New ombudsman appointed

A Whitehall insider who served as the Government's liaison officer with the coal industry in the aftermath of the 1984-85 miners' strike took over yesterday as the parliamentary ombudsman.

Michael Buckley, 57, the new Parliamentary Commissioner for Administration, previously served in the Treasury, the Cabinet Office and the Department of Energy. People who feel they have been given a raw deal by Whitehall can ask their MP to apply to the ombudsman to investigate their cases.