PI & Clinical Negligence analysis: The Whiplash Injury (Amendment) Regulations 2025 are due to come into force on 31 May 2025. Robert Parkin, barrister at DEKA Chambers, takes a look at the impact for PI lawyers dealing with whiplash claims.

A whistleblower is an individual, usually an employee or worker, who raises concerns about suspected wrongdoing, risk or unlawful conduct in a workplace or organisational context. In legal practice, the term is used broadly, but specific protections apply only where statutory conditions are met.In England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, the Employment Rights Act 1996 (as amended by the Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998) protects “workers” who make “protected disclosures” about specified types of malpractice (for example, criminal offences, breaches of legal obligations, health and safety dangers, environmental damage or cover‑ups). The term “whistleblower” itself is descriptive rather than a defined statutory term.In Ireland, the Protected Disclosures Acts 2014–2022 provide a comprehensive framework for “workers” making “protected disclosures” in the public interest, again without formally defining “whistleblower”.Key legal issues include qualifying as a protected disclosure, use of internal vs regulatory or external reporting channels, protection from dismissal or detriment, confidentiality, vicarious liability and remedies (including interim relief in some cases). The concept and typical usage are broadly consistent across the UK and Ireland, although the scope of protection, procedures and prescribed persons differ by jurisdiction.

Whistleblower act is a descriptive term used in UK and Irish legal practice to refer to legislation protecting workers who disclose wrongdoing in the workplace. In England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland this protection is primarily contained in the Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998 (PIDA), which amended the Employment Rights Act 1996 and related legislation. In Ireland, equivalent protection is provided under the Protected Disclosures Act 2014 (as amended). These regimes protect “protected disclosures” about matters such as criminal offences, health and safety risks, environmental damage, financial misconduct, or breaches of legal obligations. They prohibit subjecting whistleblowers to detriment or dismissal for making such disclosures, and provide remedies in employment tribunals or the Workplace Relations Commission and Labour Court. The term “whistleblower act” is not itself a defined statutory expression, but is commonly used by practitioners, HR professionals and regulators to describe these frameworks. Across the UK and Ireland, the core concepts are broadly aligned: protection for qualifying disclosures, specified channels for disclosure (e.g. employer, prescribed regulators) and strong remedies for retaliation, though the detailed tests, procedures and time limits differ by jurisdiction.

Whistleblower law refers to the legal protections and procedures available to workers who report suspected wrongdoing in their workplace, such as fraud, health and safety breaches, environmental damage, criminal offences or regulatory non‑compliance. It focuses on safeguarding the worker from dismissal, detriment or other retaliation because of raising concerns.In England & Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, the concept is primarily governed by the Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998 (PIDA), now integrated into the Employment Rights Act 1996 and related legislation. It protects “workers” who make a “protected disclosure” in the “public interest” and sets out conditions for internal, regulatory and wider disclosure, as developed extensively in case law.In Ireland, whistleblowing is principally regulated by the Protected Disclosures Acts 2014–2022, which establish a broader, codified regime for “protected disclosures”, mandatory internal reporting channels in many organisations, and detailed procedures and remedies.Across all four jurisdictions, whistleblower law is central to employment law, corporate governance, regulatory compliance and public sector accountability, and is a frequent consideration in HR policies, internal investigations, settlement agreements, and tribunal or court litigation.

Law360, London: The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) has announced that it will be making the case for whistleblower incentives as part of a government-sponsored fraud review.

MLex: Whistleblowers will be offered compensation for identifying sanctions breaches under plans drawn up by the main UK opposition Labour party to crack down on white-collar crime if the party comes to power in elections expected later this year.

Workers are protected against retaliatory dismissal or detrimental treatment where they make a 'protected disclosure' to the employer or to some other prescribed person. It must be a disclosure of information which the worker reasonably believes is made in the public interest and tends to show certain types of wrongdoing.

The action of an employee who reports suspected wrongdoing or unethical behaviour at work to their employer or external body.

The Pensions Act 2004 imposes a statutory whistleblowing obligation on trustees, scheme administrators, employers and professional advisers.

This document has been archived and is no longer maintained. This Timeline outlines the key developments related to Directive (EU) 2019/1937 (OJ L 305, 26.11.2019, p. 17) (the Whistleblowing Directive). Member States were required to transpose the provisions of the Whistleblowing Directive into national law by 17 December 2021. The Whistleblowing Directive does not form part of EU retained law following IP completion day (31 December 2020) and therefore does not apply in the UK. 2021 Date Source Document Description 29 June 2021 Council of the EU Opinion of the European Data Protection Supervisor on the Proposal for Regulation on Markets in Crypto-assets, and amending Directive (EU) 2019/1937 The Council of the EU has published an opinion of the European Data Protection Supervisor (EDPS) on the proposal for a regulation on markets in cryptoassets and amending the EU Whistleblowing Directive. In the opinion, dated 24 June 2021, the EDPS welcomed the European Commission’s proposal but also set out a number of recommended changes. 9 March 2021 European Parliament ECON: Draft report on the

Individuals in the UK provide more tips to the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) than from almost any other country. Despite this, many employees and employers in the UK know very little about the SEC and its whistleblower programme. Given how many UK businesses could be affected by the programme, employment lawyers in the UK need to be aware of the SEC whistleblower programme in order to advise clients competently and effectively. This Practice Note provides an overview of the SEC whistleblower rewards programme, which allows individuals to report legal violations to the SEC anonymously, and rewards those whistleblowers whose whistleblowing leads to a fine of over US$1m. It explains the broad categories of companies in the UK that are regulated by the SEC, who is eligible to participate in the whistleblower rewards programme, and the US laws protecting whistleblowers who report securities laws violations. Issues for employers in the UK regulated by the SEC and their employees are discussed. For information on the position regarding

Statutory duty to whistleblow The Pensions Act 2004 (PeA 2004, s 70) imposes a statutory duty on individuals involved with pension schemes to report certain breaches of the law to the Pensions Regulator (TPR) where there is reasonable cause to believe that the breach is likely to be of material significance to TPR. This is commonly known as the duty to whistleblow. For further information on the scope of this duty, see: Who is required to whistleblow? and What needs be reported?, below. The statutory duty overrides any conflicting duties an individual may have (eg a duty of confidentiality to the sponsoring employer). Filing a report to TPR does not breach these additional, conflicting or existing (eg confidentiality) duties. Section 103A of the Employment Rights Act 1996 protects employees filing a report to TPR. The duty to whistleblow is explored and clarified in TPR’s General Code. TPR has also issued guidance (the whistleblowing guidance) to help trustees assess whether to report a breach of the law. This guidance provides examples