Media Release - Right to Know Week 2015

NSW Information Commissioner asks agencies to switch on Open Government during Right to Know Week (28 Sept to 4 Oct 2015)

To celebrate Right to Know Week 2015 the NSW Information Commissioner Elizabeth Tydd is leading a proactive campaign to encourage public sector agencies, universities and regional councils to champion open government and spread the message of proactive release of information to their stakeholders and communities.

“I am pleased to launch NSW’s Right to Know Week campaign for 2015. Thank you to all our Champions, which include over 30 agencies, councils and universities, who have joined us this year in promoting and supporting the Right to Know message,” said Ms Tydd.

Right to Know Week aims to promote the legally enforceable right to access government held information in NSW and the commitment of public sector agencies to the principles of open government and information sharing.

The themes for this year’s campaign are:

• “Switch on open government in NSW”– promoting a representative government that is transparent, accessible and responsive to its citizens.
• “You have a right to know” – citizens have a legally enforceable right to access most information held by NSW government and agencies.

To commence Right to Know Week, Ms Tydd will lead “Switch on Open Government in NSW”, a thought leadership event to be held on 29 September, where guests including the Hon. Victor Dominello MP, Minister for Innovation and Better Regulation and NSW Customer Service Commissioner Mr Michael Pratt will examine the barriers to information sharing and showcase tangible manifestations of Open Government in achieving better service delivery through information access, increased accountability, and increased citizen input to government service delivery and policy development.

“I believe Open Government to be a tangible and consistent commitment by government to increase access to information, engage with citizens and be accountable. The thought leadership event will enable public sector representatives to freely consider and discuss the way forward for Open Government in NSW,” said Ms Tydd.

“I am committed to the principles of Open Government and I will continue to work closely with NSW public sector agencies to promote a representative government that is transparent, accessible and responsive to its citizens. In particular this work will activate NSW citizens’ rights under the Government Information (Public Access) Act 2009 (GIPA Act) to participate in government decision-making and policy development.”

For more information about Right to Know Week 2015 please visit www.ipc.nsw.gov.au and follow us on Twitter #RTK2015 for current updates.

To request an interview with Ms Tydd please contact Kate Jobling, (02) 8071 7018 or
0435 961 691.