Maladministration (Hansard, 8 May 2002)

§ Ms Hewitt

[holding answer 10 April 2002]: The Department's agencies operate their own complaints procedures. Individual payments resulting from complaints are a matter for the agency chief executives within the 188W limits of their financial delegations and in consultation with the Department as appropriate. I have asked the chief executives to respond to the hon. Member on any such payments made within the last 12 months.

Letter from Chris de Grouchy to Annabelle Ewing, dated 8 May 2002: The Secretary of State for Trade and Industry has asked me to reply on behalf of the Radiocommunications Agency to your Parliamentary Question about what payments have been made to individuals following findings of maladministration by ombudsman in the last 12 months. The Radiocommunications Agency has made no payments to individuals, as there have been no such investigations within the last year.

Letter from Desmond Flynn to Annabelle Ewing, dated 8 May 2002: Further to the answer given by the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry to your named day parliamentary question 2001/3729 about payments following findings of maladministration by ombudsmen, in the year ended 27 March 2002 The Insolvency Service, one of the DTI's agencies, made 24 payments totalling £27,280.87 after receiving complaints under its complaints procedure and otherwise. Of these, 1 payment for –75 was made following the notification of a complaint by the Parliamentary Commissioner for Administration. Complaints were not notified by any other ombudsman.

Letter from Roger Heathcote to Annabelle Ewing, dated 8 May 2002: You tabled a Parliamentary Question on 27 March 2002 to Patricia Hewitt, Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, asking what payments have been made to individuals following findings of maladministration by ombudsmen with responsibility for agencies under the remit of her Department in the last 12 months; and what plans she has to review the powers to increase the level of awards that can be made. I have been asked to reply in respect of the Employment Tribunals Service (ETS), which is an executive agency of the DTI. The Employment Tribunals Service has made no payments in the last 12 months following findings of ombudsmen; and there are no plans currently to review the awards that can be made.

189W

Letter from Peter Bentley to Annabelle Ewing, dated 8 May 2002: I am replying on behalf of the Small Business Service, since our Chief Executive, David Irwin, completed his secondment to SBS on 28 March, and our new Chief Executive, Martin Wyn Griffith, does not start until 15 April. There have been no findings of maladministration against the Small Business Service.

Letter from Alison Brimelow to Annabelle Ewing, dated 8 May 2002: I am replying on behalf of the Patent Office to your Parliamentary Question 3729 to the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry relating to payments made to individuals following findings of maladministration by ombudsmen in the last 12 months. The Patent Office operates its own complaints procedure. Although this procedure gives no automatic right to compensation individuals may be compensated where there is evidence of errors or omissions by Patent Office staff or procedures. In the year 2001–02 a total of £15,000 was made in ex gratia payments. This represented payment on 29 cases out of a total of 70,000 patent, trade mark and design applications processed in the same period. No maladministration payments relating to cases involving the Parliamentary Commissioner for Administration (the Ombudsman) have been made in the last 12 months.

Letter from Dr. J. W. Llewellyn to Annabelle Ewing, dated 8 May 2002: The Secretary of State for Trade and Industry has asked me to reply on behalf of the National Weights and Measures Laboratory (NWML) to your question about payments that have been made to individuals following findings of maladministration by ombudsman in the last 12 months. NWML has not made any payments of this type.

Letter from Claire Clancy to Annabelle Ewing, dated 8 May 2002: I refer to your Parliamentary Question 2001/3729. I have been asked to respond for Companies House for which the answer is that there have been no such payments.