Summary: The Ombudsman cannot investigate Mr X’s complaint that an employee of a business support scheme stole his intellectual property. This is because the issue does not concern an administrative function of the Council and is more appropriate for consideration for the courts.

The complaint

1. The complainant, Mr X, complains the company administering a council business support scheme allowed an employee to steal his intellectual property.

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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. We cannot investigate a complaint about an issue which does not concern an administrative function of the body complained about. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(1), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

4. I reviewed Mr X’s complaint and the Council’s response.

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What I found

5. Mr X’s MP referred him to a business support scheme backed by the European Research Development Fund (ERDF) and led by the Lancashire Local Enterprise Partnership and the Council in 2018.
6. Mr X discussed his business idea with the company but says the people he spoke to, including a ‘mentor’ working for the company, refused to sign non-disclosure agreements and one of them has now stolen his idea. He says he has spent £40,000 on legal advice in an attempt to stop them but their actions have damaged his reputation, ruined his business and affected his personal life.
7. The Ombudsman cannot investigate this complaint. The provision of business support through the ERDF scheme is not an administrative function of the Council; the complaint does not therefore fall within our jurisdiction.
8. In any case, it is not for the Ombudsman to rule on matters relating to the theft of intellectual property or to award compensation for any consequential losses which may result from this. Mr X can discuss his allegation that the company breached the General Data Protection Regulations with the Information Commissioner’s Officer and take further legal advice about the possibility of a claim against those responsible for stealing his idea.

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Final decision

9. The Ombudsman cannot investigate this complaint. This is because it does not concern an administrative function of the Council and because the courts are better placed to deal with the matter.

Investigator’s decision on behalf of the Ombudsman

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman