Tá leagan Gaeilge den mhír seo ar fáil anseo.
The Department of Public Expenditure NDP Delivery and Reform leads policy development and implementation activities in respect of Ireland’s Open Data Initiative across the wider Public Service. The Open Data initiative is a key part of the Public Service’s reform activities. It is closely aligned with the Public Service Reform Programme, the eGovernment Strategy, the Civil Service Renewal Plan, the Public Service Data Strategy, the National Data Infrastructure and the proposed Digital Strategy. It is also a core element of Ireland’s Open Government Partnership (OGP) national Action Plan.
To ensure that the Open Data Initiative is underpinned by strong governance structures, an Open Data Governance Board (ODGB) was established in 2015.
The ODGB is supported by a Secretariat located in the Government Reform Unit in the Department of Public Expenditure NDP Delivery and Reform.
The following governance structure is in place to support the Open Data Initiative:
An Open Data Advisory Group (ODAG) provides technical support to the Open Data Unit and public bodies. This ensures a coherent and consistent approach to the publication of open data across the public sector.
An Open Data Liaison Officers Network (ODLON) publish their organisations data and are supported with training and technical support by the Open Data Unit.
The Open Data Governance Board (Board) is accountable to the Minister for Public Expenditure NDP Delivery and Reform for the success of the Open Data Initiative.
The responsibilities of the ODGB are:
Members of the ODGB have a range of experience and expertise relevant to the development, promotion, and oversight of the National Open Data Strategy, and will be appointed by the Minister for Public Expenditure NDP Delivery and Reform following a recruitment process conducted by the Department of Public Expenditure NDP Delivery Reform. Appointments to the Board shall be for an initial period of 2 years with an option to extend the term of engagement at the Minister’s discretion. Board members will adhere to the Code of Conduct at Appendix 1.
The following table sets out the membership of the Board:
Member |
Professional Position |
Cianán Clancy |
Head of Innovation and Strategy, Independent News and Media, Plc; |
Bahareh Heravi |
Assistant Professor in Information & Communication Studies, UCD; |
Aoife Sexton (Chair) |
Chief Privacy Officer and Chief of Product Innovation at Trūata |
Barry Lowry |
Government Chief Information Officer; |
Adegboyega Ojo |
Full Professor at the School of Public Policy and Administration, Carleton University, Canada. |
Andrew O’Sullivan |
CIO, An Garda Síochána; |
Joan O'Connor |
Non-Executive Director and Consultant |
Martin Quigley |
Director of Data & Analytics, Pobal; |
Neil O'Hare |
Prof of Health Informatics (UCD) and Group Chief Information Officer for the Ireland East Hospital Group; |
Declan Smyth |
Senior Statistician, Central Statistics Office |
The Minister may from time to time appoint one member of the Board to act as its Chairperson.
The Secretariat to the ODGB shall be provided by the Open Data Unit in the Department of Public Expenditure NDP Delivery Reform
All communications relating to the business of the ODGB shall be addressed to the Open Data Unit.
The ODGB shall generally meet quarterly but will meet more frequently if required to monitor the progress of the Initiative. All meetings shall be agreed with the Chair and notified by the Secretariat. Five working days’ notice of a meeting shall be given by the Secretariat. Every notice shall specify the date, time and place of the meeting and the draft agenda. Meetings of the ODGB shall be held in the offices of the Department of Public Expenditure NDP Delivery and Reform unless otherwise agreed with the Chair and notified by the Secretariat.
Documents relating to the business of the meeting will be supplied by the Secretariat. Documents shall normally be circulated five days in advance of a meeting.
The ODGB shall normally reach its decisions by consensus. In the event of the ODGB being unable to arrive at a consensus in respect of any matter, a majority decision shall be taken.
The Secretariat shall ensure that minutes are kept of all meetings. The draft minutes of a meeting will be circulated by the Secretariat to all Board members for comment. Final Board minutes will be published on the open data portal.
Appendix 1
The Code of Practice for the Governance of State Bodies (2016) requires all State bodies to develop and adopt a “Code of Conduct for Members of the State Bodies” binding on all members of the Board of the State Body. Such a code is required to be approved by the board. Certain matters are specifically required to be included in the code.
While the Open Data Governance Board (“ODGB”) is not a statutory state board it would be useful nonetheless to set out in written form the agreed standards, guiding principles and obligations that inform the conduct of Members of the Board.
The provisions of the Code of Conduct will apply to members of the Board in respect of their duties as members of the Board.
Board members will at all times commit to performing their duties to the highest standards of honesty and integrity. The following principles and requirements govern the conduct of Board members in fulfilling their roles:
1. Integrity
Board members will:
2. Information
Board members should:
Note: where queries arise in relation to the release of information under the provisions of the Freedom of Information Act, these are directed to the Freedom of Information Officer of the Department of Public Expenditure NDP Delivery and Reform
3. Appropriate Confidentiality
Board Members should:
4. Obligations
Board Members should:
Note: The Principal Officer in charge of the Open Data Unit should ensure that the Board is supplied in a timely fashion with information which is of a suitable quality to enable Board members to satisfactorily discharge their duties.
5. Loyalty
Board Members should acknowledge their responsibility to be loyal to the ODGB and to be fully committed in all its business activities.
6. Fairness
Board Members should commit to fairness in all ODGB business dealings
7. External Environment
Board Members should:
All board members should be circulated with the code of conduct for their retention. Should the Board contemplate a course of action which a Board Member considers would infringe on their requirements of propriety or regularity or does not represent prudent or economic administration or efficiency or effectiveness or value for money s/he should draw the matter to the attention of the Chairperson and the Secretary General of the Department of Public Expenditure NDP Delivery and Reform.
In the event that the concern of the Board member are not addressed, the Board member may request that their concerns are formally recorded in the minutes of a Board meeting.
The Open Data Unit values your feedback, questions or comments. We are always delighted to hear from you.