Bermuda Ombudsman 1st Annual Report 2006

Abstract

The primary purpose of the Annual Report of the Ombudsman of Bermuda is to account to the Parliament and to the public for our functions during the past year. The secondary purpose IS to explain the purpose and powers of the Ombudsman and to educate people about developments in Ombudsman principles and practice. In this era of increasing scrutiny of governance, the words transparency and accountability swirl as ideals for how the public accesses and interfaces with Government. Politicians are accountable by way of periodic elections and Parliamentary debate. The Courts adjudicate unlawful actions and the Auditor General oversees the public accounts. As a significant arm of modern democratic society, the Ombudsman institution oversees the daily decisions and actions taken to deliver public services. We will walk through the Ombudsman Act of 2004 (Act) and see how its various sections have been applied. I hope that the structure of this Annual Report explains the Act in a clear and helpful way. In addition, I will describe the establishment of our office, our public information efforts, international networks, training and ongoing initiatives. This Report highlights many of the complaints received and resolutions achieved. Of the 137 complaints, we made inquiries into 79. Most were resolved after preliminary inquiries. A few required full-scale investigations. By and large, Government Authorities have been responsive, interested in pursuing resolutions and accepting of our recommendations. There were a few cases in which the complaint to me was about unreasonable delay - and in turn, the Authorities took considerably longer than desirable to respond to my inquiries. In this first year when all of us are learning, I have decided not to reveal names. There were two cases of active resistance to the investigation and the recommendations. One - which has since been resolved even beyond my expectations - initially required commencement of Contempt of Court proceedings. The other, still outstanding at year end, is with the Attorney General's Chambers. Our recommendations try to put Complainants in (or as close as possible to) the position they would have been in had Authorities acted properly.