Access to data - UK Government re-affirms commitment to Open Data initiatives
Published on 18th Dec 2014
In a move which has significant ramifications for suppliers to the public sector, the UK Government has re-affirmed its commitment to Open Data initiatives.
Speaking at The Institute for Government last week, the Cabinet Office Minister, Francis Maude MP, announced the fast tracking of moves to make data sets held by public bodies freely available. He also re-enforced the Government’s commitment to expanding existing freedom of access to public sector data laws.
It remains to be seen how widely the definition of ‘public authority’ is set within these laws and what protections, if any, suppliers to those bodies which share valuable IPR and sensitive information will be offered. Questions around who takes liability for decisions based on inaccurate Open Data also remain unclear.
Further announcements from the Government between now and May’s election are likely. It will also be interesting to see what measures each of the UK’s political parties propose in relation to Open Data initiatives and freedom of information law reform in their respective manifestos.
