Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)

That we are debating a motion for the withdrawal of the Whistleblowers Protection Bill 1999 is both disappointing and unwelcome. Public interest disclosure legislation, more commonly known as whistleblowers protection legislation, is a key element within workers' rights protections. It is essential to prevent the dismissal or victimisation of workers who come forward and disclose information in the public good.

In the Six Counties, the Public Interest Disclosure (Northern Ireland) Order 1998 provides protection for workers who are dismissed or victimised as a result of making certain disclosures regarding their employers' activities. The information disclosed must relate to a criminal offence, a failure to comply with a legal obligation, a miscarriage of justice, a health and safety issue, damage to the environment or an attempt cover up any of the above.

The importance of whistleblower protections cannot be underestimated. Whistleblowing can inform those who need to know about health and safety risks, potential environmental problems, fraud, corruption, deficiencies in the care of vulnerable people, cover-ups and many other problems. Frequently it is only through whistleblowing that this information can come to light and be addressed before real damage is done.

We can only surmise what suffering would have been prevented for the victims of Michael Neary if such legislation was in place. Would the corruption in planning, endemic in Dublin in particular, have persisted as long as it did leaving us with a legacy of poorly planned sprawling estates and colossal tribunal bills? Would the infection of women with hepatitis C and haemophiliacs with hepatitis and HIV have been stopped before so many people were infected? Although we will never know the answers to these questions, we can ensure such situations do not occur again by putting in place comprehensive whistleblowing protection legislation.

Whistleblowing is a valuable activity which can positively influence all our lives. The Government and the people will regret the decision to dump the legislation and deal with the issue in an ad hoc manner.

It seems more than a little odd that the Government is claiming legal difficulties given similar legislation has been enacted in other jurisdictions which have similar legal systems. How is it possible to enact such legislation in the North and in Britain and not come up against the problems which this Government is using as an excuse to dump this Bill?

Are there not lessons the Government can learn from legislation existing in other states thereby overcoming the difficulties which the Government claims it is facing with certain EU commitments in respect of conditions for the disclosure of information and the problems of trade secrets and intellectual property rights?

It is simply not true to say it is more effective to address this on a sectoral basis and to say that while some workers may be given protections others will have to wait. It is nonsense to say it will result in the speedier introduction of relevant measures appropriate to different sectors. How long will it take to complete the process of introducing whistleblowers' protections on a sectoral basis? I contend it will probably take years if it is to be completed at all.

There are undoubtedly many cases where information that would be in the public interest is not revealed because individual workers justifiably fear penalization by their employer in the absence of measures to protect them. We must empower workers to come forward in the public interest to reveal information regarding threats to health and safety, the environment, incidences of fraud and corruption and other unacceptable activities. This is patently in all our interests.

I wish to record my opposition to the motion.

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