Open access

We welcome this opportunity to respond to the Productivity Commission Data Availability and Use Issues Paper. Library and information professionals work with data every day: we capture data; we help store data and make it accessible; we help make data discoverable; we help others find the data they need; we contribute to data policy discussions.

The Australian Library and Information Association (ALIA) believes that library and information services have particular responsibilities in supporting and sustaining the free flow of information and ideas.

The Australian Library and Information Association (ALIA) welcomes the federal government’s commitment to open government policies and freedom of information and agrees that public sector information should be recognised as a national resource to be developed and preserved in the public interest. ALIA asserts that this information should be publicly available except where restricted by law, privacy considerations or is business in confidence.

The Australian Library and Information Association (ALIA) promotes the free flow of information and ideas through open access to recorded knowledge, information and creative works. This is a core value of the Association.