Eastern EU will fail to implement whistleblower rules

Significance

Countries in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) are under pressure to adopt whistleblower legislation in order to combat the misuse of EU funds and other breaches of EU law. In February, the European Commission referred Poland, the Czech Republic and Hungary to the European Court of Justice for failing to implement the EWD.

Impacts

• The Polish government seeks to narrow the scope of whistleblowing to the area of labour law.
• No country in CEE will likely follow through with effective implementation of future legislation to protect whistleblowers.
• The absence of robust rules on whistleblowing will contribute to democratic backsliding in the region.