Protect has put its name to an international civil society letter: The signatories to this letter call on all public authorities and institutions to protect those who report or expose the harms, abuses and serious wrongdoing that arise during this period of crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. We also encourage all citizens and workers … Read more
Protect Chief Executive Liz Gardiner said, “COVID-19 has drastically changed the way in which we work but whistleblowing and speak up remains vital if we are to keep patients, customers and colleagues safe. Our Advice Line has been receiving Covid 19 calls and we know some NHS staff are feeling unsupported by management over public … Read more
Whistleblowing is raising public interest concerns relating to wrongdoing, malpractice or risk in the workplace. This could be fraud in a bank, food hygiene concerns, or issues relating to patient safety. And whilst whistleblowing concerns are not limited to widescale wrongdoing, recent scandals in the media such as the NHS Shrewsbury maternity scandal and NHS … Read more
We are delighted our Government lobbying has paid off with an amendment to Section 105 of the Utilities Act 2000. This Section was introduced to protect national security interests and commercial secrets but lacked any protection for whistleblowers in the regulated energy sector from speaking out about wrongdoing – and if they did – they … Read more
COVID-19 has drastically changed the way in which we work. Government guidance has led to the temporary closure of a number of businesses while others have been tasked with finding quick and effective ways to ensure that staff are able to work from home where possible and that business can continue as usual. For organisations … Read more
Protect, has today (March 19) announced the appointment of Liz Gardiner as its new Chief Executive. Liz, who joined Protect as Legal Officer in July 2018, has been Acting Chief Executive at the charity since December last year when Francesca West stood down. Liz said, “I am delighted and honoured to be working for such … Read more
As part of a series of sector specific round tables, Protect, together with hosts Mayer Brown, brought together whistleblowing specialists from insurance firms large and small earlier this month. The seminar, introduced by Pete Chapman of Baker Mackenzie and Chris Chapman of Mayer Brown, set out why whistleblowing matters to insurance firms. Firms need to … Read more
The launch of two backbench bills this year has kick started a Parliamentary debate about whether there should be a regulator, commissioner or ombudsman overseeing whistleblowing. In February, Dr Phillipa Whitford, MP for Central Ayrshire, launched her Public Interest Disclosure (Protection) Bill in the House of Commons, and Baroness Kramer launched her Office of the … Read more
Gagging clauses have become quite the talking point thanks partly due to the Harvey Weinstein scandal and the #MeToo era and countless other news stories exposing their misuse. Controversial debate around the use of gagging clauses, or NDAs (non-disclosure agreements) and financial settlements to conceal sexual assault and harassment has tarnished the image of NDAs … Read more
Academics, journalists, whistleblowers, advocates and members of the public gathered at The Shard for an event hosted by Warwick Business School recently to discuss the hurdles they faced in their own journeys and recent trends in whistleblowing. Protect’s Policy Officer, Laura Fatah, attended the event arranged by academics Marianna Fotaki and Iain Munro (www.whistleblowingimpact.com) with … Read more
The Advice Line will be closed for the Christmas holidays from 1pm on 24 December until 9.30am on 5 January. Please call when our lines reopen, or leave a webform and one of our advisers will get back to you in the New Year. Wishing you a lovely festive break and a happy new year!
