Whistleblowing in the UK, Ep. 2: Is it ‘British’ to pay whistleblowers?

英国举报风波,第二集:支付举报者报酬,是“英国式”的吗?

Behind the Money

2025-12-15

19 分钟
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In the UK, whistleblowers are encouraged to report wrongdoing, but often at cost to their livelihoods and careers. One solution would be to pay corporate whistleblowers for coming forward. However, many in government have held the idea for years that doing so is not very “British.” But now, longtime opposition to the idea seems to be shifting. Suzi Ring, the FT’s legal correspondent in London, explains how and why. Plus, we speak with Nick Ephgrave, the director of the UK’s Serious Fraud Office, who is taking inspiration from his decades spent with London’s Metropolitan Police Service to try to change the system.  Clips from ITV If you missed part one of this series, listen to it here.  The FT does not use generative AI to voice its podcasts. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -  For further reading: Should corporate whistleblowers get paid? Whistleblowers could earn millions as HMRC targets tax fraud UK SFO director pushes to pay whistleblowers and use covert tactics Corporate whistleblowing in the UK needs a shake-up  - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -  Behind the Money host Michela Tindera is on X (@mtindera07) and Bluesky (@mtindera.ft.com), or follow her on LinkedIn for updates about the show and more.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  • My colleague Martin Arnold, who's the FT's financial regulation editor,

  • has been reporting on the world of UK finance for many years.

  • And over time,

  • he's seen an ongoing hesitation on the part of regulators to pay corporate whistleblowers.

  • It's just not cricket, I think is what I would say in the UK.

  • I am unfamiliar with that phrase.

  • It's just not cricket.

  • What's that mean?

  • It's just not very gentlemanly to be doing it for money.

  • You should be doing it because it's the right thing to do anyway.

  • There's something slightly tainted, slightly commercial about it.

  • As recently as 2018, the head of the UK's serious fraud office,

  • which prosecutes financial crimes, said that paying whistleblowers just isn't British.

  • But the tide might be turning.

  • The SFO now has a new director, and he's become a major advocate for whistleblower rewards.

  • In the US, you're not embarrassed or ashamed, and nor should you be, of saying,

  • if you give us information that helps us convict a criminal, we're going to pay you for that.

  • That's Nick F.

  • Grave, the new head of the SFO.

  • I think that's an entirely good thing to do.