With amendments to strengthen protections for public sector whistleblowers now before Parliament, the Attorney-General’s Department (AGD) has provided an outline to public service members on how the reforms could impact them.
In a statement, AGD said the whistleblower protecters were being strengthened to coincide with the commencement of the National Anti-Corruption Commission in mid-2023.
“Whistleblower protections play an important role in promoting the integrity of public institutions, and ensuring public trust and confidence in those institutions, by helping bring to light allegations of wrongdoing,” the AGD said.
It said the priority reforms to the Public Interest Disclosure Act 2013 (PID Act) would introduce a positive duty for principal officers to protect witnesses against reprisals, and to provide ongoing training and education to public officials in their Agency.
The Department said the scheme would have enhanced oversight by the Commonwealth Ombudsman and the Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security.
It said the reforms would also make the scheme easier for Agencies to administer, clarify the coverage of the legislation and focus the scheme on integrity-related wrongdoing by removing solely personal work-related conduct from its scope.
“The Attorney-General’s Department, Commonwealth Ombudsman and the Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security intend to support agencies to implement these reforms, including by preparing updated guidance material for agencies and whistleblowers,” it said.
“Government will commence a broader, second stage of reforms to the public sector whistleblowing framework following the passage of these priority amendments.
“The second stage of the reforms will involve redrafting the PID Act to address the underlying complexity of the scheme and provide effective and accessible protections to public sector whistleblowers,” the Department said.
AGD said Government would also consult widely on whether there was a need to establish a Whistleblower Protection Authority or Commissioner.
