A draft law proposed by Spanish anti-corruption activist group Xnet, is set to make Spain the first country in the European Union to transpose the European Directive for the Whistleblowers’ Protection.
The Draft Law was registered shortly after the opening of the registry in the Parliament, on 30 May. It was registered with the support of 15 MPs. On Thursday, June 13, the draft law will be presented to the press.
Xnet is a pioneering organisation in Spain leading the way in the defence of whistleblowers, anticorruption and democracy innovation in the digital era, and a member of WIN, Whistleblowing International Network (WIN) which is a founding partner of Protect.
The Xnet draft law marks an extremely important milestone as the first transposition of the European Whistleblowers’ Directive, and Xnet hopes it will prove to be an example that is replicated to the same standards across many other European member states.
Executive Director of WIN, Anna Myers, said, “The only way for whistleblower protection laws to make a real difference is if they are developed and supported by civil society who understand the challenges and the opportunities that protecting whistleblowers has for benefitting the public. WIN is delighted that Xnet has taken a lead in Europe to integrate the new EU Directive in a whistleblower law for Spain that reflects the Spanish experience and addresses the legal and social challenges that face public interest whistleblowers in that country. Now is the time to push for the progressive laws across Europe that really make a difference.”
As Xnet text is a milestone for the fight for whistleblowers in Europe, the following organisations and persons (all of whom have extensive experience in the fight for regulations to defend those who blow the whistle on systemic abuses) support the Comprehensive Whistleblowers’ Law created by Xnet:
– Whistleblowing International Network (WIN) – Anna Myers
– The Signals – Delphine Halgand
– Government Accountability Project – Tom Devine
– European Centre for Whistleblower Rights and the Southeast Europe Coalition on Whistleblower Protection.
– Government Accountability Project of the National Whistleblowers Centre.
– Eva Joly, magistrate and former MEP
– Protect (formerly Public Concern at Work)
– European Center for Whistleblower Rights – Mark Worth