Open Government Principles

Open Government involves the opening-up of government processes, proceedings, documents and data for public scrutiny and involvement, and is now considered a fundamental element of a democratic society.
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Open by Design Principles

Information Commissioners and Ombudsmen across Australia oversight and promote citizens’ rights to access government-held information and have powers to review agency decisions under the applicable right to information (RTI) legislation. Beyond formal rights of access, the proactive disclosure of government-held information promotes open government and advances our system of representative democracy i.

All Australian Governments (Commonwealth, State, Territory, and Local) and public institutions are strongly encouraged to commit to being Open by Design by building a culture of transparency and by prioritising, promoting and resourcing proactive disclosure.

These principles recognise that:

  1. information held by government and public institutions is a public resource and, to the greatest extent possible, should be published promptly and proactively at the lowest reasonable cost, without the need for a formal access request, and
  2. a culture of transparency within government is everyone’s responsibility requiring action by all public sector leaders and officers to encourage and support the proactive disclosure of information, and
  3. appropriate, prompt and proactive disclosure of government-held information:
  • informs community – proactive disclosure leads to a more informed community, and awareness raising of government and public institutions’ strategic intentions and initiatives, driving innovation and improving standards. Transparent and coherent public communication can also address misinformation
  • increases participation and enhances decision-making – proactive disclosure increases citizen participation in government processes and promotes better informed decision-making through increased scrutiny, discussion, comment and review of government and public institutions’ decisions
  • builds trust and confidence – proactive disclosure enhances public sector accountability and integrity, builds public trust and confidence in decision-making by government and public institutions and strengthens principles of liberal democracy
  • improves service delivery – proactive disclosure improves service delivery by providing access to information faster and more easily than formal access regimes, providing the opportunity to decide when and how information is provided, and to contextualise and explain information
  • is required or permitted by law – proactive disclosure is mandated, permitted, or protected by law in all Australian States and Territories and the Commonwealthii
  • improves efficiency – proactive disclosure reduces the administrative burden on departments and agencies and the need for citizens to make a formal information access request.

Australian Information Commissioners and Ombudsmen recommend that public sector agenciesiii:

  1. The principles were developed to fulfil the Open by Design commitment under consideration for inclusion in Australia’s Third Open Government National Action Plan 2021-2022. The principles are consistent with the 28 June 2021 resolution of the International Conference of Information Commissioners to support the proactive publication of information relating to the COVID-19 pandemic.
  2. Table A outlines the relevant proactive disclosure legislative provisions and summarises the information that must or may be made publicly available under them.
  3. “Public sector agencies” means any entity, office or body defined as an “agency" under the applicable RTI legislation.

Documents

Open by Design - FOI Act and Information Release in WA

This publication is designed to assist and encourage agencies to develop appropriate Open by Design policies and processes to facilitate effective information release beyond the formal access procedures outlined in the Freedom of Information Act 1992.

How does Open Government relate to the FOI Act?

A significant component of Open Government is legislation to enshrine a person’s right to access information and to require agencies to assist the public in that process. The public expects government decision-making to be open, transparent and accountable and the Freedom of Information Act 1992 (WA) (the FOI Act) represents part of WA Parliament’s commitment to realising that expectation.

In section 3 of the FOI Act, Parliament makes it clear that the objects of the Act are to:

  • enable the public to participate more effectively in governing the State, and
  • to make the persons and bodies that are responsible for State and local government more accountable to the public.

The Supreme Court of Western Australia noted in Water Corporation v McKay [2010] WASC 210 per Martin J at paragraph 38 that the objects of the FOI Act ‘form the essential bedrock of open, democratic government whose policy importance cannot be overstated’.

Open Government Partnership and National Action Plans

The multilateral Open Government Partnership (OGP) was created to secure commitments from governments to promote transparency, empower citizens, fight corruption, and harness technologies to strengthen governance. The Open Government Partnership (OGP) includes 77 countries and 106 local governments – representing more than two billion people – and thousands of civil society organizations.

Australia became a member of the Open Government Partnership in 2015. As an OGP member, Australia is required to produce a national action plan that sets out commitments that the government will deliver within a 2- or 4-year timeframe.

Australia’s Open Government National Action Plan 2024-2025

The third Open Government National Action Plan released in December 2023, includes the following commitments:

  • Create transparency in the use of automated decision making and responsible use of artificial intelligence
  • Improve public participation of youth in government
  • Further strengthen integrity within the Commonwealth public sector
  • Build a pathway towards a beneficial ownership register
  • Increase accountability and transparency in procurements and grants
  • Improve protections for public sector whistleblowers
  • Strengthen transparency in political donations and political advertising
  • Improve media literacy in culturally and linguistically diverse communities, including to counter the impacts of mis- and dis-information

These commitments were chosen by Australia’s Open Government Forum on the basis that, across all 30 topics considered, they are the areas upon which the Forum’s monitoring role will have the greatest impact. They will be implemented across 6 different ministerial portfolios, and the Forum will meet in 2024 and 2025 to monitor their implementation.

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