Watchdog says funding needed to avoid the ‘collapse’ of whistle-blowing

OTTAWA — Canada’s integrity watchdog has issued an urgent funding request to the federal government warning the “whistle-blowing regime” is at risk.

Public Sector Integrity Commissioner of Canada Harriet Solloway sent a letter to Treasury Board President Shafqat Ali last week asking for a one-time injection of $6.7 million and around $14.3 million in additional funding per year.

Solloway said the funds are needed to allow her office to deliver on its mandate. The office investigates complaints from public servants who believe they have evidence of wrongdoing, or who have suffered reprisals after coming forward or participating in an investigation of wrongdoing.

In her letter, Solloway said her office is facing “unprecedented numbers” of allegations of wrongdoing and reprisal against whistleblowers.

“Resources have not kept pace, causing detrimental delays to investigations and creating a risk to our ability to carry out our legislated mandate,” she said.

The Canadian Press has reached out to the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat for comment but has yet to receive a response.

The commissioner said the timeliness of the investigations is “critical” and delays can lead to the erosion of witnesses’ recollections or the loss of evidence. She added that delays allow wrongdoing and reprisals to continue unaddressed.

“In the face of the current situation, I cannot guarantee that allegations of wrongdoing and reprisal will be investigated in a timely manner,” Solloway said.

“This puts at risk confidence in the federal public sector and undercuts any potential deterrent to wrongdoing that would be characteristic of a strong and adequately resourced whistle-blowing regime.”

A spokesperson for the office said it received 638 submissions in 2025, up from 419 in 2024, 313 in 2023 and 245 in 2022.

The office launched 37 investigations last year, 46 in 2024, 24 in 2023 and 13 in 2022.

The office reports it completed 17 investigations in 2025, 22 in 2024, 20 in 2023 and 26 in 2022. The spokesperson said the investigations completed in 2022 also included files carried over from previous years.

The office’s growing backlog of cases has led in part to a decrease in the number of investigations completed, the spokesperson said.

Solloway told The Canadian Press in September her office was being overwhelmed by its workload and that eliminating the backlog of files would require more analysts and lawyers.

She said there was a risk that some allegations “may never see the light of day,” given her office’s resources.

Solloway said her office investigates claims related to generalized abuses of power, toxic workplaces, widespread or systemic discrimination or financial mismanagement.

She said many of the submissions her office receives don’t fall within its mandate and most submissions contain multiple allegations. She said only a small percentage of findings of wrongdoing result in a report to Parliament.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 21, 2026.

Catherine Morrison, The Canadian Press