The Australia Institute surveyed a nationally representative sample of 1,002 Australians about their attitudes towards government secrecy and whistleblowing. The survey was developed in collaboration with the Human Rights Law Centre.

The results show that:

• Three in four (76%) say whistleblowers make Australia a better place.
• An overwhelming majority of Australians (84%) support stronger legal protection for whistleblowers.
• Most Australians think that the government is too secretive about how it deals with allegations of corruption (60%) and how it spends money (51%).
• Four in five (79%) support the introduction of an Australian whistleblower protection authority.
• A majority of Australians think the government should intervene to end the prosecution of whistleblowers Boyle (71%) and McBride (64%).
• Since the Australia Institute last polled on this issue in November 2021, perceptions of whistleblowers have remained largely consistent, and in some respects increased.