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Press releases 2008 -

OFT welcomes government review of public sector information

78/08    25 June 2008

The OFT welcomes the announcement today that the government is to review the access to information for commercial use by Trading Funds organisations such as Ordnance Survey and the UK Hydrographic Office.

The OFT market study on the commercial use of public information found that more competition in public sector information could benefit the UK economy by around £1 billion a year. The study, which was published in December 2006, recommended that public sector information holders (PSIHs) should:

  • make as much public sector information available as possible for commercial use/re-use
  • ensure that businesses have access to public sector information at the earliest point that it is useful to them
  • provide access to information where the PSIH is the only supplier on an equal basis to all businesses and the PSIH itself, and
  • use proportionate cost-related pricing and account separately for their monopoly activities and their value-added activities so that PSIH's can demonstrate that they are providing and pricing information fairly and in a non-discriminatory manner.

Advice from the Treasury will be provided to the Chief Secretary to the Treasury Yvette Cooper and Business Minister Shriti Vadera in the autumn.

NOTES

1. The OFT's market study report on the Commercial Use of Public Information (CUPI) was published in December 2006 and can be found in the market study area of this website.

2. The Government's initial substantive response to the CUPI report can be found on the BERR website.

3. A Trading Fund is a government department, executive agency or part of a department, established as such by a Trading Fund Order made under the Government Trading Funds Act 1973. A Trading Fund has authority to use its receipts to meet its outgoings.

4. See the announcement on the BERR website.




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