Paddy Burke (Fine Gael)

I am glad to have the opportunity to debate the Ombudsman's report, which I welcome. I congratulate the officeholders who preceded Ms Emily O'Reilly. Michael Mills, the first Ombudsman, was exceptional. He set the agenda for those who followed him, and did a wonderful job. Mr. Kevin Murphy brought an independence to the office and was totally committed to the job. I have no doubt that Ms Emily O'Reilly will also do a wonderful job over the next few years.

I often wonder about the Ombudsman's back-up service. Going by the various complaints involving so many different backgrounds, the Ombudsman's office must be an authority on all matters. The Government should consider giving that office more backup. The issue of getting a response from the Ombudsman's office has been raised. I have no doubt that office is overworked, which is one of the reasons for the delay in response times. The Government should put extra resources into the office because it is doing a wonderful job for the public at large.

Like Senator Ó Murchú I have noticed that 27% of the complaints made to the Ombudsman, more than a quarter of all complaints, involve planning issues. At the end of the day, planning decisions simply reflect somebody's view. We all have various views, but decisions on planning law must be properly made. Planning is a very specific area in which great expertise is needed. The number of complaints about planning issues made to the Ombudsman, representing 27% of all complaints received, is enormous. We have seen great inconsistency in planning decisions across the country and within local authorities. Such inconsistency is responsible for the number of complaints made.

Senator Ó Murchú noted that 50% of the complaints received a positive response. It is heartening that when one complains to the Ombudsman, one has a 50:50 chance of a positive response. The Minister of State noted one category of complaint involving a member of the public not getting a reply from a public service organisation. He said he appreciated that this may happen by accident in the best regulated organisation and that he had no details on how in any particular case it occurred. Unlike Deputies, the Members of this House may not table a question to a Minister. All we can do is write to the various Ministers. Over the past ten years I have noted that when one writes to a Minister about a problem, one gets an acknowledgement within a week or fortnight, but will not get an answer for at least three to six months. The Minister of State should tell his colleagues in Government that when a Member of this House writes to a Department, a positive response, rather than a mere acknowledgement, should be made. I have no doubt that many public representatives invite people to write to the Ombudsman if they have problems. If public representatives received proper and prompt replies to the many letters we write to the various Departments, that might well lessen the workload of the Ombudsman. I ask the Minister of State to relay this to Deputy Parlon. The latter raised the matter in his speech, and I have no doubt that he would be sympathetic to the wishes of the Members of this House. It is my experience,and that of many Senators, that we do not get prompt replies, although we may receive acknowledgements.