UK Parliament / Open data

Statistics and Registration Service Bill

That may be, but the point that I am trying to make is that this particular drafting is Whitehall-centric. It is about how Whitehall will be"““informing the public about social and economic matters, and…assisting in the development of…public policy.””" That is not a reference to the right hon. Gentleman’s local community, to Cardiff city council, but to those who are in charge of public policy. My point is that there is a much wider public interest—that of all of us who are citizens in an informed democracy. We have the right to accurate information and independent, rigorous and truthful statistics. If the public are to measure the performance of those who govern them, it is essential that statistics—and the public good—be defined more widely. Statistics belong to all of us, not simply to Whitehall or Ministers.
Type
Proceeding contribution
Reference
458 c175 
Session
2006-07
Chamber / Committee
House of Commons chamber
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