Protecting information rights – advancing information policy

Information policy reports

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Open public sector information: from principles to practice

Report on agency implementation of the Principles on open public sector information (.pdf 1.5MB)

This report details the results of a 2012 survey conducted by the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner on how 191 Australian Government agencies manage public sector information (PSI survey). The PSI survey was structured around the OAIC's eight Principles on open public sector information (Open PSI principles).

The key finding of this report is that Australian Government agencies are in a state of transition regarding open PSI; agencies are actively embracing an open access and proactive disclosure culture, but that there are many policy challenges and practical obstacles that must be tackled.

In summary, the report:

  • gives a précis of the main findings of the PSI survey, and identifies the Open PSI principles that agencies found most challenging, and the priority areas for action to address those challenges
  • presents the survey results for each of the eight Open PSI principles, and examines the issues encountered by agencies in implementing each principle, and
  • analyses the contemporary challenges facing Australian Government agencies in implementing an open access agenda that is supported by robust information management and governance.

Supplementary material:

Open public sector information: government in transition

Interim observations from the PSI survey 2012 (PDF)

The OAIC is currently examining how Australian Government agencies manage public sector information (PSI).

This report notes what agencies are currently doing well, which principles of open PSI they are finding most challenging to implement and what assistance they need to meet their obligations.

A full report will be released in November 2012 making recommendations on how to address the specific problems and impediments identified by agencies.

Understanding the value of public sector information in Australia

Issues Paper 2 released November 2011 (PDF)

Open access to public sector information (PSI) is accepted as a central plank of open government across the world. There is consensus that PSI is useful to groups outside government and has considerable social and economic potential. Australia is part of a global movement to improve access to and use of PSI. Recognising the value of information is, however, only the first step. It is important to assess the effectiveness of initiatives to share government-held information and identify the value that these access schemes generate.

This paper commences the process of developing a methodology to value PSI in Australia in fulfilment of a recommendation of the Government 2.0 taskforce. It draws on similar initiatives in other jurisdictions and builds on the office's earlier work in the information policy sphere.

Principles on open public sector information: Report on review and development of principles

Report released May 2011 (PDF)

The Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) has strategic functions relating to information management in the Australian Government. In this capacity, the OAIC is committed to leading the development and implementation of the national information policy framework to promote secure and open government. We will achieve this by driving public access to government information and proactive agency publication of information.

As part of this vision, the OAIC has released a set of Principles on open public sector information and an accompanying report. This report outlines the development of the principles following their release in draft form in November 2010 for consultation. The central theme to emerge from the public consultation was strong endorsement of a set of principles to promote open public sector information and drive government information policy. The principles complement and further the objects of the Freedom of Information Act 1982 in promoting Australia’s representative democracy and increasing the recognition that public sector information is to be managed for public purposes as a national resource.

The OAIC encourages agencies to embed the principles in their internal policies and procedures on information management. By doing so they will help build a culture of proactive information disclosure and community engagement.

The Principles on open public sector information are available in HTML, PDF or RTF

The Report on review and development of principles is available in HTML, PDF or RTF

The media release issued for the launch of the principles on 25 May 2011 can be found on our Media releases page.

The Report on review and development of principles resulted from the consultation on Issues Paper 1: Towards an Australian Government Information Policy. Submissions received in response to Issues Paper 1 can be found on our Consultations page.