TORONTO, ONTARIO -- (Marketwire) -- 03/11/13 -- The Honourable Tony Clement, President of the Treasury Board, today hosted a round-table consultation in Toronto with high tech innovators and municipal Open Data leaders on the relaunch of the Government of Canada's Open Data Portal.

"Our Government is getting set to unveil a next-generation portal and we are seeking input from leading Open Data advocates, users and entrepreneurs in Toronto about what tools they need to capitalize on this exciting resource," said Minister Clement. "Open Data is about using new and emerging technologies to access raw, previously unavailable government data and reimagine it in ways that spur innovation and improve peoples' lives. We want to make sure innovators in Toronto and elsewhere have what they need to leverage this opportunity. "

The Toronto round table is the first in a series of cross-country consultations with Canadians, tech innovators and the Open Data community about the kinds of features and content they would like to see on the new Open Data Portal set to launch later this year. The round tables are hosted by the Government of Canada and moderated by well-known Open Government expert, David Eaves.

"The opportunity for using Open Data portals to connect Canadians with their government is an extraordinary step forward in our society," said Richard Pietro, a founding member of the Toronto-based civic engagement organization, CitizenBridge. "Canadians want to be more involved in their government. Every day they are dedicating countless hours toward building apps, websites and platforms that will bring them closer to achieving that goal... and I believe that Open Data portals are one way the Government can help them."

In the last year, some 273,000 datasets from 22 departments and agencies have been released and are free to upload through the Government of Canada's Open Data Portal. The Portal, which will use an open source code platform, will feature better search capabilities, more Web 2.0 features and interactive tools.

As outlined by the Prime Minister, the Government of Canada remains focused on what Canadians care most about: their families, the safety of our streets and communities, their pride in being a citizen of this country and their personal financial security.

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