Summary: The Ombudsman will not investigate Mr B’s complaint that the Council will not proceed with his right to buy application. This is because the complaint falls outside our jurisdiction as Mr B has appeal rights to the courts and the Council has confirmed he can submit a new application.

The complaint

1. The complainant, who I refer to as Mr B, complains the Council has failed to proceed with his right to buy application.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
3. The law says we cannot normally investigate a complaint when someone could take the matter to court. However, we may decide to investigate if we consider it would be unreasonable to expect the person to go to court. (Local Government Act 1974, section 26(6)(c), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

4. In considering the complaint I reviewed the information provided by Mr B and the Council. I gave Mr B the opportunity to comment on my draft decision and considered what he said.

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What I found

5. Mr B submitted an application to the Council to exercise his right to buy his property.
6. The Council asked Mr B to provide information about the funds he intended to use to purchase the property. Mr B did not provide this information, which is required to meet the Anti-Money Laundering Regulations, and so the Council treated his application as though he did not want to proceed with it.
7. The Council says it received no correspondence from Mr B or his solicitors, who had been kept informed of the financial requirements, apart from subsequent communication from the solicitors to say they were no longer acting for Mr B.
8. The Council says Mr B can submit a new application where his eligibility would be reviewed and that if an offer was made he would again be asked to satisfy the anti-money laundering requirements.

Assessment

9. The restriction highlighted at paragraph 3 applies to Mr B’s complaint. He says he sent all the necessary information to the Council to satisfy the Anti-Money Laundering Regulations. However, the Council does not share this view. Mr B has a right of appeal to the courts which we would reasonably expect him to make use of if he wishes to challenge the Council’s decision. This places the complaint outside our jurisdiction, and it will not be considered further.
10. Moreover, it is open to Mr B to submit a new application.

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Final decision

11. The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint. This is because the complaint falls outside our jurisdiction as Mr B has appeal rights to the courts and the Council has confirmed he can submit a new application.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman