Whistleblower protections 'useless' as Mark Dreyfus is urged to drop case against David McBride

Military whistleblower David McBride withdrew his application for protection from criminal prosecution on Thursday after the Commonwealth lodged a last-minute public interest immunity claim, effectively rendering his whistleblower defence nullified.

Experts and transparency advocates were dismayed by the news, calling it a "devastating blow for Australian democracy".

The outcome means the attention will turn to Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus, who has long conceded the protections are not fit for purpose and has vowed to overhaul the scheme.

Mr McBride, who said he was looking forward to proving he was a legitimate whistleblower in the eyes of the law, admitted his disappointment on Thursday, adding the law was "useless".

"I was never really on trial this week, but the Public Interest Disclosure Act was and it has failed," he said.

McBride has pleaded not guilty to five charges after leaking classified documents about alleged war crimes committed by Australian defence personnel to the ABC, which were then published in the 2017 series The Afghan Files.

His lawyer, Mark Davis, said the case showed whistleblowers had little legal protection after coming forward.

Under the Public Interest Disclosure Act, first introduced by Mr Dreyfus in 2013, whistleblowers are immune from criminal prosecution.

Mr Dreyfus has flagged he will soon introduce reforms to overhaul the protections after years of tough criticism for being too legally complex and limited in offering support avenues.

"That legislation has been there for nine years [and] this is the first time it's actually been used in the courtroom and we just withdrew," Mr Davis said.

A South Australian trial involving former Tax Office employee Richard Boyle is also underway arguing leaks to the media were consistent with the act and therefore immune from prosecution.

Mr McBride and Mr Boyle's trial coincide with the creation of the National Anti-Corruption Commission, which is expected to be in operation by mid-next year.

Independent for Kooyong Dr Monique Ryan said the anti-corruption watchdog couldn't go ahead without first addressing the critical issue of whistleblower protections.

While Mr Davis said it was "probably too late" to be of any assistance to McBride's case, the Kooyong MP committed to keeping up the pressure.

"We need to protect those Australians who have been brave enough to put themselves, their families, at personal, financial and other risks to tell the truth to power," Dr Ryan said at a rally held outside the ACT Courts building on Wednesday morning.

"Obviously, David McBride is one of those people."

The push is shared by others on the crossbench, including Greens senator David Shoebridge.

Kieran Pender, long-time whistleblower advocate and senior lawyer at the Human Rights Law Centre, said the pressure was now on Mr Dreyfus to show he supports whistleblowers.

"The Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus has long been a champion for whistleblowers," Mr Pender said.

"Mark Dreyfus has insisted that it was appropriate to let these cases play out in court, leaving these courageous whistleblowers to rely on a flawed shield in a law that he admits is broken.

"But now Dreyfus has denied even that shield to McBride. This is injustice of the highest order.

"Rather than prosecuting whistleblowers, the Australian Government should get on with fixing whistleblowing law and reckoning with Australia's alleged war crimes in Afghanistan."

Bernard Collaery, who also faced charges for his role in publicly revealing a Timor-Leste bugging scandal before Mr Dreyfus intervened, said he was keeping a close eye on the Labor government's response.

Mr Dreyfus has been contacted for comment.