22 July 2002

In the Service of Democracy

By Robin Cook MP, Leader of the House of Commons, President of the Council

Readers of eGov monitor Weekly will be very aware of the influence the publication has in engaging those with an interest in the efficient running of Government and politics.

I want to build on this success by sharing as much of my Modernisation of Parliament agenda with as many people as possible. Taking eGov monitor as a benchmark of how to engage stakeholders in this debate, on Thursday I re-launched my department's website www.privycouncil.gov.uk which includes a number of new features. It is to the credit of my office and the team at XM London, that we have achieved a professional redesign so that those members of the public with an interest in my responsibilities, both as Leader of the House of Commons and President of the Privy Council, should now find it easier to navigate the site.

This is an ideal moment to display our updated website, coming so close to what I hope will be publication of the next report of the Modernisation Select Committee before the House rises.

We should do more than aim to change the working practices of the House of Commons - we need to investigate other ways of engaging the electorate in democracy generally. One of the means of doing this is by considering ways of strengthening the democratic process by engaging the public and their elected representatives through the use of the internet and other electronic means. I should however, emphasise that our policy remains democracy, not technology.

On Tuesday, the new Cabinet Committee on e-democracy which I chair, launched a consultation document and a new e-democracy website www.edemocracy.gov.uk I hope that eGov monitor will in some way be able to influence the outcome of this exercise which takes two strands, namely e-participation and e-voting:

E-participation. Democracy should involve more than simply participating in elections once every four or five years. ICT will open new channels for participation in the democratic process between elections by allowing greater consultation and dialogue between government and voters, greater communication between individuals and their MPs and new types of community activity.

E-voting. In an era when increasing numbers of people are using a variety of technology in the course of their working and home lives, the act of voting with a pencil in a draughty church hall appears increasingly anachronistic. It is important that the act of voting is regarded as relevant and the Government is exploring ways of modernising the mechanisms of voting, making greater use of the internet, televisions or phones. The aim is to make voting straightforward and readily accessible to all electors given today's lifestyles and the work and family commitments that many people have.

My department's website will further help communicate key messages on reform of the working practices of MPs to as many members of the public as possible. It is only by selling these changes to the public that we will engage them in the political process. The new website has a number of new features including:

Leader of the House of Commons

Parliamentary Reform - outlines my work on Commons modernisation, both within the Select Committee and the new Cabinet Committee - MISC21. We were elected with a mandate to modernise. This commitment is clear and comprehensive and includes unfinished work on Reform of the House of Lords, which was recently referred to a Joint Committee of both Houses of Parliament. The Committee have recently stated that the first strand of their recommendations will be published in the autumn - I very much look forward to their report.

News - includes all the key announcements on Parliamentary reform as they happen, information on forthcoming business in the Commons, a Special Feature section which will provide the media with an opportunity of reporting earlier in the day the intention of a Minister to make a Statement to the House of Commons. The site will also include the exchanges (sometimes colourful) on the floor of the House during the Business Statement, details of my weekly Thursday briefings with Parliamentary Lobby journalists, any statements I gave to the House, opening remarks from debates and for the first time the parliamentary questions that I answer.

President of the Privy Council

Privy Council - For the first time we will make public in advance the dates on which the Privy Council meets, together with the annual appointments by HM The Queen of High Sheriffs.

Judicial Committee - For the first time we will make public the date of a Judicial Committee hearing, allowing interested individuals to attend the Court in Downing Street. The work of the Judicial Committee, which I have Ministerial responsibility for, often goes unreported yet it is the final Court of appeal for many in the Commonwealth.

Department

Transparency is important. My private office has, with the launch of this website, adopted the six Service First targets common across all central Government departments in service delivery standards. Responding to parliamentary questions from MPs is important - I have therefore set my department a seventh target, covering the time of our responses to parliamentary questions tabled by MPs.