About the Ombudsperson and Public Interest Disclosure Commissioner

Ms. Hermiston was appointed as PEI’s first Ombudsperson in February 2022. She has more than 35 years of experience as a lawyer, most of which have been spent in the public service. Sandy has worked in the Ombudsman world since 2014, first as counsel to the Alberta Ombudsman and more recently as the Cayman Island’s first-ever Ombudsman.

Sandy’s public service career began in 1990 in Canada’s north (Yellowknife, NWT) where she spent seven years living and working in a small jurisdiction where the breath of work was wide and communities tight knit. She then moved “south” to Edmonton, Canada’s most northern major city, where she spent 17 years as general counsel to an administrative tribunal, acquiring extensive expertise in administrative law and procedural fairness. In 2014 Sandy was appointed general counsel to the independent offices of the Alberta Ombudsman and Public Interest Commissioner, working to resolve complaints of fairness and whistleblowing disclosures. Ms. Hermiston was appointed as the first-ever Ombudsman of the Cayman Islands in 2017 where she successfully established an office dealing with typical Ombudsman complaints as well as freedom of information, data protection, whistle-blower protection and public complaints about police misconduct.  

During her career as a public servant, Sandy has demonstrated her ability to establish newly-created roles and offices, having done so in four different jurisdictions. She possesses a broad understanding and knowledge of public administration and government structures and functions, as well as significant experience in the governance of public bodies.

Sandy is committed to ensuring fair treatment, reasonable decision-making and transparency in PEI. She sees complaints and whistleblower disclosures as opportunities for meaningful dialogue and improvement. She will ensure that where things go wrong, action is taken to put them right wherever possible.