Tenants to be given right to challenge rogue letting agents – The Guardian

“Tenants are to be given the right to challenge rogue letting agents for the first time after the government agreed at the 11th hour to a legislative amendment requiring all agents to sign up to a mandatory redress scheme.”

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The Guardian, 16th April 2013

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Bankers’ ‘honesty test’: nearly all pass City regulator’s check – The Guardian

Posted April 15th, 2013 in banking, criminal records, financial regulation, news, ombudsmen by sally

“Just 30 out of 227,000 people have failed the City regulator’s ‘fit and proper’ test to take on some of the most risky jobs in British banks since the onset of the financial crisis.”

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The Guardian, 12th April 2013

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Prisoners may lose legal aid for jail complaints – The Guardian

Posted April 4th, 2013 in complaints, consultations, legal aid, news, ombudsmen, prisons by sally

“Convicted criminals could be barred from claiming legal aid to fund complaints about the prison system regarding matters such as categorisation, moves, correspondence and visits.”

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The Guardian, 4th April 2013

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Victims’ Code criticised by watchdog – BBC News

Posted April 2nd, 2013 in codes of practice, complaints, news, ombudsmen, victims by sally

“Victims of crime are being put under extreme duress, leading to injustices, due to a lack of awareness of the Victims’ Code by those working in the justice system, a watchdog has warned.”

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BBC News, 29th March 2013

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

BSB’s monitoring programme improves compliance, shows new report – Bar Standards Board

Posted March 18th, 2013 in barristers, complaints, consultations, news, ombudsmen, statistics by sally

“A new report published recently by the Bar Standards Board shows the benefits of its recent monitoring programme.”

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Bar Standards Board, 15th March 2013

Source: www.barstandardsboard.org.uk

‘Not good’: Ofsted gives a mixed verdict on education reforms in major setback for Michael Gove – The Independent

Posted March 18th, 2013 in education, government departments, news, ombudsmen, reports by sally

“Michael Gove’s flagship education project has been dealt an embarrassing blow after inspectors demanded that three of the new wave of ‘free schools’ must improve their teaching, leadership and pupil performance. In the first official verdict on the Education Secretary’s free schools programme, Ofsted inspectors have ruled that three of the first nine institutions to be examined are “not good” schools.”

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The Independent, 17th March 2013

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Finance and Divorce Update – Family Law Week

Posted March 6th, 2013 in bills, civil partnerships, divorce, jurisdiction, news, ombudsmen, statistics by sally

“Anna Heenan, solicitor and David Salter, Joint Head of Family Law at Mills & Reeve LLP analyse February’s financial remedies and divorce news and cases.”

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Family Law Week, 5th March 2013

Source: www.familylawweek.com

ICO to publish code of practice for the press on personal data processing – OUT-LAW.com

“The UK’s data protection watchdog has outlined its intention to set new guidelines for journalists on the processing of personal data for the purposes of journalism.”

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OUT-LAW.com, 21st February 2013

Source: www.out-law.com

Probation service gets ‘generally good’ report as it faces wholesale outsourcing – The Guardian

Posted February 22nd, 2013 in consultations, contracting out, news, ombudsmen, probation, recidivists, statistics by sally

“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.”

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The Guardian, 21st February 2013

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

ASA begins oversight of new online behavioural advertising rules – OUT-LAW.com

Posted February 6th, 2013 in advertising, codes of practice, complaints, consent, internet, news, ombudsmen by sally

“New UK rules governing the use of online behavioural advertising (OBA) have come into effect.”

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OUT-LAW.com, 5th February 2013

Source: www.out-law.com

Lorraine breaks rules on promotion – BBC News

Posted February 5th, 2013 in advertising, media, news, ombudsmen by tracey

“ITV show Lorraine broke rules by allowing Dannii Minogue to promote a milk product she had a commercial deal to endorse, Ofcom has ruled.”

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BBC News, 4th February 2013

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

ICO to change cookie policy to recognise implied consent – OUT-LAW.com

Posted January 28th, 2013 in consent, internet, news, ombudsmen, privacy by sally

“The UK’s privacy watchdog will no longer require individuals’ explicit consent in order to serve them with ‘cookies’ when they visit its website.”

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OUT-LAW.com, 28th January 2013

Source: www.out-law.com

Wrong priorities – NearlyLegal

Posted January 21st, 2013 in complaints, housing, local government, maladministration, news, ombudsmen by sally

“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.”

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NearlyLegal, 20th January 2013

Source: www.nearlylegal.co.uk

OFT to act on unfair gym membership contracts – The Guardian

Posted January 14th, 2013 in consumer protection, inquiries, news, ombudsmen, unfair contract terms by tracey

“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.”

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The Guardian, 12th January 2013

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

ASA bans adverts over use of Jimmy Savile references – The Guardian

Posted January 9th, 2013 in advertising, child abuse, complaints, news, ombudsmen by sally

“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.”

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The Guardian, 9th January 2013

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Pensions Ombudsman v EMC Europe Ltd and others – WLR Daily

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

Leveson’s media arbitration scheme – The Guardian

Posted December 19th, 2012 in arbitration, media, news, ombudsmen, reports by sally

“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.”

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The Guardian, 19th December 2012

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

BBC police dramas breach Ofcom rules – BBC News

Posted December 17th, 2012 in children, complaints, media, news, ombudsmen by sally

“Ofcom has found two BBC police dramas, Good Cop and Line Of Duty, in breach of rules regarding protecting children.”

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BBC News, 17th December 2012

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Ombudsman report reveals the cost of complaint – The Guardian

Posted December 12th, 2012 in complaints, local government, news, ombudsmen, reports by sally

“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.”

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The Guardian, 12th December 2012

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Related link: Responsive and Accountable? 2011-12

Application to quash the original Hillsborough inquest verdicts could be made today – The Independent

Posted December 10th, 2012 in bills, complaints, inquests, judicial review, news, ombudsmen, police, public interest, sport by sally

“An application to quash the original Hillsborough inquest verdicts could be made today, the Attorney General’s office said.”

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The Independent, 10th December 2012

Source: www.independent.co.uk