Alberta Ombudsman office has busiest year ever with record number of complaints

By Lethbridge Herald on September 10, 2025.

Al Beeber
Lethbridge Herald

The Alberta Ombudsman’s office had a record number of complaints in the 2024-25 year.

The annual report released Tuesday by Ombudsman Kevin Brezinski shows his office received 5,647 cases during that time period, including 2,215 written complaints – a number which is 26 per cent higher than the previous year. The total number of cases handled was up 10 per cent from the previous year.

The report notes that the Ombudsman’s office – despite more complaints and cases – increased the number of resolved issues by 26 per cent and closed 94 per cent of all complaints within three months.

“I am particularly proud of our efforts to keep pace with a record number of complaints brought to our office this past year,” Brezinski said in a statement.

Total cases received has risen annually in the past five years from 4,567 cases in 2020-21.

The provincial ombudsman – established in 1967 – was the first parliamentary ombudsman office of its kind in North America and was created to be “the voice of fairness for Albertans, protecting  the right to fair treatment in the provision of public services.”

The ombudsman is an officer of the Legislative Assembly who reports directly to the Assembly members.

The role of the office is to respond to complaints of unfair treatment by municipalities, provincial government authorities, self-regulated health colleges, the Patient Concerns Resolution Process of Alberta  Health Services, and other designated professional organizations such as the Chartered Professional Accountants of Alberta, the Alberta Institute of Agrologists, the Alberta Veterinary Medical Association  and the Association of Alberta Forest Management Professionals.

In the report, Brezinski says the increase number of cases is due largely to greater public awareness of the office and the role it plays.

The mission of the ombudsman is to promote  “fairness and accountability in the public sector by conducting impartial investigations, addressing systemic issues, making effective  recommendations, and providing education to Albertans.” And its vision is to provide equitable treatment for everyone, says the report.

Inquiries are received through an intake line while complaints are  received in writing. Complaints are assessed to see if the fall within the office’s jurisdiction and if not, references are provided to take  them to the right place.

After a review, the office works to resolve identified issues and for more complex cases, full investigations may be opened.

In total last year, there were 887 provincial government complaints, 213 of them regarding seniors and community services.

There were also  202 municipality complaints and 42 professional organizational complaints – 18 of them involving the College of  Physicians and Surgeons of Alberta. The top five entities for municipality complaints were Edmonton (29) and Calgary (21) followed  by Valleyview, Fort Saskatchewan and Canmore.