Source: OPDC – Protected Disclosures Commissioner publishes annual report for 2024
Irelands whistleblowing authority – the Office of the Protected Disclosures Commissioner (OPDC) – has published its’ second annual report.
The report – which reviews the work of the Office and the disclosures received throughout 2024—found that the number of reports received had slightly reduced to 262, down from 283 in 2023. Thirty-five were anonymous or unidentifiable.
The remit of the OPDC remained unchanged from last year. It views its role as transmission-only, with no substantive screening or appeals, and its involvement ends once the report is passed on. The OPDC has previously highlighted widespread misunderstanding of its role, reiterating that the Commissioner is not an appeals body, does not assess or screen reports, and does not maintain oversight once a disclosure has been transmitted to an appropriate recipient. Nearly 95 percent of reports were transmitted to other Prescribed or suitable bodies. Only 3.4 percent (nine) were accepted by the Office as last resort, down from 4.9 percent (14) in 2023. Relatively few reports come from the private sector, and many of those are anonymous. There was also a sectoral shift from education-dominated disclosures to health-dominated disclosures.
In line with the 2023 report’s findings, the Office again identified regulatory gaps—specifically in the International Protection Accommodation Service, an increasing proportion of whose centres lie outside HIQA’s inspection remit. It also highlighted ongoing challenges with the rigid timelines under the Protected Disclosures Act (as amended in 2022 to transpose the EU Directive into national law): seven days to acknowledge receipt; fourteen days to transmit or accept; seven days to object; and fourteen days to resolve objections.
Because the OPDC does not screen reports before transmission, some are later closed by recipients on technical grounds (for example, for failing to meet the Act’s strict definition of a “protected disclosure”). The Office nevertheless urges recipients- both employers and regulators – to continue addressing underlying allegations even after the formal process ends:
“We recognise that there is no obligation under the Act to do anything further once the protected-disclosure process has been closed, and in some cases the recipient will be unable to do so. However, we would encourage recipients of reports – both employers and regulators – to consider whether it is nonetheless possible and appropriate to pursue the allegations of wrongdoing as part of their normal business functions. For example, we are aware of the excellent practice where some bodies use information received through protected-disclosure channels as useful intelligence to help them carry out their general inspection and supervision functions effectively, even where the protected-disclosure procedure has been closed, and we welcome this approach as being consistent with the purpose and spirit of the regime. Likewise, employers may improve their business by tackling the wrongdoing, irrespective of whether the protected-disclosure procedure has been closed.”
The Office reported on its outreach efforts, including informally sharing best practice on handling reports with Prescribed Persons. An information seminar for regular report recipients may be repeated, and plans are to expand awareness-raising in 2025.
The OPDC also faced its first legal challenge – a judicial review of its decision to transmit a report to a particular department and of that department’s decision to close the report as “repetitive.” The judgment, issued on 12 December 2024, reaffirms the Commissioner’s broad discretion in choosing recipients for protected-disclosure reports.
Note: TI Ireland referenced: “The Act provides for the Department to provide a support mechanism available to people who wish to make disclosures. Transparency International Ireland (TII) has been designated for that purpose. TII operates a helpline for such cases and provides a limited legal advice service.”