Service Complaints Ombudsman Annual Report 2020

(Limited Text - Ministerial Extracts only)

Thursday 21st October 2021 Written Statements

[The Minister for Defence People and Veterans (Leo Docherty)]

The MOD’S formal response to the Service Complaints Ombudsman’s (SCO) annual report for 2020 on the fairness, effectiveness and efficiency of the service complaints system has today been placed in the Library of the House.

The ombudsman’s report assessed the fifth year of operation of the reformed service complaints system which was implemented on 1 January 2016 and the work of her office in 2020. The response sets out MOD’s comments and approach to each of the ombudsman’s observations that she has made and includes a summary of our position on recommendations made in previous annual reports.

The MOD values the strong independent oversight that the ombudsman brings to the service complaints process, and remains committed to having a system in which our personnel can have confidence. This will include progressing outstanding recommendations and observations, together with improvements identified in Air Marshal Wigston’s report in April 2019 on inappropriate behaviours.

[HCWS340]