National Ombudsmen
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Time for a People’s Ombudsman Service

Julie Mellor, Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman said:

'We are delighted that the Public Administration Select Committee (PASC) recognise that there need to be fundamental changes in the law to create a simpler more straightforward Ombudsman service. We strongly welcome their report, Time for a People’s Ombudsman Service.

'We have been calling for changes in our legislation to allow us to modernise and meet the expectations of today’s consumer. When things go wrong in public services they can have a devastating impact on individuals and their families. We want people to be able to bring their complaints about government services to us without the need for an MP referral. We want to be able to investigate areas of concern without having to receive a complaint, so that we can use our powers to help the most vulnerable. PASC’s recommendations will help ensure we have an Ombudsman service fit for the future.

'We have changed our approach to complaints so we could help more people by investigating more complaints, following feedback from our staff, Parliament, organisations and customers. In 2013/14 we completed 2,199 investigations, compared to 384 in 2012/13.

'We agree with PASC, that we need to move towards a unified Public Ombudsman service for England and look forward to working with the Cabinet Office review team on how best to organise future Ombudsman Services for England and UK non-devolved services.'

Contact: Shareena Merzi

Phone: 0300 061 4220

 

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