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- Preferred candidate for Local Government Ombudsman named
Preferred candidate for Local Government Ombudsman named
| Published | 8 October 2009 |
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Local Government Minister Barbara Follett has today confirmed that Dr Jane Martin has been named as the preferred candidate for appointment as the next Local Government Ombudsman following a public competition.
Communities Secretary John Denham has written to the Chair of the select committee, Dr Phyllis Starkey, today asking her to invite Dr Martin as his preferred candidate to appear before the Communities and Local Government select committee.
Before her appointment is recommended to Her Majesty The Queen, Dr Martin has to appear before the select committee for a pre-appointment hearing to discuss her suitability for the role, her key priorities and the selection process.
Dr Martin is currently Director of Policy & Engagement and Deputy Chief Executive at the Local Better Regulation Office.
Barbara Follett said:
"The Local Government Ombudsman has a vital role to play in ensuring that people get swift and fair redress when things go wrong in the services councils are delivering for them."
"I believe that Jane Martin has all the credentials to perform this very important role but careful regard will be given to the select committee's hearing report before making a final recommendation to Her Majesty."
Notes to editors
1. Dr Jane Martin is currently Director of Policy & Engagement and Deputy Chief Executive at the Local Better Regulation Office. Jane began her career in local government in 1999 as an Education Officer for Dudley Metropolitan Borough Council before continuing her career in the public sector by taking on roles such as the Executive Director at the Centre for Public Scrutiny and Director of Patient-Citizen Exchange for the NHS Centre for Involvement. Prior to her move into the public sector she had an academic career at The University of Birmingham and, more recently, was a senior research fellow in public leadership at Warwick Business School.
2. The Local Government Ombudsman (LGO) was set up by the Local Government Act 1974. This empowered the LGO to conduct investigations into complaints from members of the public who consider they have suffered injustice as a result of maladministration by bodies within their jurisdiction.
3. Currently, the Ombudsmen are Tony Redmond and Anne Seex. Jerry White, who was the third Ombudsman for England, retired at the end of September. Dr Jane Martin is the preferred candidate to replace him.
4. The objective of the Ombudsmen is to secure, where appropriate, satisfactory redress for complainants and better administration for the authorities. Since 1989, the Ombudsmen have had power to issue advice on good administrative practice in local government based on experience derived from their investigations.
5. In 2008-2009 the LGO decided on over 17,000 complaints. Where remedies and settlements resulted in a payment being made, the amount of compensation obtained or recommended came to over £2.2m. All complaints go to the LGO Advice Team based at their Coventry office.
6. In accordance with the Local Government Act 1974 Ombudsmen are appointed by The Queen, upon the recommendation of the Secretary of State. The appointment process has been run in accordance with guidelines issued by the Office for the Commissioner for Public Appointments. The post was advertised publicly in May of this year and as well as seeking the views of the Local Government Association about the appointment, we also sought the views of the Audit Commission, the Government's Equalities Office and the Women's National Commission. Following this process Jane Martin has been chosen as the preferred candidate Communities Secretary, John Denham, to recommend to The Queen for appointment to the post of Local Government Ombudsman.
7. This will be the first Local Government Ombudsman appointment that will be subject to non-binding pre-appointment scrutiny by the Department's select committee. The Governance of Britain Green Paper, which set out examples of public appointments suitable for pre-appointment hearings with Departmental Select Committees, recommended that the post of Ombudsman be subject to a pre-appointment hearing by the Department's Select Committee. Both the Government and the Local Government Ombudsman agree with this recommendation.
8. Following the report of the Select Committee the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government will, having regard to the report of the committee, then recommend the appointment to Buckingham Palace and, if Her Majesty the Queen is content, the appointment will be made with the issue of a Royal Warrant.
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