Cap. 527 Art. 6Prohibition of disclosure of information to identify the whistleblower.

(1) Every whistleblowing reporting officer or whistleblowing reports unit to whom a protected disclosure is made or referred must not disclose information that identifies or may lead to the identification of the whistleblower unless the whistleblower expressly consents in writing to the disclosure of that information.

(2) The whistleblowing reports unit shall not communicate the contents of the disclosure to other departments within the authority of which it forms part until it has duly investigated the disclosure and it has established that it is necessary or appropriate in the public interest for further investigation to be carried out by such other departments or with the police in relation to an improper practice which constitutes a crime or contravention under any law. Notwithstanding any other law, the authority shall not be restricted in any manner in sharing information with the whistleblowing reports unit about its investigations from time to time for the whistleblowing reports unit to determine whether it has any relevant information on the subject matter under investigation.

(3) Guidelines may be issued by each authority setting out –

(a) the duties of communication between the whistleblowing reports unit and the whistleblower and the restrictions thereon; and

(b) the rules for disclosure to other departments of the authority or to other authorities or entities of the State.

(4) The protection provided for in this article shall not be subject to any exceptions and no court may order the disclosure of the identity of any whistleblower without his consent.

(5) Every whistleblowing reporting officer or whistleblowing reports Unit that receive information on breaches that includes trade secrets as defined under article 2 of the Trade Secrets Act shall not use or disclose those trade secrets for purposes going beyond what is necessary for proper follow-up.