Abstract
This chapter considers the scope of the ombud’s jurisdiction. On the one hand, it argues for an integrated approach to English public services; on the other, it argues for reverting back to a standalone Parliamentary Ombud for UK-wide public services. In reaching this conclusion, the chapter sets out seven jurisdiction-based principles for reform. When assessed against these principles, the current draft Public Services Ombudsman Bill has a number of weaknesses: it fails to recognise the increasing blurring between public and private service provision; it does not recognise the need for the ombud’s jurisdiction to reflect the devolution settlement; it takes an unprincipled approach to integration; and it fails to consider how sensitivity to different service user needs can be maintained within an integrated public service ombud.
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Notes
- 1.
The table excludes ombuds who oversee privatised industries which continue to be of significant public interest, for example, The Rail Ombudsman, Ombudsman Services: Energy.
- 2.
Such as the former Furniture Ombudsman (now the Dispute Resolution Ombudsman) including traders in the retail and home improvement industries.
- 3.
English associations were removed from the national balance sheet in 2017 as the Office for National Statistics considered that there was no longer enough local or central government influence to keep them in the public sector. In Weaver v London & Quadrant Housing Trust [2009] EWCA Civ 235 the English High Court has ruled that not all housing associations are public authorities and not everything they do are public acts. The touchstone here is the nature of the act and how close to the State it approaches, with a view that housing associations could be subject to judicial review in certain circumstances.
- 4.
Such as retaining a public service ombud for the UK, creating a separate ombud service just for England, or for one ombud to take on the UK function and report to all Parliaments and Assemblies.
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Hirst, C., Gill, C. (2020). The Ombud’s Jurisdiction: Integration, Specialism, and Territorial Scope. In: Kirkham, R., Gill, C. (eds) A Manifesto for Ombudsman Reform. Palgrave Pivot, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-40612-7_4
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