Endorsing parliamentary openness in Canada's National Action Plan

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    Open Government, Government of Canada. (2016, May 6). Endorsing parliamentary openness in Canada's National Action Plan. Retrieved from http://open.canada.ca/en/idea/endorsing-parliamentary-openness-canadas-national-action-plan
    MLA

    “Endorsing parliamentary openness in Canada's National Action Plan.” Open Government, Government of Canada, 6 May 2016, http://open.canada.ca/en/idea/endorsing-parliamentary-openness-canadas-national-action-plan
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Submitted By
Open North
Votes: 116

Parliaments around the world are adopting open parliament action plans as part of their Open Government National Action Plans. Legislative openness has been called "one of the greatest success stories of the OGP" [2]. The House of Commons of Canada could endorse the principles set out in the Declaration on Parliamentary Openness [3]. Supported by 140 organizations in 75 countries, the Declaration promotes a culture of openness by making parliamentary information transparent, easing access to parliamentary information, and enabling electronic communication of parliamentary information. Endorsing the Declaration would send a clear institutional signal to all Canadians that Parliament is commitment to these principles and opportunities for future collaboration on open parliament initiatives. Working with civil society, the Speaker of the House of Commons of Canada, or another parliamentary body, could explore which parliamentary mechanism would be appropriate to achieve this commitment idea.

References:
[1] Republic of Georgia, Ukraine, Costa Rica, and others.
[2] http://www.opengovpartnership.org/blog/ogp-webmaster/2016/04/19/legislative-openness-one-ogp%E2%80%99s-greatest-success-stories
[3] http://www.openingparliament.org/declaration

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Comments

Submitted by Mckenzie Stowers on February 09, 2023 - 11:01 PM

Dear canada.ca owner, Your posts are always well-supported by research and data.

Submitted by Gillian Vrooma… on May 15, 2016 - 11:33 PM

The Open Data Society of BC supports Open North’s proposal for endorsing parliamentary openness in Canada's National Action Plan. Open parliament will bring a new level of transparency and civic engagement to Canada with opportunities to improve the accessibility of legislative information and data.

Submitted by Will Horter, E… on May 15, 2016 - 8:08 PM

Canada should strengthen its commitment to demcracy by adopting Open North's proposal. Parliamentary openness is a vital component to any Open Government plan. Promoting a culture of openness by making parliamentary information transparent and easy to access is a fundamental building block of democracy

Submitted by Jimmy Ung on May 14, 2016 - 8:05 PM

In my view, Legislative openness means more Transparency, and possibly better Engagement opportunities for Canadians, in addition to reinforcing Institutional Accountability.

Submitted by Kyle Geske, Op… on May 14, 2016 - 7:37 PM

Open Democracy Manitoba supports this idea. We believe that an effective democracy is inclusive, accountable, accessible and responsive. All of these traits can be strengthened by a culture of openness in parliament. We encourage the House of Commons of Canada to endorse the principles set out in the Declaration of Parliamentary Openness. http://opendemocracymanitoba.ca

Submitted by Kelly Carmicha… on May 14, 2016 - 11:52 AM

We encourage this Government to sign the Declaration on Parliamentary Openness and signal to citizens your commitment to open and transparent Government. It's a win-win for all.

Submitted by Marie-Christin… on May 14, 2016 - 3:31 AM

Openness and transparency could help transform our country into a real democracy where the people feel engaged and involved. I support open parliament.

Submitted by Caro Loutfi, A… on May 13, 2016 - 10:37 PM

Promoting a culture of openness by making parliamentary information transparent and easy to access is important for collaborations both in government and with the community sector, particularly in youth-engagement. Open parliament and open data allow for better and more inclusive decision-making which contributes to a more resilient democracy.

Submitted by Meghan Hellstern on May 13, 2016 - 4:54 PM

Any step towards improving access to parliamentary information and data holds the potential to strengthen Canada's democracy by enabling greater collaboration and transparency. Joining with jurisdictions around the world in supporting the Declaration on Parliamentary Openness would provide a concrete step in the right direction and support future movement towards a truly open democracy.

Submitted by Stacey on May 12, 2016 - 1:29 PM

A fantastic initiative to promote our government as being more open, transparent and accessible. This will appeal to citizens and would encourage them to become more engaged.

Submitted by Michael Mulley on May 12, 2016 - 1:03 AM

The Declaration on Parliamentary Openness is a wide-ranging and forward-thinking document, and I believe the House of Commons should be looking at it closely.

Submitted by Robin Wallace on May 11, 2016 - 11:17 PM

Opening access to parliamentary information is imperative for the public to make informed political decisions. I support this initiative!

Submitted by Laura Anthony on May 11, 2016 - 9:24 PM

It's great to see such initiatives developing around the globe. Open Parliament can be one step towards reconnecting citizens back to politics.

Submitted by Stéphane Gagno… on May 11, 2016 - 7:45 PM

The « Open Government Partnership » is one of the most advanced efforts in defining Open Data priorities for Legislative and Decision-Making (LDM). The Parliament of Canada is one of the most advanced in the world in providing these services, and many in academia are convinced Canada should take the lead in helping this global community of practitioners develop and diffuse new best practices and IT solutions for Open Data.

Submitted by Mathieu Vick on May 11, 2016 - 6:23 PM

Great way to strengthen democracy and getting people more engaged in the political process.

Submitted by Akaash Maharaj… on May 10, 2016 - 11:56 PM

Parliamentary openness is a vital component to any Open Government plan. Ultimately, the main agent of government accountability is the legislative branch. However, if they are to be effective, parliaments must embody the very openness they call for in government; otherwise, those calls will at best ring hollow and at worst be self-defeating. As a federal, parliamentary democracy, Canada is in an excellent position to demonstrate international leadership in parliamentary openness.

Submitted by Lisa Cerasuolo on May 10, 2016 - 6:50 PM

Canada is still lagging behind the UK, France and the US in terms of open data initiatives. Having the HoC come out clearly in favour of open data principles and enshrining them can help make Canada a leader on the international scene.

Submitted by Anonymous on May 10, 2016 - 6:16 PM

ParlAmericas, through its Open Parliament Network, supports the idea submitted by Open North to endorse parliamentary openness in Canada’s National Action Plan and the principles set out in the Declaration on Parliamentary Openness. The role of parliament in supporting open government goes beyond enacting legislation on openness and conducting oversight of the National Action Plan, to opening parliament itself. The principles of parliamentary openness aim to create a culture fostering transparency, accountability, citizen participation and parliamentary ethics. Canada has shown leadership in this area through the parliament’s legislative information service PARLINFO, the publication of parliamentarians’ expenditures report, mechanisms for engaging citizens on draft legislation, and its strong Conflict of Interest Code for current and former parliamentarians. Working with civil society and with the support of inter-parliamentary networks, the Speaker of the House of Commons of Canada, or another parliamentary body, could explore which parliamentary mechanism would be appropriate to further implement Canada’s commitment to opening parliament.

Submitted by Risa on May 10, 2016 - 5:36 PM

I believe Canada can be a world leader in Open Data and Open Government, by endorsing Parliamentary Openness we can truly be at the forefront of realizing a living breathing informed and empowered participatory democracy. I'm very excited to see this idea adopted!

Submitted by Jimmy Paquet-C… on May 10, 2016 - 5:33 PM

Open government should be at the center of our democracy system and a major priority for the Canadian Government!