This story first appeared on HR Leader sister brand Accountants Daily.
In 2017, ex-ATO debt collection officer Richard Boyle raised concerns internally regarding unethical debt recovery tactics within the ATO.
After he felt that his complaints had been ignored, he appeared on an ABC Four Corners program in 2018, alleging that ATO debt collection officers had been instructed to use heavy-handed tactics to claw tax debts back from taxpayers.
His whistleblowing efforts sparked independent inquiries that substantiated his allegations, leading to new laws to prevent such conduct from being repeated.
Regardless, Boyle has been subjected to charges related to his actions in gathering evidence prior to raising his concerns internally.
On Tuesday, Boyle pleaded guilty to the charges of recording protected information, recording another person’s tax file number, intentionally using a listening device to record a private conversation without consent, and disclosing protected information to another entity.
Boyle’s case has drawn condemnation from the Greens, who called his guilty plea a ‘damning indictment’ of Australia’s whistleblower protection laws.
“Richard Boyle exposed ATO thuggery and saved countless taxpayers from abuse and for that this government rewarded him with a criminal conviction. This is a national disgrace,” Greens senator David Shoebridge said.
“Boyle put his career and his freedom on the line to stop people’s lives being smashed by unethical practices in the ATO....
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