Summary: We will not investigate Miss X’s complaint about information handling and data protection. The complaint is late and there is no good reason to investigate now.

The complaint

1. Miss X complains the Council has breached data protection laws and failed to correct mistakes in its information handling for over 40 years. She says it has failed to appropriately respond to her complaints and the matter has cause her distress.

Back to top

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 late complaints unless we decide there are good reasons. Late complaints are when someone takes more than 12 months to complain to us about something a council has done. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26B and 34D, as amended)
4. We normally expect someone to refer the matter to the Information Commissioner if they have a complaint about data protection. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)

Back to top

How I considered this complaint

5. I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council.
6. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

Back to top

My assessment

7. We will not investigate this complaint. Miss X first raised her complaint with the Council over 40 years ago. We normally expect someone to approach us within 12 months of becoming aware of a matter and so this complaint is late. There is no good reason to investigate now.
8. We will not investigate the Council’s complaints handling because it is not a good use of public resources to investigate complaints about complaint procedures, if we are unable to deal with the substantive issue.

Back to top

Final decision

9. We will not investigate Miss X’s complaint because the complaint is late and there is no good reason to investigate now.

Back to top

Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman