WIREDGOV

A new agreement to help improve the use of mapping information by over 70 public bodies in Scotland has been announced.

Finance Secretary John Swinney was joined in Edinburgh by Iain Wright, UK Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Communitites and Local Government to sign the agreement between the Scottish Government and Ordnance Survey.

The new agreement allows Scottish councils, government departments and other public bodies to use Ordnance Survey's mapping information for a wide variety of purposes, and to exchange map-based information about their work. It will result in savings across Scotland's public sector.

Mr Swinney said:

"This is a good example of co-operation between two government departments - the Scottish Government and Ordnance Survey. It shows how the Scottish public sector, acting together, can improve the way that public services are provided to the people of Scotland.

"Ordnance Survey maps are used widely by the Scottish public sector and their quality is beyond doubt. This Agreement marks a major step forward and will mean much greater flexibility of use of geographic information, and increased use of Ordnance Survey's excellent data."

The new agreement will:

• Make it easier for public bodies to display their information publicly on websites, notice boards and in other ways
• Help to provide the maps for e-Planning - the new Scottish Government system for online planning permission applications
• Allow members to share their data freely with all other members of the Agreement

The One Scotland Mapping Agreement replaces two previous GB-level Agreements - the local government Mapping Services Agreement and the Pan Government Agreement for central government.

The Agreement describes how Ordnance Survey will supply cartographic and related data to meet the needs of the devolved administration in Scotland, aiming to make more systematic and effective use of geographic information in the development and delivery of policy in services to the benefit of people in Scotland.

e-Planning is the new Scottish Government planning system for online application - launched at a planning summit on April 29.

Related Information

http://www.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/oswebsite/