The Insurance Ombudsman, Ms Paulyn Marrinan Quinn, has called for an immediate inquiry into how confidential information which she gave to the Insurance Council was passed on to a magazine.

Ms Marrinan Quinn, who leaves office at the end of this month, said the information was part of management and operational data accounts normally circulated to the Insurance Ombudsman Council as part of her quarterly reporting duties.

She said last night that she had been asked questions by Phoenix magazine based on "selectively leaked" information.

The council was set up to act as a buffer between the insurance industry, which funds the scheme, and the Ombudsman. Ms Marrinan Quinn announced earlier this year that she was stepping down at the end of this month after six years in office.

She has since said that lack of funding and censorship, exacerbated by the decision to appoint a new member to her staff without her agreement, made her position untenable and led to her decision.

Ms Marrinan Quinn said last night that she was "perplexed and dismayed" that the information sent to the council had found its way into the media, before she had had a chance to discuss it with the members of the council. She said she had sought an explanation last week as to how this had happened but, to date, none was forthcoming. In a statement issued yesterday, she requested that the council chairman, Mr Ernest Margetson, the members of the Council and the chairman of the board, Mr Michael Lane, carry out an immediate inquiry into the matter. The board comprises representatives of the insurance industry.

Ms Marrinan Quinn said she had no problem answering questions on the information leaked but claimed it was leaked selectively and this could be very damaging - not to her but to the council.

A spokesman for Mr Margetson and the council said he was fully confident that no council member had leaked the information. Mr Margetson is to undertake a full inquiry into how such information came into possession of the magazine, he added.

Mr Lane was unavailable for comment but a spokesman for him said he was unaware of the issue.