Written answer
Departmental Bodies
72. Deputy Gillian Toole asked the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation the reason the Office of the Protected Disclosures Commissioner applies S.I. No. 367/2020, Prescribed Persons for the bodies responsible for safeguarding and not S.I. No. 233/2025, aligning them with the primary Protected Disclosures (Amendment) Act 2022; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52108/26]
Comment on this
I would like to thank the Deputy for her question.
The Office of the Protected Disclosures Commissioner (OPDC) operates within the framework of the Protected Disclosures Act 2014, as amended by the Protected Disclosures (Amendment) Act 2022. The list of prescribed persons is set out in the Protected Disclosures Act 2014 (Disclosure to Prescribed Persons) Order 2020 (S.I. No. 367 of 2020), as subsequently amended by the Protected Disclosures Act 2014 (Disclosure to Prescribed Persons) (Amendment) Order 2025 (S.I. No. 233 of 2025).
S.I. No. 233 of 2025 does not replace S.I. No. 367 of 2020 in its entirety. Rather, it amends the Schedule to the 2020 Order by updating a number of prescribed persons and descriptions of matters within their remit, as well as adding and removing certain entries. Accordingly, the 2020 Order, as amended, continues to provide the statutory basis for the prescribed persons regime.
The OPDC is required to have regard to the current prescribed persons framework as provided for in law, including all amendments in force. Any reference to S.I. No. 367 of 2020 should therefore be understood as a reference to the principal Order as amended by subsequent statutory instruments, including S.I. No. 233 of 2025.
I am advised that there is no inconsistency between the operation of the OPDC and the provisions of the Protected Disclosures (Amendment) Act 2022. The prescribed persons list has been updated through the statutory amendment process provided for under section 7 of the Protected Disclosures Act 2014, and the current list is publicly available on my Department's website.