TNAG-0106-FCO40-142-Proposals-to-appoint-an-Ombudsman-1969 — Page 203

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(ii) Mr. Henderson has minuted as follows:

"It is not very clear what is the position as regards the exercise of Governor's powers and the officers delegated by him. They appear to be included although Schedule I might be regarded as excluding the Governor (as Governor's Establishment is not an included "department"). The Governor would perhaps wish to restrict investigation into his decisions to cases where the facts have been misrepresented to him.

"In paragraph 9 of the Second Schedule I would prefer the words and "conditions of service" added. They are not necessarily covered by the phrase "other personnel matters", which refers to individual problems rather than general conditions as a whole. What is the position of personnel in subsidised institutions, presumably excluded, but not very clearly covered by paragraph 9(b) of the Second Schedule?"

(iii) Matters which are the prerogative of H.. Government need

to be excluded from the Commissioner's sphere e.g. the Civil Aviation Department acts as agent of H.l.G. in giving effect to certain civil aviation decisions;

there are similar considerations in the spheres of merchant shipping, patents, copyright, naturalisation, nationality.

It is

(iv) The U.K. Act excludes "action taken in matters relating to

contractual or other commercial transactions." suggested that we do the same here.

(v) PACS(L) has minuted as follows:

"I do not think that legal advisers to the Crown should be excluded in respect of their advice, unless actually performing as Counsel in legal proceedings. There seems to be no good reason why they should be any more immune from complaints than their non-legal colleagues.

"I would exclude commercial transactions affecting land i.e. involving payment of either a premium or possibly an administrative fee since these are matters which may be the subject of civil proceedings if a complainant has a valid complaint of breach of contract or lease covenant and they also involve decisions which the Crown or its servants are always entitled to make ex parte for their own reasons and which are unlikely to satisfy complainants for purely reasons of profit.

"I would also be tempted to exclude certain discretionary powers under the Buildings Ordinance, where a decision based e.g. on the dangerous condition of a building or hazardous nature of an illegal alteration must be dealt with urgently, is based on specialist opinion peculiar to Government, but will arouse lay and ever inexperienced expert dissent and where this is available recourse to an appeal tribunal. would want to pursue this, if acceptable, with D.P.W.

I

/Point 1.....