Thank you so much for forwarding the Ombudsman's
report to me. I really am extremely grateful you and your staff for all the support you
have given and, in view of the Ombudsman's findings and recommendations, I hope you feel
it was worthwhile.
You probably will not have seen the letter
of apology I received from the Permanent Secretary, on behalf of the Department of Health.
I am now enclosing a copy of this together with my reply.
I am also enclosing the short piece by the
Chief Pharmacist at the Maudsley Hospital, referred to in my letter to Mr Kelly. This
underlines the further work that needs to be done on the substantive issues - which should
now be a bit easier, given the terms of the Ombudsman's report.
In the forthcoming Parliamentary debates, I know you will be vigorously
encouraging the government to honour the White Paper commitments to freedom of
information, and I hope the findings in our case will strengthen your hand.
