New Zealand Legislation: Acts

76 Amendments to Ombudsmen Act 1975

• (1) The Ombudsmen Act 1975 is hereby amended by inserting, after section 17A (as inserted by section 2 of the Ombudsmen Amendment Act 1993), the following section:

  “17B Referral of complaint to Health and Disability Commissioner

  • “(1) Where, on receiving a complaint under this Act, an Ombudsman considers that the complaint relates, in whole or in part, to a matter that is more properly within the jurisdiction of the Health and Disability Commissioner under the Health and Disability Commissioner Act 1994, the Ombudsman shall forthwith consult with the Health and Disability Commissioner in order to determine the appropriate means of dealing with the complaint.

    “(2) As soon as practicable after consulting with the Health and Disability Commissioner under subsection (1) of this section, the Ombudsman shall determine whether the complaint should be dealt with, in whole or in part, under this Act.

    “(3) If the Ombudsman determines that the complaint should be dealt with, in whole or in part, under the Health and Disability Commissioner Act 1994, the Ombudsman shall forthwith refer the complaint or, as the case requires, the appropriate part of the complaint to the Health and Disability Commissioner to be dealt with accordingly, and shall notify the complainant of the action that has been taken.”

  (2) The Ombudsmen Act 1975 is hereby amended by inserting, after section 21A (as inserted by section 3 of the Ombudsmen Amendment Act 1993), the following section:

  “21B Consultation with Health and Disability Commissioner

  • “Notwithstanding anything in section 21 of this Act, an Ombudsman may from time to time undertake consultation with the Health and Disability Commissioner under the Health and Disability Commissioner Act 1994 in relation to any matter relating to the functions of the Ombudsman, including (without limitation) consultation—

    • “(a) For the purposes of making a determination under section 17B of this Act:

    • “(b) In relation to any matter arising out of or in the course of an investigation under this Act or any other enactment:

    • “(c) In relation to any matter that is within the jurisdiction of the Health and Disability Commissioner, whether or not the matter arises out of a particular complaint made under this Act,—

    “and, for the purposes of any such consultation, an Ombudsman may disclose to the Health and Disability Commissioner such information as the Ombudsman considers necessary for that purpose.”

  (3) [Repealed]

  Subsection (3) was repealed, as from 25 January 2005, by section 200 Crown Entities Act 2004 (2004 No 115).