The Protected Disclosures (Protection of Whistleblowers) Act 2022 (New Act) received the royal assent on 13 May 2022. Rather than tidying the provisions in the Protected Disclosures Act 2000 (Old Act), the New Act, which will come into force from 1 July 2022, is a complete redraft of the Old Act and sets down a new and improved whistleblowing regime.
While replacing the Old Act, the New Act maintains its predecessor’s purpose, which is to promote the public interest by facilitating the disclosure and investigation of serious wrongdoing in the workplace, and by protecting employees who make disclosures.
This alert outlines the key changes the New Act makes to the whistleblower protection framework and discusses some of its differences with the counterpart regimes in Australia and the United Kingdom (UK).
Key changes
The New Act is a response to concerns raised during a public consultation on the Old Act held in late 2018. These concerns were that both organisations and employees were confused about when to use the Old Act, and it was unclear how disclosures should be made and handled. Moreover, the process for external disclosures was difficult to follow and there was a lack of confidence in the protections available to whistleblowers, leading to a reluctance to speak up.
As well as simplifying the language of the Old Act and making whistleblowing more accessible, the New Act addresses the above concerns by making the following key changes:
| 1. Definition of serious... |
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