Source · Select Committees · Public Accounts Committee
Recommendation 18
18
Accepted
Systematic interviews capturing whistleblower experience are not routinely conducted by departments.
Conclusion
We asked the Cabinet Office if any interviews are undertaken with whistleblowers to capture their perspective of the experience. It told us it is not aware of interviews taking place currently. There was a hesitancy from the Cabinet Office on the method of capturing feedback as it believed this could create a potential barrier to people coming forward.45 But it also told us that it agreed with the recommendation from the NAO about putting in place a process for collecting whistleblowers’ experiences and feedback, and would work with departments to ensure that happens.46 DWP noted that user experience is something that it is actively looking to put in place as soon as it possibly can, because it recognises it is a gap. It told us it is working with Cabinet Office to introduce a whistleblower survey in the department from May this year, where the whistleblower is known, to help it understand their experience.47
Government Response Summary
The Cabinet Office will work with departmental leads to better capture whistleblowers' experiences, including whether they have experienced victimisation or harassment, develop an anonymised feedback survey for whistleblowers, ensure senior leader oversight of victimisation cases, and share lessons learned across government.
Government Response
Accepted
HM Government
Accepted
4.2 The Cabinet Office will work with departmental leads to develop ways on how it can better capture whistleblowers' experiences, including whether they have experienced victimisation or harassment. The Cabinet Office will encourage the sharing of learning and good practice across departments. 4.3. The Cabinet Office will develop an anonymised feedback survey for whistleblowers to capture their experience, sharing learning across government. Providing feedback will be a voluntary measure to ensure that whistleblowers do not feel deterred from raising a concern. Consideration will be given to ensure that those who raise concerns anonymously can also provide feedback. This will help departments and the Cabinet Office understand better why anonymous whistleblowers use this route and explore ways to ensure whistleblowers have a safe experience. 4.4 The Cabinet Office will continue to work with departmental leads to ensure that there is a senior leader in each organisation who oversees cases where whistleblowers raise subsequent concerns around victimisation or harassment to ensure follow-up actions are captured. The introduction of a civil service-wide whistleblowing champion (as per para 3.6) will help support a safe-to-challenge culture. 4.5 The Cabinet Office will look at how any lessons learned can be shared, effectively and respectfully across government.