Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Lord Maude of Horsham and James Clappison

Wednesday 2nd November 2011 Commons Chamber

[Mr James Clappison (Hertsmere) (Con)]

4. What assessment he has made of the potential role of the open government partnership in promoting openness and transparency.

[The Minister for the Cabinet Office and Paymaster General (Mr Francis Maude)]

Transparency is an idea whose time has come. It makes choice possible, it encourages accountability, and it can change lives. The United Kingdom Government are already the world leader in transparency, and the open government partnership will enable those huge benefits to be promoted to many other countries around the world.

[Mr Clappison]

The open government partnership is an interesting and exciting concept. Can my right hon. Friend tell me the key UK transparency commitments within it?

[Mr Maude]

All the principles underlying the partnership reflect things that we have already introduced: openness about Government spending, openness about salaries, openness about the internal workings of government, and an increase in the publication of outcome data about the way in which public services operate. We have said that commitment to and implementation of the principles of the open government partnership will increasingly be a material factor in decisions by the Department for International Development about where to place direct budget support for developing country Governments.