ENG-2020 — Page 47

1

Constitution and Administration

The Ombudsman

The Ombudsman, established under The Ombudsman Ordinance, is the city's independent watchdog of public administration. The Ombudsman investigates actions by government departments and public bodies for administrative deficiencies, and recommends remedial measures to improve the standard of public administration of Hong Kong.

The Ombudsman's functions and powers include investigation of complaints of maladministration against government departments/agencies and 27 public bodies listed in Part I of Schedule 1 to the ordinance to ensure:

• bureaucratic constraints do not interfere with administrative fairness;

public authorities are readily accessible to the public;

• abuse of power is prevented;

wrongs are righted;

• facts are pointed out when public officers are unjustly accused;

⚫ human rights are protected; and

⚫ the public sector continues to improve quality and efficiency.

The Ombudsman is also empowered to investigate complaints of non-compliance with the Code on Access to Information against all government departments, including organisations listed in Part II of Schedule 1 to the ordinance, such as the Hong Kong Police Force and the

ICAC.

Besides investigating complaints, the Ombudsman may initiate direct investigations into matters of public interest and widespread concern, and publish reports to redress administrative flaws of a systemic nature and address fundamental problems or the underlying causes of complaints. The reports of all direct investigations are available on the website of the Office of the Ombudsman.

The Ombudsman completed 10 direct investigations in 2019-20, which concerned:

⚫ the government's planning and arrangements for ancillary facilities for electric private

vehicles;

• the mechanism for identifying and reporting suspected child abuse cases;

• the Buildings Department's implementation of mandatory window inspection scheme;

⚫ the Education Bureau's mechanisms for approving applications for school fee revision by

direct subsidy scheme/private schools and collection of other charges by private schools;

15

香港公共圖書館 Hong Kong Public Libraries |