The Protected Disclosures (Amendment) Act 2022 (2022 Act) has now been signed into law. The 2022 Act transposes the EU Whistleblowing Directive and amends the existing Irish framework for the protection of whistle-blowers under the Protected Disclosures Act 2014 (2014 Act). A statutory commencement order is necessary to bring the 2022 Act into operation.
The key features of the 2022 Act (some of which were outlined in our previous article on the topic) are as follows:
1. Scope of Protection
The 2022 Act expands the scope of protection by extending the definition of "worker" to include:
Under the previous legislation, protection was limited to information that came to a worker's attention in connection with the worker's employment.
2. Relevant Wrongdoing
The definition of 'relevant wrongdoing' has been extended by the 2022 Act. These are the types of wrongdoings about which an individual may make a protected disclosure. A 'breach' is a new relevant wrongdoing for the purposes of the 2022 Act. It is defined as an act or omission that is unlawful and falls within the scope of certain EU acts relating to, amongst other things, financial services, anti-money laundering and terrorist financing (AML/TF), public health and consumer protection.
The 2022 Act includes a carve out which specifically excludes grievances about interpersonal conflicts between the reporting person...
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