Whistleblowing helps detect and address misconduct, including corruption, fraud, and human rights abuses, in the public and private sectors. Whistleblowers therefore serve a vital public interest function, calling out wrongdoing and deterring misconduct.
In 2019, the European Union took an important step towards protecting and empowering those who speak up about wrongdoing, through the adoption of a landmark whistleblower protections directive: Directive 2019/1937 on the protection of persons who report breaches of European Union law (the EU Directive). The EU Directive was hailed as a globally ignificant development for integrity and accountability. However, across the continent the subsequent transposition process has proven challenging. Now, almost four years after the EU Directive was finalised, and two years since it was due to be transposed, the EU Directive’s implementation in member states remains incomplete. Much work remains to be done.
This report considers whistleblower protections in six Central and Eastern European nations: Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Slovakia, and Romania. It summarises the transposition process in each jurisdiction, noting the challenges that have arisen and the opportunities that remain.
