I thank all Members for the informative and constructive debate on protected disclosures legislation. I welcome and thank the whistleblowers in the Public Gallery for their great work and service. I also thank the members of the Independent Technical Group for the proposals they have put forward for this debate. Having reviewed the proposals, I would like to reiterate the issues regarding the flaws evident in some of these proposals, as was highlighted by my colleague, the Minister of State, Deputy Michael Healy-Rae. I am in full agreement with the need to adhere to the current timetable for the completion of a statutory review of the national legislation and the EU Commission review of the EU whistleblowing directive. I would also like to respond to some of the points raised, in particular the claim that comparative evidence from other jurisdictions demonstrates the need for additional measures, such as reward schemes, punitive penalties for delay and mandatory publication of outcomes. This does not reflect Ireland's legal and policy context. While countries such as the United States of America and Canada operate reward-based systems, these are linked to specific enforcement models, such as securities regulations and tax recovery, which are not applicable under Irish or EU law. Ireland has fully implemented directive EU 2019/1937, which sets out clear obligations for the timely handling of disclosures, for confidentiality and for feedback within statutory guidelines. Those obligations include acknowledgement within seven days and follow-up within three months, extendable only in exceptional cases. Our framework also includes strong enforcement provisions. For example, under section 14A of the Protected Disclosures Act obstruction or bad-faith conduct attract criminal sanctions, including fines of up to €250,000 and imprisonment for up to two years. Introducing so-called reward mechanisms or punitive publication requirements would go beyond the directive, raise significant legal and ethical concerns and risk undermining the impartiality of the system. Ireland's approach prioritises transparency, accountability and fairness, consistent with EU standards, rather than adopting models designed for fundamentally different regulatory environments. I want Deputies to be clear that the Protected Disclosures Act 2014 is intended to protect workers from penalisation for speaking up about wrongdoing in the workplace. We can all agree that a person who truly and sincerely acts as a whistleblower should not be treated unfairly and should not lose their job or face adverse legal proceedings. This Government remains committed to the fundamental aim in line with our EU colleagues and the relevant EU directive. However, the last enhancement to this legislation, the Protected Disclosures (Amendment) Act 2022, is very recent. That was not a long time ago. Even more recently, the Office of the Protected Disclosures Commissioner, OPDC, was established. It commenced operations on 1 January 2023. The directive states that the European Commission must furnish a report to the European Parliament and to the Council on the impact of the national law that transposed the directive. The Commission has confirmed that this report will be finalised sometime in 2026. The statutory review of the Act that is required by the same Act must be completed in 2027. That will commence in 2028. The main point I am making is that there is already much work going on in this area, on top of the legislation that has already been updated recently. To clarify for the House, the Protected Disclosures Act 2014 protects workers from penalisation for speaking up about wrongdoing in the workplace. Persons who make protected disclosures, often referred to as whistleblowers, should not be treated unfairly, lose their jobs or face legal proceedings because they have made protected disclosures. The Protected Disclosures Act 2014, as amended by the Protected Disclosures (Amendment) Act 2022, provides these statutory protections for workers. Protected disclosures can be made by workers in both the public and private sectors, including not only the ordinary employees of an organisation but also any persons engaged under contract by the organisation, such as contractors, agency workers or paid trainees, as well as volunteers, board members, shareholders and job applicants. There are three main channels for making protected disclosures and they are open to all workers. The first is internal disclosure to the employer. Some 85% of protected disclosures are made in this manner in the first instance. The second is external disclosure to any person prescribed by the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation or the Protected Disclosures Commissioner. Prescribed persons are usually regulatory bodies with powers to investigate and take enforcement action in relation to the wrongdoing in the particular sector. For example, the Health and Safety Authority, HIQA and the Data Protection Commission are all prescribed bodies. The third channel is disclosure to any other third party. This could include public disclosure to a journalist or a Member of the Oireachtas. This channel is subject to more stringent conditions to qualify for protection. In general, this channel should only be used as a last resort if the other channels fail to operate as intended. In addition, workers in public bodies can make protected disclosures to a relevant Minister of the Government. Under the amended Act, all protected disclosures made to Ministers will be sent to the Protected Disclosure Commissioner for onward transmission to the most appropriate person to address the concerns raised. There are also special channels for the reporting of wrongdoing related to law enforcement, security, defence, international relations and intelligence. The Act prohibits the penalisation, or the threat of penalisation, of a worker for having made a protected disclosure. Penalisation includes unfair dismissal, unfair treatment, such as suspension, demotion, loss of pay, change of working hours, reassignment, disciplinary action, etc., and coercion, intimidation and harassment. All employers have a duty of care to ensure their workers do not suffer penalisation. All workers have a duty of care to ensure that workers do not suffer penalisation. The Act provides for criminal penalties for penalisation of reporting persons, taking vexatious legal proceedings against a reporting person and disclosing the identity of a reporting person. Exchequer grant support has been provided to Transparency International Ireland, TII, since 2016 for the provision of a free speak-up helpline and legal advice for persons considering making a reported disclosure or who have made a protected disclosure. Funding for TII in 2025 amounts to €368,500, which is the same amount as was provided in 2024. The OPDC commenced operation on 1 January 2023. The commissioner is designated to assist reporting persons wishing to make a disclosure to a prescribed person, either by directing them to the most appropriate prescribed person or by receiving the disclosure and referring it on to the most appropriate prescribed person. With 100 prescribed persons, this will make it easier for workers to get their reports to the right person. It also exists to support Ministers in accessing and following up on protected disclosures they receive by referring them on to the most appropriate authority to deal with the information reported. In certain rare cases where an appropriate person cannot be identified, the office will follow up on the information received directly and the Act has suitable powers to this effect. This ensures that there is always a prescribed person in place to report for any matter within the scope of the Act. I will bring the Deputy's concerns, views and helpful information and interventions back to the Minister and to Government. I thank the Deputies for their attention for today's discussion. I understand the proposal put forward by the Deputies. However, we must oppose this motion and support an amendment to continue to support the full implementation of the Protected Disclosures Act and the protection of whistleblowers generally.

Sentiment score: 0.31