Regulation Impact Statement – Department of the Treasury
On 7 December 2017, the Government introduced the Treasury Laws Amendment (Enhancing Whistleblower Protections) Bill 2017 to amend the whistleblower protections in the Corporations Act 2001, so that a single strengthened whistleblower protection regime covers the corporate, financial and credit sectors.
Whistleblower protection regimes aim to encourage individuals with internal knowledge of an organisation to disclose wrongdoing. The proposed changes respond to concerns the existing regime has gaps in coverage, and has inadequate and unclear protections. The proposal will primarily affect companies and other entities that will be required to develop whistleblower policies and/or potentially deal with greater whistleblowing activity.
A Regulation Impact Statement (RIS) was prepared and certified by the Department of the Treasury and has been assessed by the Office of Best Practice Regulation (OBPR) as compliant with the Government’s requirements and consistent with best practice. The RIS estimates the average annual regulatory costs of the proposal at $15.4m a year. The OBPR has agreed to this estimate.