Standards for Intelligent Transparency
Statistics and data should serve the public good. They should allow individuals to reach informed decisions, answer important questions and provide a mechanism for holding government to account.
Statistics and data also underpin successful implementation of government policies, and evaluation of the effectiveness of policy decisions.
‘Intelligent transparency’ ensures public understanding of, and confidence in, numbers used by governments. It involves proactively taking an open, clear, and accessible approach to the release and use of data and statistics so that they can be easily accessed, scrutinised and used appropriately.
Intelligent transparency should be the default approach to communicating all statistics, data, and wider analysis. Everyone in government has an important role to play in achieving this.
To support public confidence in the use of data, statistics, and analysis, all public bodies, including official statistics producer organisations, should meet the following Standards for Intelligent Transparency.
Equality of access
Make data used by government in the public domain available to all in an accessible and timely way, including for example:
- Figures quoted by ministers in parliaments or the media
- Figures used in government publications such as press releases, blogs, and infographics
Enhancing understanding
Enhance public understanding of societal and economic issues, including the impacts of policy, by:
- Citing sources for figures used publicly
- Clearly communicating an appropriate explanation of context, including strengths and limitations, alongside the figures
- Taking care to avoid the selective use of data or use of data without appropriate context which could lead to its misinterpretation
Independent decision making and leadership
Make decisions about the publication of statistics and data, such as content and timing, independently of political influence and policy processes by:
- Authorising analytical leaders to make decisions about the publication of statistics and data through the endorsement of senior leaders, including permanent secretaries and ministers
- Embedding intelligent transparency as widely as possible within the organisation
Further information
More information on meeting these standards is given in OSR’s regulatory guidance on intelligent transparency and FAQs.
Back to top