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A report by the Ombudsman, Ms Emily O'Reilly, on complaints received against the General Register Office (GRO) over recent years.

Date released: 08.10.2007

The Ombudsman, Ms Emily O'Reilly, has today published a Report on complaints received against the General Register Office (GRO) over recent years. The GRO administers the registration of all births, deaths, marriages and adoptions which occur in the State. In the report the Ombudsman, while acknowledging the benefits of the modernisation programme currently underway within the GRO, highlights a number of cases where she considers that the actions of the GRO have adversely affected individual complainants. The complaints described in the Report include

• the case of a mother whose daughter's surname, as entered on her birth certificate, was changed without her knowledge;
• the difficulties encountered by a mother, who had given up her son for adoption when he was eight months old and who, thirty years later, wished to have the birth record amended;
• the problems faced by a mother whose son's date of birth and gender were incorrectly entered on the birth register
• the complications faced by a couple who wished to obtain a correct version of their marriage certificate in the Irish language;
• a series of cases involving the recognition of foreign divorces in Ireland.

The cases referred to in the report exemplify instances where the quality of service provided, was below the standard which might be expected from a public service organisation. The Ombudsman has made a number of recommendations aimed at improving the quality of service and these have been accepted by the GRO. However, it is not the intention of the Ombudsman to use the report solely to as a means of articulating criticisms of the GRO. The cases will also assist those charged with quality cusomer service improvement within the GRO and the Department of Health and Children to meet the expectations of members of the public using the important service provided by the GRO in the future.

The full text of the report is available on this website  

Further Information: Matt Merrigan at 01-6395639, Fax 01-6395674, e-mail: matthew_merrigan@ombudsman.gov.ie

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