PARLIAMENTARY AND
HEALTH SERVICE (OMBUDSMAN) News Release issued by The Government
News Network on 15 October 2007
In her Principles
for Remedy, published Thursday 11 October 2007, the Parliamentary
and Health Service Ombudsman, Ann Abraham, sets out the Principles
she believes public bodies should use when considering remedies
for injustice or hardship resulting from maladministration or poor service.
The Principles for Remedy flow from, and should be read with, the
Principles of Good Administration, which Ms Abraham launched in
March 2007 and which have been welcomed across Government and the NHS.
Ms Abraham said, 'Remedying injustice is a key part of the
Ombudsman's work and our aim in setting out these Principles
is to explain more clearly how we think public bodies and NHS
providers should go about putting things right when things have
gone wrong.'
She added: 'We want public bodies to be fair and take
responsibility, acknowledge failures and apologise for them, make
amends, and use the opportunity to improve their services.
'We are keen to discuss with those involved in public
services how these Principles can best be put into
practice.'
Today, the Ombudsman is giving a keynote
speech on Remedies, redress and solutions: what do Ombudsmen have
to offer? at the seminar of the National Ombudsmen of EU Member
States and Candidate Countries in Strasbourg.
Notes to Editors:
* The Principles accord with HM Treasury's guidelines on
remedy as set out in Managing Public Money and will be reflected
in the next edition of the NHS Finance Manual.
* The six Principles for Remedy are: Getting it right, Being
customer focused, Being open and accountable, Acting fairly and
proportionately, Putting things right, and Seeking continuous improvement.
* You can read the Principles for Remedy and the Principles of
Good Administration on our website: http://www.ombudsman.org.uk
* The Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman investigates
complaints about government departments and a range of other
public bodies in the UK, and the NHS in England. She is
independent of the Government, the civil service and the NHS. Her
services are free and confidential.