Seán Kyne (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister of State and congratulate him on progressing this important legislation. It is always important that legislation be reviewed and improved as time goes on, given that situations change. Even though 2014 was not that long ago, the Act was groundbreaking legislation for the time and, as the Minister of State mentioned, one of the strongest Acts on whistleblowing across the EU. However, it is important that we always consider how to strengthen it.

"Protected disclosure" or "whistleblowing" can have an array of meanings. Widely defined, it applies to the following: the commission of criminal offences; a failure to comply with legal obligations; endangering the health and safety of individuals; damaging the environment; a miscarriage of justice; a misuse of public funds; oppressive, discriminatory, grossly negligent or grossly mismanaged acts or omissions by a public body; and the concealment or destruction of information about any of the above wrongdoings. This array is important to note.

The original Act covers employees, former employees, trainees, people working under contract for services, independent contractors, agency workers, people on work experience and gardaí. For whatever reason, it does not cover volunteers, although public bodies can, if they wish, investigate reports of wrongdoing from volunteers. The new amendments to the Act will include protections for board members, which is important, shareholders, volunteers, unpaid trainees and job applicants who make protected disclosures. Board members do an important job and they come across information on which they have a responsibility to act, so being brought under the protection of whistleblower legislation is important.

One of the foundation stones of whistleblowing is the retention of anonymity. Our problem is that we are in a small country. While I will not say that everyone knows one another, people know, people hear and people talk in local authorities and State agencies. Gossip is currency. No matter how anonymous a protected disclosure is, it will get out there. We have seen this in high-profile cases and how the impact is not just on the whistleblower, but on his or her spouse, partner and children. If the State closes ranks on a person, it can be a lonely place for the whistleblower-----