Government policy on open data

From Open NZ Wiki

This page is here to collect links to statements from Government agencies and Ministers on their views and policies about opening government data. This is intended to be useful to government employees who are preparing internal cases for opening data.

Politicians' Statements

• Finance Minister Bill English said (23 September 2009) "I see no reason why we can't turn government inside out, so to speak, and make the same data and information available to those outside of government".

• Minister for Land Information Maurice Williamson said (August 2009) "We’ve always believed that spatial information contributes significantly to the economy, now we have credible data to back that up, … One of the main challenges is to free up access to data, so that greater productivity gains are realised"

Policy Projects

• The Open Government Information and Data Re-use Project at the State Services Commission is developing an approach for opening up New Zealand's non-personal government information and data.
• The Directions and Priorities for Government ICT were announced 7 October 2010 and make several references to open data, including the following:
  • “Open and active release of government data will create opportunities for innovation, and encourage the public and government organisations to engage in joint efforts to improve service delivery.”
  • “Government data effectively belongs to the New Zealand public, and its release and re-use has the potential to:
    • allow greater participation in government policy development by offering insight and expert knowledge on released data (e.g. using geospatial data to analyse patterns of crime in communities)
    • enable educational, research, and scientific communities to build on existing data to gain knowledge and expertise and use it for new purposes
    • stimulate economic growth
    • promote innovation in the private sector through the development of new products and business opportunities based on government data
    • contribute to transparency of government thereby maintaining the integrity of the public management system”

Documents

Research for the Environment: A Research, Science & Technology Strategy for Regional Councils

   The vision of the Strategy is that the profile of Regional Councils moves from being end
   users to being “partners” in research with key Government Departments and research
   providers. The RS&T Strategy provides a process for the combined councils to influence
   NZ’s environmental research direction. A key purpose is to ensure that the councils provide
   a united and influential front to funding agencies and research providers both for identifying
   research priorities and also capability requirements for the present and future.