Whistleblower Act stops £2.5m worth of Government fraud

The
Act that protects whistleblowers is preventing frauds worth £2.5m a year in
Government, according to new research.

The
charity Public Concern at Work, which promotes whistleblowing, said there has
been a 30 per cent increase in the number of frauds in Whitehall stopped by
whistleblowers since the Public Interest Disclosure Act (PIDA) came into force
in 1998.

However,
the charity said even more money could be saved if government ministers backed
the Act more vigorously.

Guy
Dehn, its director, said: "Unless the Government starts to promote
whistleblowing, we have no chance of tackling workplace cultures that have
become corrupted, compromised and cynical."

The
PIDA applies to people at work raising genuine concerns about crime, civil
offences (including negligence, breach of contract, breach of administrative
law), miscarriage of justice, danger to health and safety or the environment
and the cover up of any of these.

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It
applies whether or not the information is confidential and extends to malpractice
occurring overseas.

By Mike Berry