Ms Orla Keane:

Senator Higgins raised a number of queries. My colleague, Mr. Clarke, dealt with some of them very eloquently, but there are two points to which I would like to respond. The first relates to data. It is a concern to everybody here that we do not have any data, given that the Act dates from 2014. In response to one of the other questions, very simply, head 26 could be amended to increase the information that needs to be reported back. If there was also some sort of reporting obligation on all private bodies, of plus and fewer than 50 employees, then very quickly the new office could create data. It could also be data that is available to the public when they click onto an entity's website. The first thing to do is put the onus on individual organisation to disclose more of the information and one of those things could be, if it has not progressed a protected disclosure, the reasons it did not do so.

The second issue the Senator raised was a lack of communication. In a previous life, I advised review teams in the context of investigations in the HSE and other organisations. One of the things I always said to them at the outset was that they should keep open a line of communication with the family, patient or individual who raised the issue being investigated. While as lawyers, there may be issues at times that they cannot disclose, that does not mean that they cannot continue to communicate. I told them that they should set out timeframes for when they will communicate with the person, when they think certain things will be done and addressed and if they do not meet those deadlines, they should send a short letter to explain why. That is the minimum level of respect required and it is a matter of respect for the people making protected disclosures. It is crucial that this would appear in any code of practice that is issued. I would expect that as a minimum any public organisation that is dealing with a person who has made a protected disclosure would communicate with them regularly. It may not be obliged or even be in a position to tell the person anything but it could provide progress reports. People like to be told, even if what they are being told is that the report is not complete. They like to be told that it is not complete because there is a need to speak to another witness or because more documentation has been received, for example. People like to be kept in the loop and it is a matter of respect to do so. It is incumbent on all in the public sector to uphold the right to respect.