Opening up Parliament to social media

From Metro.co.uk

There was an unusual debate in Parliament today.  It was about allowing MPs to use 'electronic devices' in the Chamber - in essence Blackberries and IPads. Underlying the premise of the debate, was the right of MPs to tweet and post on Facebook in the Commons Chamber and in Committee.


Although a number of MPs were against the change, I was completely in favour for a number of reasons.

First, as Chris Bryant Labour MP noted, in the Fourteenth Century, Parliamentary proceedings were entirely in secret.  It took centuries for Parliament to become accessible to the public:

"I should also say that although he has been much misquoted, John Bright, the Liberal Member of Parliament, did not say that we—the House of Commons—were the mother of Parliaments; he said that England is the mother of Parliaments. That is because he believed—this is an important point—that we had to be transformed as history is transformed. I would say that Parliament has always been bad at opening itself up to the public. Indeed, in 1376 we first decided that we would take an oath of secrecy to ensure that nobody outside this place knew what was going on here. It took many centuries to get rid of that oath of secrecy, which was why John Wilkes ended up being expelled from the House of Commons on four occasions and had to be re-elected before eventually being allowed to publish what went on this House.  It is not a question of being dinosaurs or anything else; it is about opening Parliament up to the wider world around us, so that people can understand everything that goes on here. It is not for our convenience, but for our constituents’ convenience. The world has changed. When I was first elected in 2001, the vast majority of my constituents got in touch with me by coming to a constituency surgery. Now the vast majority get in touch by Facebook, Twitter, e-mail and, sometimes, text messages. We should make that more possible for our constituents, not more difficult."


Parliament has always resisted change when it come to broadcasting.  It opposed radio, and then Television - but eventually agreed to both. Social media is just the next stage in the broadcasting revolution - with one difference.  Instead of MPs relying on outside broadcasters to report proceedings, MPs are now able to report their own activities, to their constituents and public at large.

Second, the means in which constituents contact their MPs has dramatically changed in the past few years.  There has been a huge shift from paper to electronic mail, meaning that Blackberries and other smartphones have almost become a necessity - especially because of the sheer volume of correspondence. By liberalising the use of mobile technology, Parliament is simply reflecting changing times.

P.S.  A majority of MPs voted in favour of more liberal use of mobile technology in the Chamber:


That this House notes the Third Report from the Procedure Committee on Use of hand-held electronic devices in the Chamber and committees, HC 889; and resolves that hand-held devices (not laptops) may be used in the Chamber, provided that they are silent, and used in a way that does not impair decorum, that Members making speeches in the Chamber or in committee may refer to electronic devices in place of paper speaking notes and that electronic devices, including laptops, may be used silently in committee meetings, including select committees.