Annual plan published shows the Geospatial Commission’s progress
on delivering the UK’s Geospatial Strategy. Location data ethics
policy paper also published.
Rolling out the National Underground Assets Register, piloting
public sector access to commercial satellite data and publishing
expert guidance on investing in location data are among the key
priorities for the Geospatial Commission over the next year.
The Geospatial Commission
today (22 June) published its plan for 2022/23,which sets out
priorities for the coming year and reflects on the growing use of
location data as a strategic national asset to support levelling
up, help meet net zero targets and drive science and technology
innovation.
The Geospatial Commission’s priorities for the coming year are:
-
Continuing to rollout the National Underground Assets
Register(NUAR) to build a shared, national underground
utilities data asset to improve safe digging and UK-wide
infrastructure delivery, realising at least £345 million of
economic value each year
-
Piloting public sector access to commercial satellite
data, to better understand whether collective access
will help overcome barriers to the wider public sector adoption
of Earth Observation data
-
Publishing guidance about how to make an effective case
for investing in location data, ensuring that its full
value is well understood, assessed, and articulated
The publication also highlights the progress made towards the
2020 UK Geospatial
Strategy over the last year, including:
-
Core public sector data: We undertook the
first coordinated
assessmentof the UK’s geospatial data assets against FAIR
data principles, alongside our Partner Bodies
-
Transport location data: We published Positioning the UK in
the Fast Lane, supported innovative
businesses to meet key public sector transport data
challenges and launched a project
to explore how location data can support delivery of electric
vehicle chargepoints
-
Land use data: We initiated a National Land Data
Programme to demonstrate the value of enhancing the UK’s
spatial modelling capability to inform land use scenario
planning
-
Property data: We announced an intention to
legislate to expand access to property attribute data held by
the Valuation Office Agency
Minister of State for the Cabinet Office, CBE said:
Location data is a powerful strategic national asset,
underpinning decisions about how we invest to level up, how we
distribute resources to improve public health and how we speed up
our journey to decarbonisation.
Understanding how this data can be used and deployed will be
integral to driving scientific innovation, sustainability and
economic growth across the UK.
The Geospatial Commission
also published a location data ethics policy paper, as
promised in the UK’s Geospatial Strategy. This proposes an
ABC - Accountability, Bias and Clarity - as the building blocks
for good governance of location data use, to maximise public
trust and confidence in the use, sharing and reuse of location
data.
Independent Commissioner of the Geospatial Commission and Interim
Chair of the Centre for Data Ethics and Innovation, Edwina Dunn
OBE said:
Location data is a rich and powerful source of insight and input
to AI and data-led decision making. As geographic data fuels
innovation and improves our everyday lives, we must not forget
that these significant economic, social and environmental
benefits are only made possible with the trust and understanding
of the UK public.
The Geospatial Commission’s policy paper is the culmination of
months of engagement across the geospatial landscape. It proposes
three shared values - Accountability, Bias and Clarity - all
designed to optimise the benefits but safeguard public trust and
confidence.
