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ARTICLE · 30 OCTOBER 2017

A seismic shift: Commonwealth government releases draft whistleblower legislation

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The Commonwealth Government has now released an exposure draft of the proposed whistleblower legislation for comment.

AustraliaEmployment and HR
John Tuck
John Tuck
Richard Flitcroft
Richard Flitcroft
Anthony Forsyth
Anthony Forsyth
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Australian whistleblower reform is coming thick and fast. Hot on the heels of the Whistleblower Protection report by the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Corporations and Financial Services (Committee),1 the Commonwealth Government has now released an exposure draft of the proposed legislation (Draft Legislation), open for comment until 3 November 2017.

While the draft legislation does not cover every recommendation from the Committee, it will reflect a seismic shift from the current framework. A specific regime has also been announced to deal with breaches of tax laws and tax avoidance, and an Expert Advisory Panel has been established to consider the alignment of the draft legislation with the recommendations made in the Committee's report.

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