Google (NASDAQ: GOOG) is one of 26 companies participating in an U.K. government initiative to give British consumers access to the personal data companies collect on them electronic format.

The U.K. government announced the initiative, dubbed midata, on Nov. 3. Edward Davey, the minister for employment relations, consumer and postal affairs, said in a blog post that the government hopes "individuals will be able to use this data to gain an insight into their own behavior, make more informed choices and better decisions, to manage their affairs more efficiently, and to obtain the products and services that best meet their needs."

Other companies participating include Visa and MasterCard.

If the intent of the effort is to create greater transparency, however, Google may not have exactly gotten into the spirit of it. Its U.K. press office, when asked what data the company will make available to consumers under the midata initiative, referred inquiries to the government and provided a link to "dataliberation.org."

Pressed for further details, Google spokesman Hem Raheja said that "unfortunately, Google does not have any comment on the initiative beyond this."

For more:
- go to Nov. 3 U.K. Department for Business Innovation & Skills press release on midata
- read Edward Davey's blog on midata

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