The UK’s maturity level for public sector open data is below the European average, according to the European Data Portal.

Capgemini Invent, which manages the portal, has published the fifth annual Open Data Maturity Report, which gives the UK a rating of 60 per cent, compared with an average figure of 62 per cent for the 31 countries covered and 66 per cent for the 28 members of the EU.

That means the UK came in 20th place out of the 31 countries and was labelled as one of the ‘followers’, way behind ‘trend setters’ like Ireland with 91 per cent, Spain with 90 per cent and France with 89 per cent.

The maturity levels were based around policy, portal and impact. Going into detail, the UK rates better than average for the impact of its open data and was not far off on policy, but the report found shortcomings with the country’s portal and the quality of data.

It explained that data is sometimes published with poor standards and in static ways, such using “nonsensical URLs” or not in machine readable formats. Also, departments have systems of governance that make it hard to understand data ownership and custodianship, with an educational effort needed within government and among the public to encourage the publishing of data.

The report did note some positive signs in the UK, such as the Department for Work and Pensions’ development of the Churchill digital data service.

The value of open data around Europe was estimated at €75.7 billion, an increase of 37 per cent over the €55.2 billion estimated in 2016.

Across Europe, it identified four broad trends. The first was that most countries have been consolidating, rather than increasing, efforts with open data, concentrating on quality and impact instead of making more available.

Secondly, there were more efforts to ensure the value of the data for people who wish to re-use it, largely through taking feedback and engaging more with the relevant communities. Third was in terms of creating more impact through gaining insights into users’ demands and needs.

And finally, governments are looking more towards data sharing with other organisations, while aiming to respect intellectual property and privacy laws, according to the report.

Marit Blank, consultant at Capgemini Invent and author the report, said: “As the Member States’ open data offering matures, we can see their focus shifting towards putting open data re-users at the centre.

“This is a tangible illustration of how the European countries are striving to move beyond the basics to deliver consistent and sustainable value to their citizens.”

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