Until now, the Ombudsman’s Annual Report has been published at the beginning of October in the year following the report year. This is late. With effect from the report year of 2014, the process has successfully been moved forward so that the Report will now be published already in April of the following year. We are very pleased with that. Hopefully, it will help make the Annual Report even more topical and relevant.

Complaints to the Ombudsman about public services rose by 11% to over 3,500 in 2014. Launching his annual report today (Wednesday 10 June) Ombudsman Peter Tyndall said the increase was mainly due to the additional 200 public bodies which came within his jurisdiction for a full year for the first time in 2014. These included bodies in the education sector such as the State Examinations Commission and Student Universal Support Ireland (SUSI).

The Office of Western Australia Ombudsman Chris Field presented its draft Disability Access and Inclusion Plan 2015-2020 (DAIP) to outline the ways in which the office will ensure that all people in Western Australia have equitable and inclusive access to the Ombudsman’s services, facilities and information.

Regarding the IOI’s future communication strategy, the IOI Board of Directors agreed at its Vienna meeting in October 2014 that a re-launch of the IOI website was long overdue and should become the main priority of the IOI’s public relations work. IOI President John R. Walters is pleased to present the IOI’s new web appearance to the IOI community!

One of the core issues for the IOI is to ensure access to independent redress mechanisms for people using public services. As many public services are being privatised, the responsibility for running them has increasingly been transferred to the private sector, which has had consequences for the work of ombudsmen worldwide.

Le Défenseur des droits, Jacques Toubon, suit avec attention la situation des migrants dont le campement a été évacué ce matin par les forces de l’ordre à Paris dans le Xe arrondissement. Il partage les préoccupations des pouvoirs publics sur les risques, notamment sanitaires, encourus par ces hommes, ces femmes et ces enfants qui, depuis plusieurs mois vivaient dans la rue.

Los procesos de incapacitación judicial a menudo no investigan suficientemente la capacidad jurídica de la persona afectada. Diversas personas con discapacidad intelectual o psicosocial han solicitado la intervención del Síndic. El Comité de los Derechos de las Personas con Discapacidad de la ONU recomendó en el año 2011 modificar la normativa electoral para garantizar el voto a las personas con discapacidad.

The tragic events of the past months where hundreds of people lost their lives in the Mediterranean Sea have filled the world with tremendous shock. Behind this humanitarian disaster lies a deep human rights crisis, where migrants try to flee from war or poverty. The IOI therefore calls on its members in an open letter to encourage their respective governments and administrations to join forces to find solutions for this refugee crisis.