Government agencies use public money to create web content and then prevent people from using it. Wouldn’t it make sense to put content created by public dollars in the public domain?
I find this on Local and Central government websites. Here’s an example from Tenancy Services:
Except where stated otherwise, this website and the information on it is protected by Crown copyright.
You may reproduce information on this site for personal or non-commercial use without formal permission or charge as long as you clearly indicate that the website of Tenancy Services is the source of the information, any disclaimers applying to the information are reproduced, and that the material is not sold or used in an inappropriate or misleading context having regard to the nature of the material.
Tenancy Services holds copyright or licence rights to all images and trademarks on this website, including the Tenancy Services logo. Images and trademarks on this site must not be used or reproduced for any purpose, including personal or educational use, unless the written permission of Tenancy Services has been obtained.
I don’t think we have a precedent for that with anything else govt owns as an entity though (buildings, revenue, rights, royalties).
The govt owns these things as an entity for the benefit of the population. And in this case they say the entire population can freely use the info as long as they say what it is. So that seems like full benefit to me.