ICO to introduce revised model publication scheme in April 2013

The information that public authorities are required to release proactively as part of their publication scheme is to be changed next April, the Information Commissioner’s Office has announced.

However, the sector-specific ‘definition document’ for local government – guidance that sets out what local authorities should release – could be revised and re-issued earlier in 2013.

The ICO argued that a new Model Publication Scheme was needed to reflect advances made in central and local government on transparency.

“This includes releasing information in reusable formats and reflecting the open data agenda including the Open Government Licence and planned changes to the Freedom of Information Act 2000 to be brought in through the Protection of Freedoms Act,” the watchdog said.

The existing Model Publication Scheme came into effect on 1 January 2009 and there are currently 33 definition documents covering a range of different sectors.

A staged action plan issued today by the ICO sets out how the new scheme, definition documents and guidance will be developed.

The watchdog said it would review and update all sector definition documents. “Each document will cover a separate sector, from Central Government Departments to schools, in England, Wales and Northern Ireland,” it added.

The definition document for principal local authorities will – alongside that for central government – be reviewed and, where appropriate, updated in the short term, between April and June 2012.

The action plan said the Information Commissioner, Christopher Graham, would share the documents with key stakeholders in each sector and would expect, “in the absence of specific and legitimate representations”, implementation within six months of finalising the relevant new definition documents.

The ICO said updates for health sector bodies – due to the Health and Social Care Act – and police authorities – with the introduction of Police and Crime Commissioners as their replacement – would be “slightly longer term”, although kept under close review.

The watchdog revealed that it would, as part of its action plan, produce initial guidance on ‘open data’ and ‘datasets’.

The Commissioner will also review and where appropriate update guidance on using the definition documents, charging for information in a publication scheme, and what should be published (minutes and agendas).

Aspects of the action plan may change pending the outcome of the current post-legislative scrutiny of freedom of information, the ICO warned.

The new model publication scheme will be introduced on 1 April 2013. The ICO said this timeline would allow authorities appropriate time to understand the requirements that the new initiatives would place upon them and to allow for suitable implementation measures to bed in.

Christopher Graham said: “Over the past year the theme of greater transparency and accountability has become of central importance. This has impacted on the information public authorities should proactively release as part of their publication schemes.

“Open and reusable data sets will be increasingly significant to the way public authorities operate and it is vital that these initiatives to improve transparency are reflected in our future guidance.”   

The action plan was developed with feedback from authorities, comments made in a series of workshops, and suggestions from the public as part of the ICO’s Tell Me More campaign.