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A major, major make over: http://www.parliament.uk It will be interesting to see whether the redesign causes the use of parliamentary content to go up or if there are any changes in the mix of users. In my opinion sites like these need some form of automated and edited e-mail announcement options to provide _timely_ access to governance information (meeting announcements, bill tracking alerts). Access to information has limited political value if you don't know about what you need to know when it would actually matter. For example, my settings at <http://www.sosig.ac.uk/help/custom.html> notified me by e-mail about this related parliaments online report - from the SOSIG site: Technology: Enhancing Representative Democracy in the UK: A Report on the USE of New Communications Technologies in Westminster and the Devolved Legislatures Author: Hansard Society Description: This site provides access to the full text of a report published in 2002 by the Hansard Society. It examines the nature, extent and impact of the usage of IT by MPS in the House of Commons, Welsh Assembly, Scottish Parliament and the Northern Ireland Assembly. Areas covered include: the use of email by politicians, the content design and usage of Internet web sites and the impact of these new technologies on political communication. Users should note that the paper is in pdf format and therefore requires access to an Adobe Acrobat Reader for use. See: http://www.hansard-society.org.uk/Technology.pdf Also from UK parliament itself on July 15, 2002, see "Digital Technology: Working for Parliament and the Public": http://www.parliament.the-stationery-office.co.uk/pa/cm/cminform.htm However, despite the few services I trust the most to send me useful personalized e-mail updates <http://www.sosig.ac.uk>, <http://www.info4local.gov.uk>, and <http://www.developmentgateway.org> I still receive most of the DO- WIRE content directly from subscribers, including: http://www.crossingboundaries.ca/cbv32/index.phtml?section=feature_ego vimpact (See PDF at end of page for survey chart.) (Canada) MPs are missing the web revolution Despite the growing number of Canadians who use the Internet for everyday transactions, communications and information searches, federal MPs are surprisingly absent from the web. Only 58% of Canadian MPs have official websites, according to a survey released by the Ottawa-based Centre for Collaborative Government. The research, which examined how MPs use their websites to connect with constituents, also revealed that only 27% of those with websites used interactive tools such as online feedback forms or surveys that allow citizens to express views directly to their MP through the site. "MPs do not seem to recognize how much these tools are changing the way Canadians make decisions on important issues in their lives,” said Donald Lenihan, Director of the Centre for Collaborative Government. “Citizens, businesses and interest groups all use the technology to get government information and services online, to build networks and coalitions online, and even to lead policy debate online. MPs that don’t take advantage of this run the risk of being left out of some very influential aspects of public life.” Although Canadian federal MPs have developed a significant online presence in recent years, only 174 of 301 MPs had functional websites. Fifty-six additional MPs either had a website under construction or indicated plans to build one. Support staff in 71 MPs’ offices stated they had no plans to develop a website in the near future. ... end clip ... Finally, in case you missed it, here is my 10MB power point presentations on Representative E-Democracy: http://www2.eduskunta.fi/fakta/edustaja/ecprd/repedemclift.ppt That I gave last March at the Parliaments on the Net conference: http://www.mail-archive.com/do-wire@tc.umn.edu/msg00452.html Steven Clift Democracies Online Newswire http://www.e-democracy.org/do ^ ^ ^ ^ Steven L. Clift - W: http://www.publicus.net Minneapolis - - - E: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Minnesota - - - - - T: +1.612.822.8667 USA - - - - - - - ICQ: 13789183 *** Past Messages, Discussion http://e-democracy.org/do *** *** To subscribe, e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] *** *** Message body: SUB DO-WIRE *** *** To UNSUBSCRIBE instead, write: UNSUB DO-WIRE *** *** Please forward this post to others and encourage *** *** them to subscribe to the free DO-WIRE service. *** *** Please send submissions to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] ***
