Leading economist Margaret Cuthbert draws on 15 years of research on Scottish public procurement in making the case that procurement in Scotland is shrouded in secrecy and wide-ranging reforms are needed to ensure transparency and accountability.

This Common Weal note examines how an Open Government approach to Public Finance data can improve its usability and transparency for citizens.

― There are two primary issues with data for the public and for transparency – trust and usability. The former of these is crucial.

― Making numbers have meaning for people should be the primary public-facing aim of public data. But this should also carry an additional element – regular work should be done to systematically identify what information the public wants from public data.

Transparency on the influences and lobbyists upon the Scottish government and MSPs needs to be strengthened.