Dec 2, 2020

Manitoba Ombudsman Jill Perron has released her office’s annual report for 2019. The report quantifies contacts to the office, identifies challenges and changes in operations and highlights education and outreach efforts. It also features case summaries and detailed statistics on the office’s work under the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (FIPPA), the Personal Health Information Act (PHIA), the Ombudsman Act and the Public Interest Disclosure (Whistleblower Protection) Act (PIDA).

Highlights of the 2019 annual report include:

• Statistics about inquiries and complaints received by our office, which saw a 34 per cent increase in the number of investigations opened.
• Information about our complaint handling process and activities to support informal resolutions.
• Information about the types of access complaints received in 2019
• Information about the types of privacy breaches reported to our office under FIPPA and PHIA and the outcomes of the privacy breach reviews we conducted.
• Case summaries that illustrate the variety of investigations conducted as a result of complaints about municipal and provincial matters under the Ombudsman Act.
• A discussion about the office’s new responsibilities under PIDA, such as our ability to conduct reviews of a public body’s PIDA procedures and handle complaints about reprisal, in addition to information about disclosures of wrongdoing made to our office.

The ombudsman’s annual report is one of the ways in which information about the office’s work is shared with the legislature, government organizations and the public. The report is available at https://www.ombudsman.mb.ca/uploads/document/files/2019-annual-report-en-en.pdf. Print copies are available by contacting the office at 204-982-9130, 1-800-665-0531 or ombudsman@ombudsman.mb.ca.

Manitoba Ombudsman is an independent office of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba that promotes and fosters openness, transparency, fairness, accountability and respect for privacy in the design and delivery of public services. The office investigates complaints about access to information and privacy matters, the fairness of government actions and decisions, and serious wrongdoings that may have occurred.