NSW public officials made 949 public interest disclosures (PIDs) to investigating authorities last financial year, according to a new report from the NSW Ombudsman.
Acting Ombudsman, Paul Miller said the report, Oversight of the Public Interest Disclosures Act 1994 – Annual Report 2019–2020, found that two thirds of the PIDs were made to the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) by the heads of public sector Agencies who are required by law to report possible corrupt conduct.
“In addition, Agencies received nearly 400 (383) reports of wrongdoing about their own Agencies,” Mr Miller said.
“Consistent with previous years, the majority (85 per cent) of those included an allegation of corrupt conduct,” he said.
Mr Miller said that while the report showed there were slightly fewer PIDs in 2019-2020 than in 2018-2019, the number of reports remained higher than earlier years and was consistent with a long-term trend of increased reporting.
“This year’s report again shows how important it is for public officials to speak up when they see wrongdoing, and for them to be confident that, if they do, they will be supported,” the Acting Ombudsman said.
He said a proposed Bill to reform the Public Interest Disclosures Act 1994 was expected to be introduced into Parliament, based on reforms recommended by a 2017 Joint Parliamentary Committee.
“As the Parliamentary Committee observed, the NSW public interest disclosures legislation is the oldest in Australia, and despite piecemeal amendments over time, the current PID Act needs improvement,” he said.
Mr Miller said it was important the Bill be finalised as soon as possible and he looked forward to new legislation that better supported a culture where public officials were encouraged to report serious wrongdoing with full confidence that they would be protected.
The Acting Ombudsman’s 45-page report can be accessed at this PS News link.
