Mark Dreyfus (Isaacs, Australian Labor Party, Cabinet Secretary) Share this | Hansard source

I'll say again that it is not appropriate for me to comment on the matters, which are both before the courts. But I do take this opportunity to note that the government is committed to delivering strong, effective and accessible protections for whistleblowers. The government has already delivered priority amendments to the Public Interest Disclosure Act. We are going to commence a second stage of reforms, which will include public consultation on broader reforms to the Public Interest Disclosure Act to provide accessible and effective protections to public sector whistleblowers and address the underlying complexity of the current scheme. The consultation will also include the need for additional supports for whistleblowers, which may include such amendments as including a whistleblower protection authority or a whistleblower protection commissioner.

The government is delivering on its commitment to ensure that Australia has effective frameworks to protect whistleblowers which are critical to supporting integrity and the rule of law. The reforms that we have made and reforms which are coming are long overdue. There is significant reform which is required to restore the Public Interest Disclosure Act to a scheme that provides strong protection for public sector whistleblowers.

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