@PaulJRobinson - over 10 years ago
There is already a lot of protection against unfair dismissal for whistleblowing. See https://www.gov.uk/whistleblowing/overview for more but the most interesting part is this bit: Who isn’t protected
Workers aren’t protected from dismissal if: - they break the law when they report something (eg they signed the Official Secrets Act) - they found out about the wrongdoing when someone wanted legal advice (‘legal professional privilege’) - eg if they’re a solicitor
Workers who aren’t employees https://www.gov.uk/employment-status can’t claim unfair dismissal because of whistleblowing, but they’re protected and can claim ‘detrimental treatment’.
Interesting. I'd be concerned not about unfair dismissal, but protection from prosecution for whistleblowers. Perhaps we should be adding something protecting people who do break the law when whistleblowing. The link above has something to say on that front. Official Secrets Act is a case in point, though obviously it's a tricky one.
@philipjohn - over 10 years ago
No idea if it'd be workable but is there room for an act specifically aimed at trying to define the "public interest" which could include protections against prosecution for whistleblowing in the public interest. You might even say it could provide guidance along the lines of a "civil reasonable suspicion" test that potential whistleblowers can use to try and figure out whether breaking the law would be justified based on what their suspicions/evidence are. I.e. similar to what a judge would go through in issuing a warrant.
...and yes, I understand the kind of can of worms the suggestion might well unleash :)
http://www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=21097&LangID=E might be relevant as a reference.
The OpenPolitics Manifesto
@Floppy - over 10 years ago
Not sure what the current state of law is in the UK, but we might want to include something including the recommendations from http://whistleblowingnetwork.org/other-resources/europe-and-international/open-government-guide-whistleblower-protection/.