Former senior civil servant Andrew Stott, who was the government’s first director for digital engagement, has suggested that the civil service may find ways to obstruct coalition plans to provide data for re-use by members of the public.

According to news website UKauthorITy.com, Stott told an open data event in Warsaw last month that there “is a real risk of the empire striking back” on open data, and suggested a range of ways in which officials could thwart government plans. These include changing the definition of open data, requiring data users to register on websites, or delaying data releases until new data-gathering systems are in place.

“We’re seeing a move from Bureaucrat 1.0 – the straight ‘No Minister’ – to Bureaucrat 2.0,” he is reported to have said. “That’s the one who says ‘Yes Minister’ but then quietly fails to execute the plan.”

Stott is said to have warned that open data campaigners will need to “track performance like hawks” and “challenge deficiencies,” in the data released by government. He left the civil service last year, and is on the Cabinet Office’s transparency board.

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Written by CSW