What are the Ombudsmen and what do they do?
What kind of complaints won’t the Ombudsmen investigate?
When can I complain about a government agency?
When can I complain about an official information request?
How do I make a complaint to the Ombudsmen?
Will it cost me anything to make a complaint?
How can the Ombudsmen help if I want to tell about some serious wrongdoings at my workplace but don’t want to lose my job.
What are Ombudsmen and what do they do?
Ombudsmen are Officers of Parliament with three main functions:
- To investigate complaints about central and local government agencies, such as
- government departments and ministries e.g. Work and Income (part of the Ministry of Social Development)
- local authorities – city, district and regional councils
- public health authorities e.g. district health board
- education authorities e.g universities
- To investigate complaints about official information requests that have been turned down by government agencies
- To advise employees who want to make a disclosure under the Protected Disclosures Act 2000
The Ombudsmen are responsible to Parliament, but independent of the Government, so they can effectively investigate complaints about government agencies. They are impartial and their investigations are confidential.
If your complaint is about a government agency the Ombudsmen will investigate and decide whether or not it is justified.
If they find your complaint is justified, they can, for example, recommend that the organisation change their decision, or change their policies and procedures, or recommend that you be compensated for any loss you have suffered.
An Ombudsman’s recommendations are not legally binding, but they are almost always followed. If the Ombudsman thinks your complaint is not justified, they will write to you and explain why.
What kind of complaints won’t the Ombudsmen investigate?
Ombudsmen cannot investigate a complaint about:
- A private organisation or person
- The police
- A Court decision or Parole Board decision
- A lawyer or a Member of Parliament
- A decision of a government minister (but they can investigate the advice or recommendations given to a minister by a government agency)
Ombudsmen can decide not to investigate a complaint if:
- There is an alternative way to sort out the problem (for example, complaints about the police should go to the Police Complaints Authority)
- The problem occurred more than 12 months before the person complained to the Ombudsmen
- The person does not have sufficient personal interest in the complaint
- The complaint is trivial
When can I complain about a government agency?
You can complain to the Ombudsmen when;
- You think you have been treated unfairly by a government agency, and
- The decision you’re complaining about affects you personally
But before you contact the Ombudsmen, you should try to sort out the problem with the agency yourself.
You can use the agency’s complaints procedure or, if that fails, go to the manager or chief executive. You should keep a record of what you do and say.
When can I complain about an official information request?
Under some circumstances you can complain about an official information request. For more information see our information on the Official Information Act.
How do I make a complaint to the Ombudsmen?
Put your complaint in writing. If you have any problems, ring one of the Ombudsmen’s offices and the staff can help you.
It should include:
- Your name and address
- The name and address of the agency you are complaining about
- What your complaint is about (including copies of letters between you and the organisation)
- What you have done to try to sort out the problem
- What you would like to happen
You can fill in one of the Ombudsmen’s complaint forms. Ring the office and ask for a form or download it from their website Send your complaint by post or fax to one of the addresses below or email to complaint@ombudsmen.parliament.nz
The Ombudsmen The Ombudsmen The Ombudsmen
PO Box 10152 PO Box 1960 PO Box 13-482
Wellington Auckland Christchurch
Fax: (04) 471 2254 Fax: (09) 377 6537 Fax: (03) 365 7935
Will it cost me anything to make a complaint?
No, there is no charge.
How can the Ombudsmen help if I want to tell about some serious wrongdoings at my workplace but don’t want to lose my job?
Employees who disclose information about serious wrongdoings committed by their employers or work colleagues (whistleblowers) are protected by the Protected Disclosures Act 2000. Serious wrongdoings include:
- Criminal offences
- Illegal use of funds or resources of a public agency
- Conduct that is a serious risk to public health or safety
- Gross negligence or mismanagement by a public official
If you have made a protected disclosure of information, or are considering making one, you can ask the Ombudsmen, in confidence, about:
- The kinds of disclosures that are protected under the Act
- To whom information can be disclosed, and how
- The broad roles of the various “appropriate authorities” listed in the Act
- The protections and remedies available under the Act, and under the Human Rights Act 1993, if you are victimised for revealing the information
- The right of an appropriate authority to refer the disclosed information to another appropriate authority
Ombudsmen’s staff in the Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch offices specialise in answering queries about the Protected Disclosures Act.
Ombudsmen and their staff must keep secret all information that they receive, except in the specific situations where the Act allows them to disclose it.