An estimated €3.7 million was recovered for the public purse in 2023 following reports by whistleblowers, according to the first annual report into the operation of whistleblowing legislation by the Department of Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform.
In total 1,162 reports of alleged wrongdoing in the workplace were submitted on a confidential basis as 'protected disclosures' to public bodies in 2023, under the Protected Disclosures (Amendment) Act 2022.
Of the reports, 734 were deemed to require further follow up, with 161 being sent for further proceedings and investigations.
It was a further investigation into a single report made within the HSE, that led to €3.7m being recouped for the taxpayer, according to the Department of Public Expenditure.
The act provides special procedures to assist workers in reporting wrongdoing in the workplace and protects them from penalisation.
It provides a range of channels - both internal and external - for workers to make protected disclosures.
This ensures that if one channel fails to operate correctly, workers have access to alternative avenues to report their concerns.
This data shows that there were 173 reports made internally to public bodies and 989 reports made externally to a minister, senior officials or other "prescribed persons" or reports made to or passed on by Office of the Protected Disclosures Commissioner. Of these reports, 211 were stated to be breaches of EU Laws.
The report shows that the public body with the largest number of reports received was the Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA) with 373 reports of wrongdoing.
This is followed by the Food Safety Authority (FSAI) with 89 and the Central Bank of Ireland with 68.
The report states: "The vast majority of the reports received by these bodies were external reports, i.e. from workers outside of the organisation.
"It is likely that these numbers are higher due to the sectoral regulatory responsibilities of the bodies concerned."
Minister Donohoe said: "Ireland has one of the strongest whistleblower protection laws in world. The legislation is in place to allow an environment of openness and integrity in workplaces across the country.
"This data provides an appropriate overview of the protected disclosures landscape in Ireland.
"It is my intention that this will be the first of a number of reports that will help to assemble a vital data set to be used in evaluating the performance of this Act."
Original whistleblowing legislation, the Protected Disclosures 2014 Act, was overhauled by the Protected Disclosures (Amendment) Act 2022 which commenced in full on 1 January 2023.
The amended Act established the Office of the Protected Disclosures Commissioner (OPDC) and provided that the Ombudsman is also the Protected Disclosures Commissioner.
It gives effect in Ireland to EU Directive 2019/1937 on the protection of persons who report breaches of Union law ("the Whistleblowing Directive").
The report published today will also be submitted to the European Commission to assist in the evaluation and review of the Whistleblowing Directive.
