§ Lord Lester of Herne Hillasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether they will give effect to the recommendation in the Interim Report on Access to Justice by Lord Woolf that the Ombudsman's relationship with the Courts should be reconsidered; and, if not, why not.
§ The Lord Chancellor (Lord Mackay of Clashfern)The implications of Lord Woolf s recommendation, both for the courts and for the ombudsmen themselves, will require detailed investigation and careful consideration. For the time being, I intend to concentrate effort on the central elements of Lord Woolf s reforms which will provide the greatest benefit to litigants: the unified Rules of Court and the Fast Track and Multi Track proposals for fixed costs and judicial training, and to defer detailed study of the recommendations on ombudsmen.