Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of whistleblowing procedures at the Highways Agency.

All whistle blowing correspondence notified to the Agency is logged on a central database, which includes action taken to resolve issues arising. The log is overseen by the Agency’s Counter Fraud Committee (CFC) and updates on individual cases are produced as required. The CFC is chaired by the Agency’s Finance Director, and includes a Non Executive Director, the Procurement and Commercial Services Director and the Head of Audit and Assurance. The CFC continually review the effectiveness of whistle blowing procedures. The CFC reports any issues of concern to the Agency’s Audit Committee.