Inquiries into disasters and scandals have shown that employees will often be the first to be aware of malpractice and corruption in the workplace. Yet prior to the introduction of the Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998 workers who blew the whistle found they had little if any protection against unfair dismissal or victimisation.

Not surprisingly the 1998 Act has been widely welcomed for the protection it offers to workers. But that welcome has come with reservations. There is no obligation on an employer to implement a whistleblowing procedure and the provisions of the Act are complicated, with significant restraints placed in the way of external disclosure. In order to use the new law effectively it is important to understand its strengths and weaknesses and to be aware of how the courts are interpreting the legislation.