The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Greater London Authority’s monitoring of expenditure under a grant it awarded Camden Council in 2018. This is because the injustice Ms X claims stems is not the direct result of any actions by the Greater London Authority and we could not therefore say the Authority must provide a remedy for it.
The complaint
Ms X complains the Greater London Authority (GLA) failed to monitor Camden Council’s spending of a ‘Good Growth’ grant awarded in 2018. She says the works carried out by Camden Council using the grant monies provided by the GLA have caused harm to the community, impacting the local economy and contributing to climate change.
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 do not start an investigation if we decide the tests set out in our Assessment Code are not met. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)
How I considered this complaint
I considered information provided by Ms X and the Authority.
I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
While the GLA awarded Camden Council a grant to carry out works in its area it does not take on responsibility for the works themselves. The nature and details of the works were decided and implemented by the Council and we could not achieve any worthwhile outcome for Mrs X by investigating a complaint about the way the GLA monitored the way it spent the grant. We could not, for instance, say the GLA must fund or facilitate works to reverse the changes made by the Council or provide any remedy for people affected by those changes.
Final decision
We will not investigate this complaint. This is because the GLA is not responsible for the decisions which caused the injustice Ms X claims. We could not therefore achieve any worthwhile outcome for Ms X by investigating the matter further.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman