Latest news with #PublicInterestDisclosureAct1998
Yahoo
19-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Kabul evacuation whistleblower wins unfair dismissal case
A Foreign Office whistleblower has won a case for unfair dismissal over her disclosures to the BBC about the UK evacuation from Afghanistan. Josie Stewart revealed details of the chaotic August 2021 withdrawal from Kabul and emails which suggested then Prime Minister Boris Johnson's had been involved in the evacuation of a pet charity. She had her security clearance revoked and lost her job after a BBC journalist accidentally identified her as a confidential source on social media. An employment tribunal, chaired by Judge Andrew Glennie, found she had leaked the information in the public interest and had been unfairly dismissed. Lawyers for the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) said Ms Stewart's bosses had been forced to sack her because her security clearance had been revoked and there were no other suitable roles for her. But Ms Stewart's barrister, Gavin Millar KC, said that if their argument had succeeded it would have driven "a coach and horses through" the Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998 (Pida) aimed at protecting whistleblowers. In a judgement issued on Tuesday, the employment tribunal said Ms Stewart had been justified in going to the media on a clear matter of public interest. "The tribunal considered that it was reasonable for the claimant [Stewart] to go to the UK's public service broadcaster when relevant information and/or allegations had already been put into the public domain … and government ministers were publicly disputing them." Top official admits error in Afghan evacuation row PM denies authorising animal evacuation from Kabul The tribunal heard that Ms Stewart had "experienced a culture in FCDO which silences concerns and ostracises those who raise them". She said her experience of the FCDO's Afghanistan crisis centre in August 2021 "reflected the worst of our political system". In a statement upon receiving the judgment, she added: "By calling this out, I lost my career. "The outcome of this case doesn't change any of this, but it has achieved what I set out to achieve: it has established that civil servants have the right not to stay silent when systemic failures put lives at risk, as happened during the Afghan evacuation. "I hope that, knowing that their colleagues have this right, senior officials will do more to build accountability in government, and speak truth to power when it is needed. "We can't have a system that says stay silent, no matter what you see, and forces dedicated public servants to choose between their conscience and their career." Elizabeth Gardiner, chief executive of whistleblowing charity Protect, welcomed the ruling. "We need whistleblowers to raise matters in the public interest and this case is unusual and hugely significant in finding that a civil servant was justified in going to the press." She added that the decision had "weighty repercussions for how civil servants can act in the future and their confidence in speaking out when they encounter wrongdoing". But she said it did not remove the need for better protections for civil servants who raise concerns internally through an "independent statutory commissioner". An FCDO spokesperson said: "We will review the findings of the tribunal and consider next steps." Remedies for Ms Stewart's successful complaints will be determined at a future hearing.
BBC News
19-02-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
Afghanistan evacuation whistleblower wins unfair dismissal case
A Foreign Office whistleblower has won a case for unfair dismissal over her disclosures to the BBC about the UK evacuation from Stewart revealed details of the chaotic August 2021 withdrawal from Kabul and emails which suggested then Prime Minister Boris Johnson's had been involved in the evacuation of a pet charity. She had her security clearance revoked and lost her job after a BBC journalist accidentally identified her as a confidential source on social employment tribunal, chaired by Judge Andrew Glennie, found she had leaked the information in the public interest and had been unfairly dismissed. Lawyers for the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) said Ms Stewart's bosses had been forced to sack her because her security clearance had been revoked and there were no other suitable roles for her. But Ms Stewart's barrister, Gavin Millar KC, said that if their argument had succeeded it would have driven "a coach and horses through" the Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998 (Pida) aimed at protecting a judgement issued on Tuesday, the employment tribunal said Ms Stewart had been justified in going to the media on a clear matter of public interest. "The tribunal considered that it was reasonable for the claimant [Stewart] to go to the UK's public service broadcaster when relevant information and/or allegations had already been put into the public domain … and government ministers were publicly disputing them." The tribunal heard that Ms Stewart had "experienced a culture in FCDO which silences concerns and ostracises those who raise them".She said her experience of the FCDO's Afghanistan crisis centre in August 2021 "reflected the worst of our political system".In a statement upon receiving the judgment, she added: "By calling this out, I lost my career."The outcome of this case doesn't change any of this, but it has achieved what I set out to achieve: it has established that civil servants have the right not to stay silent when systemic failures put lives at risk, as happened during the Afghan evacuation."I hope that, knowing that their colleagues have this right, senior officials will do more to build accountability in government, and speak truth to power when it is needed."We can't have a system that says stay silent, no matter what you see, and forces dedicated public servants to choose between their conscience and their career."Elizabeth Gardiner, chief executive of whistleblowing charity Protect, welcomed the ruling. "We need whistleblowers to raise matters in the public interest and this case is unusual and hugely significant in finding that a civil servant was justified in going to the press."She added that the decision had "weighty repercussions for how civil servants can act in the future and their confidence in speaking out when they encounter wrongdoing".But she said it did not remove the need for better protections for civil servants who raise concerns internally through an "independent statutory commissioner".An FCDO spokesperson said: "We will review the findings of the tribunal and consider next steps."Remedies for Ms Stewart's successful complaints will be determined at a future hearing.
The Independent
19-02-2025
- Politics
- The Independent
Whistleblower who exposed chaos of Afghanistan evacuation wins unfair dismissal case against government
A civil servant who lost her job after blowing the whistle about the UK's chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan has won her case for unfair dismissal against the government. Josie Stewart, a former senior official who had worked at the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) for seven years, lost her job after giving an anonymous interview to BBC Newsnight which saw her speak about her 'traumatic experiences' working in the Afghanistan Crisis Centre in summer 2021. Following the Taliban gaining control of Afghanistan, the British government evacuated 15,000 people from Kabul in what was known as Operation Pitting. Ms Stewart's security clearance was revoked and she subsequently lost her job after it emerged she revealed failings in the withdrawal from Kabul, as well as leaking emails suggesting that former prime minister Boris Johnson had prioritised staff from the animal charity Nowzad for evacuation over more deserving cases. An employment panel of three judges found the FCDO unfairly dismissed Ms Stewart after she leaked information in the public interest. In a legal first, the tribunal ruled that under whistleblower protection legislation it can be lawful for a civil servant to share unauthorised information directly with the media. At a hearing which took place last May, counsel for the FCDO Ben Collins KC argued that the right to blow the whistle did not extend to giving security clearance to those with a record of leaking. But Gavin Millar KC, the barrister acting for Ms Stewart, said such an argument would 'drive a coach and horses through' the Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998, aimed at protecting whistleblowers, if it succeeded. In submissions to the panel, Mr Millar said that Ms Stewart's whistleblowing related to 'the endangerment of the safety and lives of extremely vulnerable people in danger of retribution from the Taliban at any moment, and a government communications strategy which concealed how badly the UK government let those people down'. A landmark judgment issued on Tuesday said: 'The tribunal considered that it was reasonable for the claimant to go to the UK's public service broadcaster when relevant information and/or allegations had already been put into the public domain … and government ministers were publicly disputing them.' The judgement continued: 'Was the claimant's belief that she made the disclosure in the public interest a reasonable belief? The tribunal found that it was. The prime minister and foreign secretary were denying things that the claimant believed to be true, based on what she had observed in the course of her work.' However, the panel accepted that it was unavoidable that Ms Stewart was suspended from work 'while her security clearance was reviewed, as she was required to have such clearance'. The judgement was dubbed 'groundbreaking' by Ms Stewart's solicitors, James and West, saying it was 'without precedent and raised numerous important issues about civil servants' rights to whistleblower protection under existing law'. Ms Stewart said: 'My experience of the FCDO crisis centre in August 2021 reflected the worst of our political system. By calling this out, I lost my career. The outcome of this case doesn't change any of this, but it has achieved what I set out to achieve: it has established that civil servants have the right not to stay silent when systemic failures put lives at risk, as happened during the Afghan evacuation. 'We can't have a system that stays stay silent no matter what you see, and forces dedicated public servants to choose between their conscience and their career.' Cathy James, Ms Stewart's solicitor, added: 'Today, the employment tribunal has vindicated my client's actions and upheld her rights. This is an important win not just for Ms Stewart but for civil servants, the public interest, and democracy.' An FCDO spokesperson said: 'We will review the findings of the tribunal and consider next steps.'
The Guardian
18-02-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
Kabul evacuation whistleblower wins case against UK government
A civil servant who blew the whistle about the chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan and Boris Johnson's involvement in a decision to evacuate a pet charity from Kabul has won her case for unfair dismissal against the government in a legal first. An employment panel of three judges unanimously found the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) unfairly dismissed Josie Stewart in 2021 after she leaked information in the public interest. Stewart lost her job after her security clearance was removed when it emerged she told the BBC about failures in the withdrawal from Kabul and leaked emails suggesting that Johnson had prioritised staff from the animal charity Nowzad for evacuation over more deserving cases. At a hearing last May, Ben Collins KC, counsel for the FCDO, argued that the right to whistleblow did not extend to giving security clearance to those with a record of leaking. But Stewart's barrister, Gavin Millar KC, said if the FCDO's argument succeeded it would 'drive a coach and horses through' the Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998 (Pida) aimed at protecting whistleblowers. A landmark judgment issued on Tuesday said: 'The tribunal considered that it was reasonable for the claimant [Stewart] to go to the UK's public service broadcaster when relevant information and/or allegations had already been put into the public domain … and government ministers were publicly disputing them.' It added: 'Was the claimant's belief that she made the disclosure in the public interest a reasonable belief? The tribunal found that it was. The prime minister and foreign secretary were denying things that the claimant believed to be true, based on what she had observed in the course of her work.' The tribunal also backed Stewart's claim for unfair dismissal. It said: 'The tribunal considered that no reasonable employer, acting reasonably, could base a decision to dismiss an employee in the claimant's position on a process which failed to engage in any way with the case that she was putting forward. This was sufficient to lead the tribunal to conclude that the dismissal was unfair.' But the panel did accept that it was 'unavoidable' that she was suspended from her job 'while her security clearance was reviewed, as she was required to have such clearance'. Stewart's solicitors, James and West, a legal firm that specialises in whistleblowing, said the judgment was 'groundbreaking', as it was the first case of its kind to establish that a civil servant was protected for disclosures to the media. Stewart, 44, who had worked at the FCDO office for seven years, said: 'My experience of the FCDO crisis centre in August 2021 reflected the worst of our political system. By calling this out, I lost my career. The outcome of this case doesn't change any of this, but it has achieved what I set out to achieve: it has established that civil servants have the right not to stay silent when systemic failures put lives at risk, as happened during the Afghan evacuation. 'We can't have a system that stays stay silent no matter what you see, and forces dedicated public servants to choose between their conscience and their career.' Cathy James, Stewart's solicitor, said: 'Today, the employment tribunal has vindicated my client's actions and upheld her rights. This is an important win not just for Ms Stewart but for civil servants, the public interest, and democracy.' Millar said in submissions to the panel that Stewart's whistleblowing related to 'the endangerment of the safety and lives of extremely vulnerable people in danger of retribution from the Taliban at any moment, and a government communications strategy which concealed how badly the UK government let those people down'. The FCDO has been approached for comment.
