NSW Parliament today approved the Data Sharing (Government Sector) Bill 2015 to enable data sharing across government agencies and support the functioning of the NSW Data Analytics Centre (DAC).
Minister for Innovation and Better Regulation Victor Dominello said the DAC is the first of its kind in Australia and will use whole-of-government data for strategic decision making.
“The bill gives the DAC greater teeth by enabling the Minister to, in certain circumstances, require NSW Government agencies and local councils to provide data to the DAC within 14 days,” he said.
The DAC is being developed within the Department of Finance, Services and Innovation. Work is already underway on the first of nine priority projects, to improve vocational education training courses in NSW by using data to better target the needs of business and to improve employment outcomes for job seekers.
Dr Ian Oppermann, former CSIRO Director of Digital Productivity Division, has been appointed as expert adviser to lead the development phase of the DAC.
“Dr Oppermann has over 20 years’ experience in the ICT sector holding senior management roles in Europe and Australia, and has a reputation for delivering outcomes,” Mr Dominello said.
The ongoing protection of privacy and safety of an individual’s personal information is of utmost importance to the government. The bill works within the existing privacy landscape in NSW, including the Privacy and Personal Information Protection Act for NSW agencies that collect, publish and provide access to data.
Find out more about the DAC at www.finance.nsw.gov.au/ICT
