First Province to Engage the Public to Improve Access to Open Data

May 1, 2015 9:30 A.M.

As part of its Open Government initiative, Ontario is the first province to post a draft Open Data Directive for public feedback.

Ontario’s Open Data Directive aims to make data that the government collects and generates on topics, like school enrollment and traffic volume on provincial highways, open to the public. Open data does not contain personal or confidential information. Public uses for this data could include building maps, apps and models that can help Ontario tackle gridlock or make health care service options more accessible.

Ontario is sharing the draft directive to make sure it reflects the needs and input of Ontarians. The directive will instruct Ontario ministries and provincial agencies to make data public, unless it is exempted for privacy, legal, security or commercially sensitive reasons. Feedback from the public will be used to help shape the final directive, which will be submitted for government approval in Fall 2015 and then posted on Ontario.ca.

Also, as part of Ontario’s commitment to being the most open and transparent government in Canada, the province has published 185 new data sets, nearly doubling the data sets available online.

Creating a more open and transparent government is part of the government’s economic plan for Ontario. The four-part plan is building Ontario up by investing in people’s talents and skills, building new public infrastructure like roads and transit, creating a dynamic, innovative environment where business thrives, and building a secure savings plan.

QUOTES

” We are increasing access to government data to help businesses grow, spur innovation and solve problems that affect people in their everyday lives. This is all part of Ontario’s commitment to be the most open and transparent government in the country. That’s why we have released almost 400 data sets to-date, and have posted our draft Open Data Directive online for public feedback.”
– Deb Matthews
President of the Treasury Board

QUICK FACTS

• The draft Open Data Directive responds to some of the recommendations made by the Open Government Engagement Team, led by Don Lenihan, on how Ontario can be more open and transparent.
• In April 2014, Ontario launched a data inventory for public voting. Six of the top 25 most-voted data sets are now online and work continues to open the most popular data sets.
• Public Sector Salary Disclosure data was the number one-voted data set and is now available in a machine-readable format for the first time.
• Nearly 400 open data sets are now available on Ontario’s Open Data Catalogue.

LEARN MORE

• Explore Ontario’s open data sets.
• Have your say on Ontario’s draft Open Data Directive