Submission by Assistant Professor Narelle Bedford to the Inquiry into the Strategic Review of the Office of the Queensland Ombudsman by the Queensland Parliament Legal Affairs and Community Safety Committee

Summary of major points:
1. It is extremely important in terms of access to justice that the Queensland
Ombudsman remain a free service.
2. Given the uniqueness and importance of the non-legal remedy of a formal apology,
consideration should be given to the need for legislative amendment to protect
against any adverse consequences in any related litigation claimed to arise from the
making of an apology by a government agency.
3. Consideration should be given to strengthening the statutory provisions of the
Ombudsman Act relating to responses to Ombudsman reports, including
strengthening the role and powers of Parliament and its Committees in their oversight
of any future non-responses.
4. Legislative amendment to enable accountability institutions (such as the Ombudsman
and the Audit Office) to share complaints and investigation data and other systemic
information in confidence is supported as necessary.
5. There is an urgent need for a whole of government review on contracted service
delivery and the need for accountability over contracted service delivery to ensure
that there are no “accountability gaps”.