Caít Keane (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The Minister has noted the point. I welcome the Government's initiatives and, when the Bill is enacted, it will amend the Ombudsman Act 1980, which established the office to investigate complaints about the administrative actions of public bodies that adversely affected individuals or bodies corporate. We all know how important it is to individuals, some of whom are at the end of their tether. They wonder where they should turn to if they cannot get any satisfaction. The Minister mentioned the figures and I will deal with this later. The Office of the Ombudsman must be used and people should do so. Very often, the airwaves are used when the correct course of redress, which is readily available, is the Office of the Ombudsman. The importance of the office cannot be overstated. When people are desperate and at the final hurdle, they will use it if they see no other road open to them.

The Legal Services Ombudsman is a separate entity. Can the Minister make a statement on the post of Legal Services Ombudsman to ensure we are all clear on its relationship to the Ombudsman? Momentum for reform in this area has been building for many years. It was first mooted in a publication by the Competition Authority in 2006, which pointed to a pressing need to introduce reform. The publication of the report on legal services provided an impetus for a debate on the topic and also, more generally, for a debate on the Ombudsman. The programme for Government committed to extending the role of the Ombudsman to ensure all statutory bodies and bodies significantly funded from the public purse are covered, as well as third level institutions. The Minister has outlined that it is proposed to enact the Bill but perhaps he can outline when it will be enacted. Perhaps he can give us a date when it will be finally passed by the Houses.