BackThe Ombudsman tabled his 2016/2017 Annual Report in Parliament on 18 October 2017.
The Report highlights that complaints about state and local government continue to rise significantly; there has been an increase of 14% in complaints made to the Ombudsman’s Office this financial year. Applications for external reviews of determinations made under the Freedom of Information Act 1991 went up 44%.
This increase in demand has been met by the Office, in part by resolving complaints at an early stage. ‘Facilitating the early resolution of complaints is a vital complement to the formal investigations undertaken by my Office’, said the Ombudsman, Mr Wayne Lines. ‘Agencies are given the opportunity to re-consider decisions, issue apologies and amend policies in a timely manner, and vulnerable people are assisted in accessing fair and reasonable services from government agencies.’
Of the 4040 complaints that were resolved by the Office, 89 resulted in investigation reports. Where investigations resulted in recommendations by the Ombudsman, 94% were accepted by agencies. ‘Many of these recommendations are directed to policy reform, highlighting the important role my Office plays in ensuring that fairer and more reasonable administrative decisions are made by government going forward’ said Mr Lines.
The Report also raises significant concerns about the effect of the new Public Sector (Data Sharing) Act 2016 which allows a Minister to direct the Ombudsman to share information with public sector agencies.
‘Independence is the very foundation of a Parliamentary Ombudsman, and it is alarming that my independence has been compromised by this new legislation. The Ombudsman is a crucial component in a healthy integrity system, and any compromise to my Office’s foundational principles is a threat to that system itself.’
Source: South Australian Ombudsman, Australia
