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The Ombudsman Act 1980

Amendments to the Act and other legislation.

The Finance Act 1981

Section 52 of this Act ensures that the requirements in tax legislation imposing secrecy obligations on the Revenue Commissioners will not apply so as to preclude the disclosure to the Ombudsman of information, including documents for the purposes of the Ombudsman Act, 1980.

Ombudsman Act, 1980 (Appointed Day) Order 1983

S.I. No 424 of 1983

This order fixed on the 7th day of July, 1983 as the day on which the Ombudsman Act, 1980 (No. 26 of 1980) came into operation.

Delegation Order dated 23 May 1984

Under this Order the Minister for the Public Service in exercise of the powers conferred on him under Section 10 (4) of the Ombudsman Act delegated to the Ombudsman the powers exercisable by him under the Civil Service Commissioners Act, 1956 and the Civil Service Regulation Acts 1956 and 1958 as the 'appropriate authority' in relation to officers and servants of the Ombudsman.

Ombudsman (Amendment) Act 1984

No 19 of 1984

This Act amended Section 4 (10)(c) of the Ombudsman Act 1980. Under this Section of the Act amendments could be made to the Schedules to the Act which listed the bodies which were and were not subject to investigation by the Ombudsman. Amendment to these Schedules was effected by Government Order (1st Schedule) and Ministerial Order (2nd Schedule) laid before both Houses of the Oireachtas for 21 sitting days. This amending Act provided that an Order would take effect when a resolution approving it has been passed by both Houses of the Oireachtas.

Ombudsman Act (First Schedule) (Amendment) Order 1984

SI No 332 of 1984

This Order extended the powers of investigation of the Ombudsman to Health Boards, Local Authorities, Bord Telecom Éireann and An Post with effect from 1 April 1985. The Order specifically excluded the Ombudsman from examining complaints in relation to actions taken "solely in the exercise of clinical judgement in connection with the diagnosis of illness or the care or treatment of a patient...". The Order also excluded the Ombudsman from examining complaints in relation to local authorities "when performing reserved functions within the meaning of the County Management Acts, 1940 to 1955, or reserved functions within the meaning of any of the Acts relating to the management of a county borough."

Ombudsman Act 1980 (First Schedule) (Amendment) Order, 1985

SI No 66 of 1985

This order places the Postal Services Users Council, the Telecommunications Service Users' Council, the Rent Tribunal, The Mining Board and the Secretariat to the Commission on Social Welfare among the bodies not subject to investigation by the Ombudsman.

Ombudsman Act 1980 (Second Schedule) (Amendment) Order 1985

SI No 69 of 1985

This order deleted Health Boards and Local Authorities from the Second Schedule to the Ombudsman Act 1980 and placed the following bodies in the Second Schedule i.e. not subject to investigation by the Ombudsman:-

• The Irish Water Safety Council
• The Central Fisheries Board
• The Fire Services Council
• The Housing Finance Agency
• The Irish Film Board
• The National Concert Hall Company
• The Post graduate Medical and Dental Board
• The Youth Employment Agency

The Data Protection Act, 1988 (Restriction of Section 4) Regulations, 1989

SI No 81 of 1989

These Regulations provide that the restrictions on the disclosure of information under the Ombudsman Act 1980 will continue to apply not withstanding the right to access to personal data conferred by Section 4 of the Data Protection Act 1988.

British-Irish Agreement Act, 1999

In line with the Belfast Agreement of 1998, six new North-South Implementation Bodies were established. These bodies operate in the areas of food safety, trade and business development, language, aquaculture and marine, special EU programmes and inland waterways. Section 50 of the British-Irish Agreement Act, 1999, which provides in this jurisdiction for the creation of these bodies, brings the Implementation Bodies within the jurisdiction of the Office of the Ombudsman. Both this Office and the Office of the Commissioner for Complaints and Assembly Ombudsman for Northern Ireland have jurisdiction in relation to the Implementation Bodies and the Act provides for liaison and co-operation, between the Office of the Ombudsman and its Northern Ireland counterpart, in dealing with complaints against these bodies. The jurisdiction of the Office of the Ombudsman covers "actions taken in the State by or on behalf of" one of the bodies and a parallel provision applies in the case of the Northern Ireland Ombudsman.

The North-South Implementation Bodies are as follows;

• Foyle, Carlingford and Irish Lights Commission
• InterTradeIreland
• The North/South Language Body ( The Ulster-Scots Agency / Foras na Gaeilge)
• SafeFood
• Special European Union Programmes Body
• Waterways Ireland
• Tourism Ireland

Postal and Telecommunications Services (Amendment) Act, 1999

Section 11 of this Act removed Telecom Éireann from the remit of the Ombudsman. This came into effect on 15 July 1999.

The Ombudsman for Children Act, 2002

Among other things, this Act provided for the establishment of an Ombudsman for Children to investigate complaints in relation to the actions of certain public bodies which may have adversely affected children. Those public bodies include Government Departments and Offices, Local Authorities, the Health Service Executive, Semi State Bodies etc. Section 12 of the Act amended Section 5 of the Ombudsman Act, 1980 in that matters which are subject to investigation by the Ombudsman for Children cannot be investigated by the Office of the Ombudsman.

Ombudsman (Defence Forces) Act 2004

Among other things, this Act provides for the appointment of an Ombudsman for the Defence Forces to investigate complaints made by serving or former members of the Defence Forces about actions taken by serving or former members of the Defence Forces or civil servants which may have adversely them. Under the Act a member of the Defence Forces (a) who makes a complaint to the Ombudsman for the Defence Forces concerning an action taken by or on behalf of a civil servant shall not, subsequently, make a complaint about the same matter to the Ombudsman appointed under the Act of 1980, or (b) who makes a complaint to the Ombudsman appointed under the Act of 1980 in relation to an action taken by or on behalf of a civil servant shall not, subsequently, make a complaint about the same matter to the Ombudsman for the Defence Forces.

The Disability Act 2005

Among other things, this Act requires public bodies to ensure that public buildings and services are accessible to people with disabilities. With effect from 31 December 2005 the Act extends the Ombudsman's jurisdiction in that from that date the Office can deal with complaints in relation to the failure to provide such access in accordance with the legislation. In addition, a number of government departments have to prepare sectoral plans, which must give information about the measures designed to bring about the delivery of services to the disabled as envisaged in the Act, within established time frames. The Ombudsman can examine complaints about failures in this area also.