Greater availability and use of public sector data has the potential to bring significant benefits to the community, such as improved government policy and service delivery, more transparency, and improved accountability.

While the Business Council supports greater use and availability of public sector data, it must be accompanied by proportionate controls to manage the risk of inappropriate collection, sharing or use of data.

The development of Data Sharing and Release Legislation provides an opportunity to address barriers to greater use and availability of public sector data, including complex secrecy provisions, a lack of common protocols for data sharing, and a risk-averse culture.

Data sharing and release raise many complex issues, and discussions about best practice use of data are still evolving. The Business Council is willing to work closely with government and other interested parties to work through these issues.

Response to Data Sharing and Release Legislation issues paper