UK Whistleblowing PIDA (2026/27): Protected Disclosures + Uncapped Compensation

Q What is a protected disclosure?

Under Sections 43A-43L Employment Rights Act 1996 (as inserted by PIDA 1998), a "qualifying disclosure" is one that the worker reasonably believes (a) tends to show one of the 7 listed subjects in section 43B(1) (criminal offence, legal breach, miscarriage of justice, health + safety danger, sexual harassment - added from 6 April 2026 - environmental damage, deliberate concealment), AND (b) is in the public interest. To become "protected", it must be made by an appropriate route - internally, to a prescribed person (regulator), or in wider circumstances. The "reasonable belief" test means the disclosure is protected even if the belief turns out to be wrong, as long as it was reasonably held.

Q What's the "public interest" test?

Added by the Enterprise + Regulatory Reform Act 2013 to filter out purely personal grievances. The disclosure must be one that, in the worker's reasonable belief, is in the public interest - i.e. affects more than just the worker themselves. Chesterton Global v Nurmohamed [2017] EWCA Civ 979 confirmed that the disclosure doesn't have to affect the WHOLE public - a relatively narrow group of workers can be enough. The test is the worker's reasonable belief at the time, not the actual public interest.

Q What's the difference between internal, prescribed person, and wider disclosure?

Three tiers: (1) Internal disclosure (s.43C) - to your employer, or to another person responsible for the matter. Lowest threshold: a qualifying disclosure is enough. Good faith is no longer a condition of protection since 2013, but a tribunal can cut compensation by up to 25% if the disclosure was not made in good faith (ss.49(6A) and 123(6A)). (2) Prescribed person (s.43F) - a body on the government's prescribed persons list (FCA, HMRC, ICO, HSE, Care Quality Commission and others; MPs are also prescribed). Higher threshold than internal: you must reasonably believe the matter is within that body's remit AND that the information and any allegation are substantially true. (3) Wider disclosure (s.43G, e.g. press or a campaign group) - highest threshold: reasonable belief the information is substantially true, not for personal gain, reasonable in all the circumstances, AND one of: you reasonably believe you would suffer detriment if you went to your employer or a prescribed person; there is no prescribed person and you reasonably believe evidence would be concealed or destroyed; or you have already raised substantially the same information with your employer or a prescribed person.

Q What protection do I get?

Two main protections under ERA 1996 Part IVA: (a) Right not to be subjected to detriment for making the disclosure - any negative action (denied promotion, denied bonus, denied training, exclusion, harassment) that's "on the ground that" you made the disclosure. (b) Right not to be dismissed for making the disclosure - automatic unfair dismissal under s.103A, NO qualifying service requirement (s.108(3)(ff)). The compensatory award is UNCAPPED for whistleblowing dismissal (s.124(1A)), unlike ordinary unfair dismissal, which is capped at the lower of 52 weeks' pay or £123,543 for dismissals from 6 April 2026 (SI 2026/310) - and from 1 January 2027 section 25(3) Employment Rights Act 2025 removes that cap altogether. Dismissal compensation covers lost earnings, future loss and pension loss; injury to feelings is awarded on DETRIMENT claims, not on the unfair dismissal claim itself.

Q Should I make the disclosure in writing?

Yes, where safe + practical. Written disclosure creates evidence of what was said + when. Use the employer's whistleblowing policy if one exists - many large employers have explicit whistleblowing channels (Compliance, internal hotline, ethics committee). Keep your own copy. If unsafe to use employer channels (e.g. the wrongdoing involves senior management), use a prescribed person directly. The whistleblowing charity Protect (protect-advice.org.uk) runs a free, confidential advice line.

Q Will I be protected if my disclosure is leaked / I'm identified?

Protection from retaliation applies regardless of how the employer found out. But maintaining confidentiality is much safer practically. Tips: (a) Use the employer's formal channel if it has a confidentiality commitment. (b) Use a prescribed person - check its published whistleblowing policy for how it handles your identity. (c) Avoid mass-emailing colleagues - the wider it spreads, the harder to maintain. (d) Some whistleblowers use solicitors to make the disclosure on their behalf. (e) If identified + retaliated against, the law protects you - but the practical experience of being a known whistleblower is often very damaging professionally.

Q What's the time limit for claiming detriment / dismissal?

The time limit depends on when the thing you are complaining about happened, not on when you file: 3 months less 1 day if it happened before 1 October 2026, and 6 months less 1 day if it happened on or after that date. For a dismissal the date is the effective date of termination; for a series of acts or deductions it is the last one. Starting ACAS Early Conciliation pauses the clock. Detriment claim: the clock runs from the last act of detriment, or from a continuing act's end. Dismissal claim: the same limit, measured from the effective date of termination. ACAS Early Conciliation extends slightly. Series-of-detriments claims can run further back if connected. Many whistleblowers face cumulative detriment over months/years before dismissal - documenting each act in real time is essential.

Q Is the Employment Rights Act 2025 changing whistleblowing?

Only modestly, and it does not touch your day-one protection, which comes from section 108(3)(ff) ERA 1996 and is unaffected. Section 23 of the Act extends protected disclosures to disclosures about sexual harassment, in force from 6 April 2026. Section 25 is often misreported here: it cuts the ordinary unfair dismissal qualifying period from two years to six months, and removes the ordinary compensatory-award cap, from 1 January 2027 (SI 2026/559). It is not a day-one right and creates no statutory probation period - and it is irrelevant to a section 103A whistleblowing dismissal, which never needed service in the first place.