Ombudsman

The Ombudsman (Northern Ireland) Order 1996 provides for the office of the Assembly Ombudsman of Northern Ireland. It succeeded the Northern Ireland Parliamentary Commissioner for Administration.

A person holds the office of Ombudsman during good behaviour. Provisions are made to secure the independence of the Ombudsman and his staff.

The departments and authorities listed below are subject to investigation by the Ombudsman. The Department of Finance and Personnel may amend by addition or removal the bodies who may be investigated. The bodies must be exercising functions of a public nature on behalf of the State.

The Ombudsman may investigate any action taken by or on behalf of a department or other authority subject to the legislation or the exercise of its administrative functions. The action may be investigated if a written complaint is duly made to a member of the Assembly by a member of the public who claims to have sustained injustice in consequence of maladministration in connection with the action so taken.

The complaint is referred to the Ombudsman, with the consent of the person who made it, by a member of the Assembly with a request to conduct an investigation. A person aggrieved means a person who claims or is alleged to have sustained such injustice as is mentioned above.

Certain matters set out below are not subject to investigation. The matters concerned may be varied by order regulation.

The Ombudsman is not to conduct an investigation in respect of any action in respect of which a person has a right of appeal, complaint, reference or review before a tribunal established by law or in respect of which there is a remedy in a court of law.

The Ombudsman may nonetheless conduct an investigation notwithstanding that there is a remedy above if the Ombudsman is satisfied that in the particular circumstances it is not reasonable to expect him to resort to that; or notwithstanding that the person exercised such a right, he complains that injustice sustained by him remains unremedied thereby and the Ombudsman is satisfied that there are reasonable grounds for the complaint. This applies to recourse through statutory appeals, reviews, etc.

A complaint may be made by an individual or a body. It may not be made by a district council or other public bodies themselves.

Generally, the complaint must be made by the person aggrieved himself. It may be made by a personal representative where he has died. The complaint must be made to a member of the Assembly within 12 months from the day on which the person aggrieved first has knowledge of the matter alleged in the complaint.

The Ombudsman may conduct an investigation pursuant to a complaint not made within the period if there are special circumstances that make it proper to do so.

A complaint shall not be entertained unless the person is resident in Northern Ireland or was so resident before death; or the complaint relates to action taken in relation to the person aggrieved while he was present in Northern Ireland or in relation to rights and obligations that accrued or arose in Northern Ireland. The Ombudsman determines whether a complaint is duly made.

The purpose of the investigation is to ascertain if the matters alleged in the complaint may properly warrant investigation, are in substance true, and disclose any maladministration by or on behalf of the department or authority concerned. Where it appears to the Ombudsman to be desirable to effect a settlement of the matter or if that is not possible, state what action should be taken by the department or authority concerned to effect a fair settlement of that matter in his opinion or that the department or authority or by the person aggrieved to remove, or have removed, the cause of complaint.

In determining whether to initiate, continue or discontinue an investigation, the Ombudsman is to act in his own discretion, subject to the following. Where the Ombudsman proposes to conduct an investigation pursuant to the complaint, he shall afford the principal officer of the department or authority and any other person who is alleged in the complaint to have taken or authorized the action complained of an opportunity to comment on allegations contained in the complaint.

Investigations are undertaken in private. The Ombudsman is to determine the procedure he considers appropriate to the circumstances of the case.

The Ombudsman may obtain information from such persons and in such a manner, and make such inquiries, as he thinks fit. He may determine whether persons are represented by counsel, solicitor or otherwise, in the investigation.

The Ombudsman may, if he thinks fit, pay to the person by whom the complaint has been made and to any other person who attends, sums in respect of expenses properly incurred and allowances by way of compensation for loss of time, in accordance with scales and subject to conditions as the Department may determine.

An investigation shall not affect any action taken by the department or authority concerned or the power of that duty or duty of that department to take further action with respect to the matters subject to the investigation.

For the purpose of the investigation, the Ombudsman may require the head of a department or any officer or any other person who in his opinion is able to furnish such information or produce documents, to do so, for the purpose of the investigation. The Ombudsman is to have the same powers as the High Court judge in respect of attendance and examination of witnesses, including administration of oaths, affirmation and examination of witnesses abroad together with the production of documents.

Requirements to disclose are exceptions to obligations of secrecy. The Crown is not entitled to assert privilege in respect of the production of documents or the giving of evidence as is allowed by law in legal proceedings.

A person is not required to furnish information or answer a question in relation to any proceedings of the Executive or the Assembly or a sub-committee or produce any document relating to such proceedings. A certificate issued by the secretary of the Executive with the approval of the First and Deputy First Minister acting jointly and certifying that such information, question, and document relate to proceedings mentioned above is conclusive. Subject to the above, a person may not be compelled for the purposes of an investigation under the Order to give evidence which he could not be compelled to do or produce in civil proceedings in the High Court.

It is an offence without lawful excuse to obstruct the Ombudsman or his officers in the execution of their functions. It is an offence in relation to an investigation to do anything, which would constitute contempt of court, if it was a High Court proceeding.

The Ombudsman may certify the offence to the High Court. The High Court may inquire into the matter and after hearing witnesses and statements, may deal with the person charged as if he had committed a like offence in court.

In any case where the Ombudsman conducts an investigation or decides not to do so, he shall send a report of the results of his investigation and the statements or reasons for not conducting an investigation to the member of the Assembly by whom the request for an investigation was made. A report is also made to the principal officer of the department or other person who is alleged in the relevant complaint to have taken or authorized the action complained of.

The Ombudsman has to lay annually before the Assembly a general report on the performance of his functions. Where, after conducting an investigation, it appears to the Ombudsman that injustice has been sustained by the person aggrieved, consequence of maladministration and the injustice has not been or will not be, remedied, he may, if he thinks fit, lay a special report before the Assembly on the case.

There is privilege in defamation, in relation to publications by the Ombudsman in making a report to the Assembly; publication of a member of the Assembly of a matter in communicating with the Ombudsman or his officers for those purposes and vice versa; publication by a member of the Assembly to the person by whom the complaint is made of a report or statement sent to him in respect of the complaint above.