The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about how the Council dealt with a complaint about the conduct of a councillor and the decision to approve a planning application. This is because the complaint does not meet the tests in our Assessment Code on how we decide which complaints to investigate. The complainant is complaining on behalf of a Parish Council and not as a member of the public.
The complaint
Ms X has complained on behalf of a Parish Council about the behaviour of a member of the Council’s planning committee and the decision to approve a planning application.
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 who claim to have suffered injustice, or from their authorised representative. This means we cannot accept complaints from councillors complaining on behalf of their council because they are not doing so as a member of the public. (Local Government Act 1974, section 26A, as amended) We cannot investigate complaints from public bodies. (Local Government Act 1974, section 27(1)(a), as amended)
How I considered this complaint
I considered information provided by Ms X and the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
Final decision
We will not investigate Ms X’s complaint because we can only accept complaints from members of the public or their authorised representatives. Ms X is not complaining as a member of the public and is instead complaining on behalf of a Parish Council.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman