04.08.11
New age of transparency
Cabinet Minister Francis Maude has promised a new era of greater data transparency to reform public services, foster innovation and empower citizens. Examples of the information to be released include prisoners’ sentences and GPs’ prescribing habits.
A new Public Data Corporation is being developed to handle this transparency. Some of the issues being discussed for this role include how to hold public bodies responsible if they fail to demonstrate transparency and how data can be most efficiently collected and presented to the public.
Maude said: "We want to get away from a position where data gets released as result of pushing and pulling to a position where we drive it out to put power in the hands of the public, where we are open by default. It's freedom of information 2.0."
He also insisted that the new programme would be irreversible, and would not draw the line at information which could embarrass the Government.
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