German Government's Work-in-Progress Whistleblower Protection Draft Law Fails to Meet International Standards

The German Government is currently considering a first draft presented by the Ministry of Justice to transpose the EU Directive on Whistleblower Protection. Blueprint for Free Speech has analysed the draft law, which is still incomplete and should be improved further.

You can read our initial critique of the draft here: Blueprint's Factsheet on the Draft Law of the Republic of Germany for Better Protection of Whistleblowers and for the Implementation of the Directive on the Protection of Persons Reporting Breaches of Union Law.

While introducing Germany’s first ever comprehensive framework to protect public interest disclosures is likely to improve the situation for some whistleblowers, the proposed law also includes some major gaps. It fails to meet important international standards that would guarantee consistent application and best practise in important areas, such as anonymous disclosures, confidentiality, concrete protection measures and a sound liability regime. On the upside, the draft introduces an independent oversight mechanism and expands the material scope. It is expected that the German Government will add additional sections regarding public service regulations into the first draft.

The EU Directive protecting whistleblowers, which the EU Parliament passed in April 2019, can be found here: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:32019L1937