YES Derek Pasquill, 49, from West London, was a civil servant for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO). He leaked secret documents to the press, and was charged with breaking the Official Secrets Act. In January this year, all charges against Derek were dropped.

NO Dr Rita Pal, 36, from Sutton Coldfield, West Midlands, edits www.nhsexposed.com. She exposed lack of basic care and equipment in an NHS hospital, and was left with no choice but to leave the medical profession.

Derek says:

"I joined a unit at the FCO, dealing with engagement with the Islamic world, in February 2005. I didn’t know much about Muslim politics so had no reason to be critical. One project was helping to organise the Festival of Muslim Cultures, with the thought being that some key organisations, like the Muslim Council of Britain, needed to be involved. The FCO’s view of another group, the Muslim Brotherhood, was of a moderate group that Britain could do business with, but my research suggested otherwise.

Gradually I realised things weren’t right. This was brought into sharp focus by an article in the Observer, and a Panorama documentary about the extent of how radical these groups were. A few days after the Observer article, I contacted the journalist, and after more research, sent him secret papers in a brown envelope. I was worried about some documents describing the Muslim Brotherhood as mainstream when they clearly weren’t.

It felt the right thing to do – it was my duty. I continued leaking documents over a five month period. I was arrested on 31 January 2006 after the FCO carried out an internal investigation. I was kept in a police cell for four hours then questioned for four hours before being released on bail. I was also suspended from my job.

It took 18 months before I was charged with six counts of breaking the Official Secrets Act for disclosing information that was damaging to national interest. I pleaded not guilty, and three months later, the charges were dropped. Internal documents at the FCO suggested they didn’t think the documents were damaging to national security. It was quite extraordinary.

I’m still suspended from my job and am waiting to hear what will happen. I don’t think going back would be in either of our interests. I still believe I did the right thing. I was fortunate to have the backing of newspapers and a great legal team, which does make a difference. If others were in a similar situation, I’d urge caution. It’s important to think carefully about why you want to bring the issue to light.

If you agree with Derek, vote YES now.

Rita says:

Fresh out of medical school in 1998, I started work at North Staffordshire hospital as a house officer continuing my training. It was very intense, with 120-hour weeks, but I had no problems for the first three months. Then I was moved to ward 87, for elderly
and emergency patients. I faced an emergency with a patient and there wasn’t the basic equipment there to help. I was able to stabilise the patient but phoned the nursing director to say more staff and more equipment was needed as basic care wasn’t being met. This didn’t go down well at all. Now I think I was naive to think I could make a difference. Other doctors had suffered with poor facilities but no one ever raised concerns. Patients kept dying and no one was doing anything.

I then found myself in a complete nightmare. Two weeks later I was accused of disposing of a needle on a day when I wasn’t even on the ward. It’s a criminal offence under health and safety to dispose of a needle. I faced a hearing where I represented myself, and the charges were dropped. But I’d already got a name for myself as a ‘trouble maker’. The pressure on me to leave was awful and I was advised to move into general practice. I was traumatised, trying to make sense of what was happening, and at times wishing I hadn’t gone into medicine. I moved to Birmingham to do surgery but I had no references as whistleblowing follows you around.

In 2000, I contacted the Sunday Times about the elderly patients I’d come into contact with that I felt were being neglected, and worse, being given drugs that hasten death. I thought if I raised concerns about health care, conditions would at least improve. The issues I’d raised regarding ward 87 were finally justified in the Creamer Report 2001 but there was no accountability held. The ward was shut down in 2005.

I’ve had ten years of fighting for accountability. I feel let down by the NHS. Whistleblowing doesn’t work – it has cost me an awful lot, my career is assassinated but that’s the price I paid for asking for extra equipment. It is a long and lonely road, and in the end, I’m left wondering if it was worth it.

If you agree with Rita, vote NO now.

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