New standards for dealing with complaints in health and social care

Date of article: 01/07/2025

Daily News of: 04/07/2025

Country:  United Kingdom - Northern Ireland

Author:

Article language: en

1 July 2025

Our Complaints Standards team has launched a new Model Complaints Handling Procedure (MCHP) for health and social care services in Northern Ireland.

This is a major step in our work to improve how complaints are handled across the sector. The new MCHP sets out clear stages, timescales and expectations for service providers and complainants.

 

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The Ombudsman Institution has alerted the General Directorate for Combating Organized Crime, the Ministry of Education and Science, and the State Agency for Child Protection about an online game that teaches children how to sell and use cocaine

Date of article: 30/06/2025

Daily News of: 04/07/2025

Country:  Bulgaria

Author:

Article language: en

The Ombudsman Institution sent a letter to the Minister of Education Krasimir Valchev, the Chair of the State Agency for Child Protection Teodora Ivanova, the Executive Director of the Cyber Security Directorate at the General Directorate for Combating Organized Crime at the Ministry of Interior Vladimir Dimitrov, and the Parents Association, in which it warned about dangerous computer viruses that are spreading in schools. The letter was also sent to the Ministry of Interior and the Ministry of Justice.

17 June 2025

 

The Ombudsman Institution sent a letter to the Minister of Education Krasimir Valchev, the Chair of the State Agency for Child Protection Teodora Ivanova, the Executive Director of the Cyber Security Directorate at the General Directorate for Combating Organized Crime at the Ministry of Interior Vladimir Dimitrov, and the Parents Association, in which it warned about dangerous computer viruses that are spreading in schools. The letter was also sent to the Ministry of Interior and the Ministry of Justice.

 The reason for this is a report from concerned parents who are worried about a new trend among students—a game that simulates cocaine use and its effects. It is spreading online, and a subscription costs 84 leva. Parents report that the game contains messages such as “Experience the thrill of being a cocaine dealer 27/7. Send children out on the streets to sell, get arrested, and possibly killed, while you collect the profits.” In the game, each child must prepare cocaine doses to sell.

“Psychologists report that they are already encountering children and students who have been influenced by such content. In the context of the specificities of child development, this becomes a model that they follow, even unconsciously,” writes Dr. Aysun Avdjiev, Secretary General of the Ombudsman Institution, to the competent authorities.

He adds that, according to international sources, similar games such as “Drug Dealer Simulator,” “Cocaine Dealer,” and “Schedule I” are available on various platforms, including Steam, and have gained significant popularity in recent years.

“We are confident that measures to improve students' civic and digital literacy and to include digital safety issues in conversations with parents can be expanded in the field of education. We believe that the Parents Association, as a member of the Public Council for Safe Internet, will raise awareness of this issue through the safe internet hotline, after which concrete steps can be proposed. The State Agency for Child Protection, as the state body responsible for guiding, coordinating, and monitoring policies for children, can organize various initiatives, seeking the support of the Agency's Children's Council,” writes Dr. Avdjiev.

He further emphasizes that despite the publicly stated position that “this is perhaps a moral issue related to parental responsibility and control,” according to the Ombudsman Institution, the Cyber Security Directorate of the General Directorate for Combating Organized Crime has the expert capacity and competence to recommend possible actions to protect children and young people.

“We believe that it is imperative to quickly monitor the internet for the distribution and search for both this and similar games that encourage children to engage in illegal activities,” said Aysun Avdjiev.

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Difensori Civici a confronto: convocata la riunione del Coordinamento nazionale – 16 luglio 2025.

Date of article: 04/07/2025

Daily News of: 04/07/2025

Country:  Italy

Author: National Coordination of Italian regional Ombudsmen

Article language: it

È convocata per mercoledì 16 luglio 2025 alle ore 10:30, in modalità online, la prossima riunione del Coordinamento Nazionale dei Difensori Civici delle Regioni e delle Province Autonome italiane.

I lavori vedranno la partecipazione dei componenti del Coordinamento e dei funzionari degli uffici della difesa civica di tutta Italia.

Ordine del Giorno:

  1. Autorità Nazionale Anticorruzione (ANAC)
    Riflessione a seguito della nota in allegato
    Relazione del collega Giacomo Bernardi
  2. Rafforzamento del Coordinamento Nazionale
    Spunti e proposte operative per una maggiore incisività e rappresentanza
    Relazione del collega Gianalberigo De Vecchi
  3. Proliferazione dei Garanti nelle Regioni italiane
    Analisi dello scenario attuale e riflessioni sul ruolo del Difensore Civico
    Relazione della collega Paola Baldovino
  4. “Abuso d’Ufficio” e ruolo del Difensore Civico
    Considerazioni e riflessi sull’attività delle autorità di garanzia
    Relazione del collega Francesco Cozzi

La dichiarazione del Presidente Marino Fardelli:

«Questa convocazione rappresenta un momento importante di confronto operativo e di riflessione strategica, in una fase in cui il ruolo dei Difensori Civici è sempre più centrale nel garantire legalità, trasparenza e tutela dei diritti. Rafforzare il Coordinamento nazionale significa rafforzare la democrazia e la fiducia dei cittadini nelle istituzioni».

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El Procurador del Común se reúne con el Defensor del Pueblo

Date of article: 03/07/2025

Daily News of: 04/07/2025

Country:  Spain - Castilla León

Author:

Article language: es

Tomás Quintana ha mantenido un encuentro instituconal con el Defensor del Pueblo, Ángel Gabilondo.

La reunión se enmarca en las relaciones habituales de cooperación y colaboración que mantienen los diferentes defensores y con el Defensor del Pueblo. 

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Link to the Ombudsman Daily News archives from 2002 to 20 October 2011