by Angela Guess
Kathleen Hall of Computer Weekly reports, “The [British] government recently published its white paper on open data, with the newly-created Open Data User Group having met to discuss the next phase. But despite these moves, campaigners are worried that plans to create a £16bn stimulus to the economy through open data are being derailed. Crucial to open data campaigners is the release of core government datasets, the information which links all other data together in a meaningful way – such as the Ordnance Survey’s postal address register.”
Hall goes on, “Chris Taggart, CEO and co-founder of digital business OpenCorporates, praised government moves to release a white paper, but said there was a notable gap in its failure to address the issue of core dataset releases. ’This issue has not been tackled and hasn’t really progressed since the November statement,’ he said. ‘We were hoping to see the next bit opened up. Without the core reference data we can’t make connection between things, all other data depends on it. Without access to that, we won’t see the innovation that was promised. We won’t see the transformation of government data that we want and have the opportunity to have.’ Taggart says there are three main core datasets, which include: the full release of Companies House information; the Ordnance Survey address database and the Post Office postcode address database.”
