line is that people with power do not necessarily want people without power telling them they are doing things wrong. It all comes back to relevant wrongdoing. Offences are listed here so that we can protect our citizens, good decent working people, and allow these actions to come out into the open. It is a strengthening of the proposed Bill with regard to oversight.