Chair welcomes external evaluation of Local Government Ombudsman
29 April 2013
Clive Betts MP, Chair of the Communities and Local Government Committee, welcomes the publication of the External Evaluation of the Local Government Ombudsman (LGO) in England.
Chair's comments
Mr Betts said:
"I applaud the Local Government Ombudsman for acting on my Committee's recommendation and commissioning this independent report.
The reviewers appear to have produced a thorough and comprehensive piece of work – I thank them for their efforts.
The report raises some important issues that require careful consideration. These are issues not just for the LGO, but also for the Government.
It is likely that the Committee will conduct a further examination of the LGO later on in the year. The independent report will assist us greatly in this task. We now look forward to studying it in greater detail."
Background
The Committee published its report, The Work of the Local Government Ombudsman, on 17 July 2012. Paragraph 72 of the Report stated:
"We recommend that the LGO working with the British and Irish Ombudsman Association bring forward arrangements to ensure that there is an annual evaluation of the LGO by an external, independent reviewer to ensure that it meets the criteria of independence, fairness, effectiveness, openness and transparency and accountability. We further recommend that the first review form part of the proposed reorganisation of the LGO and that the reviewer consider the matters we raise at paragraph 69 of this Report. The reviewer should be appointed by the end of this year and complete his or her work and publish it no later than Easter 2013."