This comes amid ongoing debate about whether the Government should maintain its current States of Jersey Complaints Panel, or replace it with a new Jersey Public Services Ombudsperson.
The Complaints Panel is a volunteer-based system that handles complaints primarily against government departments, while the proposal for a Public Services Ombudsperson would be a professional, full-time role that oversees complaints across a wider range of public bodies.
How does the current system work?
A person with a complaint about a Jersey government department should first use the internal feedback process.
If this fails, they can write to the Greffier of the States to request an independent review by the States of Jersey Complaints Panel.
This panel consists of 13 volunteer islanders who review complaints about government departments.
The Panel first tries to reach an informal settlement. If unsuccessful, three members form a ‘board’ to hold a public hearing, usually in the States Building.
After hearing from both the complainant and officials, the board publishes a report with findings and recommendations.
However, these recommendations are not binding, and Ministers often reject them.
How could the new system work?
The proposed Jersey Public Services Ombudsperson would operate differently.
According to the report, the JPSO would be “a full-time investigator and two assistants” with “legal guarantees of their independence”.
Unlike the Panel’s public hearings, the JPSO would conduct confidential investigations to protect complainants’ privacy.
The Ombudsman Association was supportive of this approach — saying that “people value the confidential nature of the ‘investigation in private’ model”.
The JPSO would also be able to “investigate a public body without a complaint” and work jointly with other bodies like the Children’s Commissioner.
The JPSO would also offer a “whistleblower” function and work with public bodies to improve their internal complaints handling.
What proposals have come before?
The idea of creating an independent public sector ombudsman was first approved in the States six years ago but faced delays during the pandemic and more recently following concerns about cost.
Pictured: Jersey’s independent complaints system is under scrutiny as the Government considers changes to how grievances with public services are handled.
The Government unveiled plans to establish the role in 2022, with then-Chief Minister Kristina Moore submitting instructions for the drafting of new legislation as part of a plan for her first 100 days in office.
However, this did not progress and current Chief Minister Lyndon Farnham told the States in April that the new Government was reconsidering the creation of the role in the face of fears it could cost more than £1 million a year – more than double the £400,000 originally planned.
He said he wanted to review the existing complaints system before making any commitments, suggesting there might be a middle ground between the current voluntary panel and a full complaints authority.
Pictured: Former Chief Minister Kristina Moore was ousted from the role in January.
Following this, the Jersey Law Commission published a report in July that looked into different choices for creating an independent complaints handling body.
It found that the complaints panel would need “radical reform to ensure it is fit for purpose” if it was to stay in place.
The report also found “no fundamental or large scale problem in relation to service delivery and decision-making” in Jersey’s public services but identified “fundamental problems” inside the services themselves.
In November, the Corporate Services Scrutiny Panel requested that Government ministers consider and incorporate the findings of this report.
At the time, the Panel called for funding to be allocated within the Government’s spending plans to ensure the project continues to move forward and builds on the “significant” work already completed in preparation for the scheme — and requested that Ministers’ proposals to the States for debate in 2025.
This amendment was approved by politicians during the budget debate where Ministers agreed to come up with a plan to deal with complaints about government services.
The project to improve Jersey’s independent complaints service is being led by Deputy Moz Scott and supported by the Governance and Community Policy Team in the Cabinet Office.
What are the key issues with the Cabinet Office’s project?
The Jersey Law Commission has raised concerns about the scope of the project being led by Deputy Scott and has now published a report that sets out identified issues while also including responses from a consultation held earlier this year.
Pictured: Deputy Moz Scott is leading the project to improve Jersey’s independent complaints service.
While the Commission said they were “pleased’ that the Cabinet Office is looking into the future of Jersey’s complaints service, they added that “important points risk being missed.”
“Getting it right the first time”
The Commission warned that the Government’s current project to review the complaints system appears to prioritise resolving individual disputes while ignoring broader systemic improvements.
The report suggested that “the service shouldn’t just focus on resolving individual complaints – it should also help public authorities improve”.
The Ombudsman Association, which is a membership body for ombudsman schemes consulted by the Jersey Law Commission earlier this year, said that Jersey is missing opportunities to improve public services.
While the current Panel focuses mainly on individual complaints, the Association has argued that an ombudsperson could investigate systemic problems and help departments learn from mistakes.
Pictured: Concerns have previously been raised that the current States Complaints Board is seen as “toothless”.
The Association wrote: “We strongly believe that the ombudsman model is the most effective model to identify systemic issues and help drive improvements in services and complaint handling.
“The benefit for citizens is therefore not only in resolving disputes but also in the increased efficiency and effectiveness in public services as a result of ‘getting it right first time’.”
While the Ombudsman Association stressed the “importance of the service improvement function”, the report noted that “the Cabinet Office project seems to focus only on resolving individual complaints, which leaves out a key goal”.
“Oversight and transparency of the service are critical”
The Commission also noted that the Cabinet Office’s project lacks clarity on who would oversee and hold a new complaints service accountable, stressing that “oversight and transparency of the service are critical”.
The report also noted how consultation responses also criticised how the Complaints Panel communicates with the public and called for improvements to make the service easier to find and use.
While the Complaint Panel’s page on the States Assembly recently added a telephone number and email address, the Commission found that “there are still problems”.
The Commission concluded that if the JPSO project moves forward, issues surrounding communication, governance and accountability should be reviewed.
Low acceptance rate of recommendations
The current low rate of Ministers accepting the Complaints Panel’s recommendations was also raised as a key concern in the report.
It read: “One of the problems with the current Complaints Panel system is that over several years ministers have accepted findings and recommendations less often than is typically found in ombudsperson systems.”
“The Cabinet Office should review the suggestions we made in July 2024 to help solve this problem,” it added.
“It is crucial to tackle these problems for the system as a whole to work effectively.”
What happens next?
The Government’s Cabinet Office is reviewing options and will bring proposals to the States by July 2025.
The States Assembly will then vote on any changes.
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“The sooner an ombudsman with effective power is brought in, the better”