When Mr P asked the MOD about its objection to his planned wind turbine, there were errors in its responses. It did not respond to him after his Member of the Scottish Parliament asked it to, and it delayed sending a complaint response.
What happened
Mr P made a planning application for a wind turbine. The MOD objected because it said that it would affect a nearby radar station. It said that it would remove the objection if a suitable mitigation plan was agreed. Mr P emailed the MOD twice but did not receive a reply, because the MOD had incorrectly recorded its email address.
Mr P contacted his Member of Parliament (MP) and his Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP), who wrote to the MOD. Mr P complained about not receiving a reply to his email or advice on how to complete a mitigation plan. The MOD gave him a number of reasons why it did not receive the emails. There were also a number of errors in the responses Mr P received from the MOD. The MOD delayed sending the final response, despite giving him a date by when it would respond.
What we found
The original error in recording the email address was not so serious that it amounted to maladministration. However, it was maladministration that, when Mr P complained, the MOD gave him the wrong reason for the emails not arriving and did not take responsibility for the error until months later.
It was maladministration that the MOD did not contact Mr P after his MSP wrote to the Minister specifically requesting it to do so. The time the MOD took to respond to the MP's and the MSP's letters was not unreasonable.
The letters the MOD sent contained a number of errors. While each error on its own was minor, taken together, they indicated a lack of care when MOD staff drafted the correspondence. This was maladministration.
The delay in the MOD sending its final response was maladministration. This was because it did not meet its deadline or respond to Mr P's email asking about the deadline.
The MOD's failings caused Mr P frustration and inconvenience.
Putting it right
The MOD apologised to Mr P and explained what it had learnt from the complaint and what action it had recently taken, or intended to take, to improve its handling of enquiries and complaints.
Ministry of Defence
UK
Not applicable
Apology
Recommendation to learn lessons or draw up an action plan