The Territory’s anti-corruption watchdog wants to hear from whistleblowers who have exposed corruption in the NT as part of a “project” to review “the state of whistleblowing in the Northern Territory”, following years of concerns from whistleblowers that they aren’t protected and in some cases have been exposed by the Office of the ICAC and its Inspector.

Independent Commissioner Against Corruption Michael Riches released a statement on Wednesday to say he was undertaking the “review project” to better understand the frameworks currently in place to protect whistleblowers and to “reduce the risk of retaliation”.

“One of the main reasons people do not report wrongdoing is the fear of retaliation,” he said.

“Every public body has a responsibility to minimise the risk of retaliation against those who come forward and call out impropriety.

“As Commissioner, I must issue and keep under review directions and guidelines relating to whistleblowing. The directions and guidelines issued by the former Commissioner are now in need of review.”

However, sources have repeatedly told the NT Independent over the years that they do not feel protected when reporting corruption in the NT public service and that includes complaints filed with the Office of the ICAC.

In many instances, the ICAC refers matters back to departments – which has increased during Mr Riches’s tenure as commissioner, in some case including to the very people being complained about by whistleblowers.

In other instances, the Office of the ICAC has been accused of making the identities of whistleblowers public and ICAC Inspector Bruce McClintock has also previously named whistleblowers in annual reports without their knowledge or permission.

Mr Riches did not address those issues in the statement, but said he is inviting submissions from “persons who may have information relevant to the project” to contact his office.

“I encourage anyone, and in particular Northern Territory public officers, to provide me with information about their agency’s approach to whistleblower disclosures and protections,” he said.

“I also encourage public officers who have made disclosures to tell me about their experiences in doing so.”

A previous consultation paper was developed with submissions from whistleblowers in 2017, which also promised to enhance whistleblower protections.

Mr Riches said his “project” would conclude “with the issue of new directions and guidelines relating to whistleblowing in the Northern Territory”.

Written submissions, which can be made anonymously, can be sent via email to whistleblower.project@icac.nt.gov.au before the closing date of March 31.

Annual report showed OICAC woeful on meeting KPIs

Mr Riches’s first annual report, released last October, showed the investigations unit at the OICAC failed to meet its key performance indicators by massive margins despite more investigators being hired over the year.

The ICAC had projected that more than 70 per cent of its “finalised reports” would result in “significant outcomes” for the last financial year, but the actual number was a dismal 1.8 per cent, according to the report.

The KPI of “translating” investigations into “formal reports” was estimated at 90 per cent, but again, the investigations unit only managed 1.8 per cent, according to the annual report.

That is an estimated one assessed complaint that became a report and resulted in “significant outcomes” in 2021-22, which the office describes as a criminal prosecution, a finding under the ICAC Act which may lead to a formal report, or exoneration of the accused.

Mr Riches blamed a reduction in his budget, high staff turnover and ongoing legal action for the failures to produce any public reports since taking office and the diminished output of his office since taking over in July 2021.

That budget reduction is an estimated $1.4 million less than the roughly $7 million the ICAC was provided the year before – an all-time high in funding.