The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We cannot investigate this complaint from a local councillor that the Council has not responded to a request for a review regarding the allocations of seats to Council committees. This is because we can only investigate complaints from members of the public and not from a councillor complaining in their capacity as a councillor.
The complaint
The complainant, whom I refer to as Mr X, complains the Council has not responded to his request for a review regarding the allocation of seats to Council committees. He also says the Council has failed to ensure the allocation of seats to committees reflects the pollical membership of the Council. Mr X is a local councillor.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
We can only accept complaints from members of the public or their authorised representatives. This means we cannot accept complaints from councillors complaining about something relating to their position as a councillor. (Local Government Act 1974, section 26A, as amended)
How I considered this complaint
I considered information provided by Mr X. I also considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code and invited Mr X to comment on a draft of this decision.
My assessment
The law says we can investigate complaints from members of the public who claim to have suffered an injustice due to fault by the Council. Local councillors, complaining about issues relating to their role as a councillor, are not members of the public. I cannot investigate this complaint because Mr X is complaining in his capacity as a local councillor and not as a member of the public. He has also not claimed to have suffered a personal injustice outside his role as a councillor.
Final decision
We cannot investigate this complaint because Mr X is not complaining as a member of the public.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman