“The probation service, which faces wholesale outsourcing under government plans, is ‘doing much good work’ with adult offenders but some aspects continue to require improvement, according to the chief inspector of probation.”
The Guardian, 21st February 2013
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
“ITV show Lorraine broke rules by allowing Dannii Minogue to promote a milk product she had a commercial deal to endorse, Ofcom has ruled.”
BBC News, 4th February 2013
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
“Every now and again, there is a Local Government Ombudsman report that seems to go beyond individual instances of maladministration and instead capture something of the zeitgeist. The LGO decision summarised here may well be one of the latter (certainly the Guardian thinks so), as arguably what it shows is a Local Authority prioritising its own administrative concerns over its legal duties in both its policy and the operation of policy. There is also a routine failure to ask the kind of questions that might have meant it had to do more. This on top of a series of administrative failures.”
NearlyLegal, 20th January 2013
Source: www.nearlylegal.co.uk
“At the end of what is always the busiest month of the year for gyms, the OFT is expected to announce that it will outlaw contracts that last longer than 12 months or do not contain a get-out clause for members who, for example, lose their job or sustain an injury. The move follows a year-long investigation into a number of gym chains, believed to include LA Fitness, Fitness First and Bannatyne’s. The OFT is also understood to be looking at debt collectors that some reports say use aggressive practices in chasing money owed to gym groups.”
The Guardian, 12th January 2013
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
“The advertising watchdog has criticised a magazine and a clothing firm for attempting to drum up business by using images of the late Jimmy Savile in email campaigns, including one which features the disgraced ex-presenter wearing what appears to be underwear while smoking a cigar.”
The Guardian, 9th January 2013
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
Pensions Ombudsman v EMC Europe Ltd and others: [2012] EWHC 3508 (Ch); [2012] WLR (D) 382
“The Pensions Ombudsman had no jurisdiction to entertain a complaint by a scheme member to set aside a compromise agreement where successful determination of the complaint would adversely affect the rights of the parent company in circumstances where it was a necessary party to any claim to set aside the agreement but was not subject to the ombudsman’s jurisdiction.”
WLR Daily, 14th December 2012
Source: www.iclr.co.uk
“Lord Justice Leveson’s report recommends that claims against the press be resolved fairly, quickly and cheaply by means of an arbitration scheme established by a new (statutory) regulator.”
The Guardian, 19th December 2012
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
“Ofcom has found two BBC police dramas, Good Cop and Line Of Duty, in breach of rules regarding protecting children.”
BBC News, 17th December 2012
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
“Public organisations are wasting resources and causing financial hardship by taking too long to put right basic mistakes, says a new report by parliamentary ombudsman Dame Julie Mellor.”
The Guardian, 12th December 2012
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
Related link: Responsive and Accountable? 2011-12
“An application to quash the original Hillsborough inquest verdicts could be made today, the Attorney General’s office said.”
The Independent, 10th December 2012
Source: www.independent.co.uk
“The advertising watchdog has banned a TV ad from online holiday site Kayak, after more than 400 complaints said it was distressing to those who have had brain tumours and surgery.”
The Guardian, 28th November 2012
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
“Two men who sent millions of spam text messages have been fined £440,000 as the authorities step up the fight against the trade.”
BBC News, 28th November 2012
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
“The chairman of the Press Complaints Commission (PCC) has appealed to the government and Lord Justice Leveson not to introduce statutory regulation of the press, even though he admits having sympathy with the campaign for new press laws led by Hugh Grant.”
The Guardian, 11th November 2012
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
“Government plans to extend the use of secret hearings in courts are not compatible with the Human Rights Act, the equalities watchdog has said.”
The Independent, 31st October 2012
Source: www.independent.co.uk
“The advertising watchdog will launch a crackdown next year on businesses that run misleading internet ads that rip off consumers.”
Daily Telegraph, 27th October 2012
Source: www.telegraph.co.uk
“New powers to snoop on all emails, web visits and phone calls could still be used to combat minor crimes despite Government assurances, the watchdog who oversees them has said.”
Daily Telegraph, 29th October 2012
Source: www.telegraph.co.uk
“The Department for Education (DfE) was guilty of a breach of UK data protection laws when a ‘temporary security flaw’ meant that personal information belonging to respondents to one of its consultations were ‘compromised’, the UK’s data protection watchdog has said.”
OUT-LAW.com, 19th October 2012
Source: www.out-law.com
“One of the less well-remarked upon changes in the Localism Act 2010 was a set of radical changes to the role of the Housing Ombudsman (the current incumbent being the lovely Mike Biles). In short, the HO takes over jurisdiction for local authority housing complaints; there is a filter mechanism before the HO can accept a complaint (it has to be referred by a Designated person: MP, Councillor, Tenants Panel). The former is to be welcomed – on one view, the HO now offers a far better, more modern, proactive service than the Local Government Ombudsman in our entrepreneurialised housing system; the latter is to be absolutely deprecated as being not just against the spirit of administrative justice but also as a mechanism for cost-saving in the face of proper redress of grievance/s. Whatever you think about ombudspersons – and a range of views are expressed – there is no doubt that they have consistently exposed various maladministrations across the housing sphere, and they don’t hold back; in addition, their purpose (unlike courts) is to make things better for future ‘customers’ so that there may well be an impact on service delivery from a single instance of maladministration (and not just in that organisation).”
NearlyLegal, 17th October 2012
Source: www.nearlylegal.co.uk
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