‘Crisis driven’ complaints mounting in B.C., ombudsperson says

A British Columbia woman who escaped an abusive relationship was concerned about the safety of her pets and belongings she left behind so applied to the Ministry of Social Development and Poverty Reduction for moving assistance.

An advocacy agency followed up when she didn’t get a response, but that too was ignored, and only after the ombudsperson’s office got involved did the ministry approve the woman’s request.

The case study is one of more than of 7,300 inquiries or complaints that went to the provincial Office of the Ombudsperson in 2024-2025, its annual report says. That’s an increase of more than 350 complaints or request for help than the year before.

Ombudsperson Jay Chalke says the number of “crisis driven” complaints by those trying to access public services in the province are mounting, often leaving people without essential supports.

He said in a statement that services are becoming more complex to navigate, public sector budgets are tightening and decisions are increasingly being shaped by artificial intelligence or automated decision making.

“Rising costs continue to stretch household budgets, housing remains scarce and expensive, and health care systems are under strain,” he said in the report.

“Too often, people are left navigating unclear services or inconsistent decisions at moments when they are most in need of help.”

Chalke said in a news release that people needing help with public services are increasingly turning to his office, with more than 17,500 people saying they have had difficulty “navigating unfair public services.”

Chalke says his office handled about 635 fairness or wrongdoing concerns each month, and more than one-third of the complaints were related to housing, affordability and health care, “reflecting the service gaps people are feeling more acutely.”

The report points to the Ministry of Social Development and Poverty Reduction, the Insurance Corporation of B.C. and the Ministry of Children and Family Development as the three most complained amount bodies with 481, 476 and 408 complaints, respectively.

There were also nearly a total of 500 inquiries and complaints made against municipalities last year.

Most of the 861 health-care-related inquiries and complaints were around communication, unclear decisions about care and problems with the way policies are applied in hospitals.

The report says there were 633 justice-related inquiries, with BC Corrections being the most complained about under its jurisdiction, most of which related to jail segregation and disciplinary action, access to health services and living conditions.

One such case described in the report came from a man who was strip searched when leaving the Vancouver Island Regional Correctional Centre for a medical appointment and had his appointment cancelled.

The office then requested the centre compare its internal policy that everyone leaving for a medical appointment be strip searched.

The report says that, after conducting that review, it determined its internal policy was inconsistent with other correctional centres’ policies and stopped performing strip searches by default before appointments.

It says a committee was also created by BC Corrections across all centres in the province to review and standardize strip-search policies.

Chalke’s annual review also renewed calls for public reports from his office to be automatically referred to a legislative committee for a hearing, which Chalke says would be practical and cost effective.

He also notes in the release that some public bodies act on his recommendations, while others “do not engage meaningfully or leave agreed-to actions unfinished.”

“In a time of tight budgets and rising pressures, people who turn to us need public bodies to follow through,” Chalke says in the release.

“A legislative committee hearing about our reports would help ensure accountability and transparency when public administration problems are identified.”

The report notes the ombudsperson’s annual operational budget for the 2024-2025 year was more than $15 million.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 18, 2025.

Brieanna Charlebois, The Canadian Press