Doha: The European Court of Justice on Thursday imposed a fine of 34 million euros (approximately $36.7 million) on Germany for failing to adequately protect whistleblowers. The court's decision highlights Germany's delay in implementing EU legislation designed to safeguard individuals reporting violations of the bloc's regulations.

According to Qatar News Agency, the fine follows a case initiated by a complaint from the European Commission in March 2023. The Commission argued that Germany did not meet the deadline to establish proper channels for whistleblowers, as required by European laws. These laws, enacted in 2019, mandated that all EU member states implement the necessary measures by the end of 2021. However, Germany's whistleblower protection law was only enacted in July 2023, well past the stipulated deadline.

The EU introduced the whistleblower protection law in response to significant scandals, including the "Panama Papers" and issues concerning Facebook's data handling practices. These incidents underscored the importance of whistleblowers in uncovering misconduct and prompted the EU to ensure comprehensive protection for those who report such activities.

The European regulations that Germany failed to timely implement cover a range of violations. These include breaches related to anti-money laundering, corporate taxation, data protection, food and product safety, environmental protection, and nuclear safety.