The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint that the Council created false information about him and breached the Data Protection Act. This is because we are unlikely to find evidence of fault by the Council sufficient to warrant investigation and data protection issues are best dealt with by the Information Commissioner’s Office.
The complaint
The complainant, who I refer to as Mr X, says the Council created false information about him, breached the data protection legislation, attempted to entrap him and supported the defamation made against him.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’, which we call ‘fault’. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse effect on the person making the complaint, which we call ‘injustice’. We provide a free service but must use public money carefully. We may decide not to start an investigation if the tests set out in our Assessment Code are not met. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended) We normally expect someone to refer the matter to the Information Commissioner if they have a complaint about data protection. However, we may decide to investigate if we think there are good reasons. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)
How I considered this complaint
I considered information provided by Mr X and the Council, including its responses to his complaints.
I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
Following his involvement in the community trigger process, Mr X made two related complaints to the Council covering officer conduct and comments made about him and about his making of a complaint concerning the community trigger process.
The Council responded adequately to his complaints and addressed the issues he had raised. It explained the relevant legislation allowed information sharing with partner agencies, including the police.
Mr X has contacted the Information Commissioner with his data protection concern relating to the issues he has complained about. While it is noted Mr X says he has been distressed by these matters, the body best placed to deal with data protection issues is the Information Commissioner’s Office.
Final decision
We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because we are unlikely to find evidence of fault by the Council sufficient to warrant investigation and data protection issues are best dealt with by the Information Commissioner’s Office.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman