Bercow must lift the ban on bloggers taking notes in Parliament

In many ways, Parliament represents all that is best about Britain.   Compared to almost every other deliberative legislature in the world, the quality of debate and opportunity for Members of Parliament to discuss issues is unrivalled.   Even the swiftest of glances at the controlled and staged nature of the United States House of Representatives or European Parliament with their measly time limits on contributions and lack of emotion proves that.

It may not be the most prescient point to make at present given the furore about expenses and freedom of information which has generated so much heat in recent years, but the British Parliament is also one of the most transparent and accessible in the world.  At the very heart of Parliament is the concept of allowing “strangers” free access to the Palace in order to observe debates and hold their representatives to account.   Indeed, Erskine May's Treatise on the Law, Privileges, Proceedings and Usage of Parliament – the so-called “Parliamentary bible” - outlines at great length the centrality of “strangers” to Parliamentary life.

With such a centuries-old commitment to openness engrained in the British parliamentary tradition, Big Brother Watch was therefore astonished to learn that the practice of note-taking is still forbidden in the Strangers Gallery.   Whilst fully accredited lobby journalists are permitted to take notes from their privileged perches in the Press Gallery, normal members of the public, you and I, are not.

In a day when a large number of people obtain their news from the blogs, why should ‘citizen journalists’ be denied the right to take notes and scribble down observations from the gallery, as members of the ‘established press’ can do? Many of the most important issues of the day are now discussed on blogs with a depth and thoughtfulness that isn’t accommodated by the hurley-burley of the press.

The maintenance of such a ban is made even more puzzling by the fact the ban has been lifted during Select Committee sessions.

Big Brother Watch will be writing to the Speaker of the House of Commons John Bercow in order to request that parliamentary authorities drop this antediluvian regulation.

What do you think?

We’d love to hear from you if you’re a blogger and agree with our new campaign!

By Daniel Hamilton

Comments

[Yasin]

As a seasoned blogger I back this campaign. Shame on you Bercow, shame on you.

[Old Holborn]

I'm off to test this to destruction

[Byrnsweord]

Further efforts from the House to entrench the legal moat that distances it from the people it purports to represent. My blog wholeheartedly supports this campaign.

[Sati Pera]

At first reading this ban on bloggers seems indefensible but there is a lack of detail so we can't really tell.

If someone blogs about the proceedings of a live Parliament channel broadcast what is their legal position? I am pretty sure there is more and less to this story than has been reported.

The quality of debate is higher in the UK Parliament than anywhere else? Really? The confrontational system in Parliament is institutionalised infantile bickering and posturing. Thank goodness the EU parliament is built on an adult model of behaviour.

[SadButMadLad]

It sounds like one aspect of law hasn't caught up with another. Times have changed and now TV cameras are allowed so you could take notes whilst watching TV. But the fact that you're forbidden to do so whilst sitting in the the Palace itself is totally inconsistent. Either the law is out of date or its deliberate to ensure that only the press can have the privilege of taking notes.

And is audio recording equipment banned too? And why when the TV records nearly everything already.

[Virtual Factory]

Micro tape recorders? Work pretty well.

[Andrew Ampers Taylor]

No problem for me, I have the small Olympus hard disk recorder which records perfectly through my pocket. And has about 20 hours recording time.

[Jonathan Sheppard]

Such a rule serves no purpose whatsoever as anyone can "live" blog from watching the Paliament channel yet you cannot if you were there in person.

[Gawain Towler]

Have fun, though it is hardly like John Wilkes and Brass Criosby

[Matt Wardman]

Those saying "record it".

I don't have time to go through 8 hours of recording. Do you?

The problem with that is digestion.

[Scary Biscuits]

Sati Pera: I assume you're being ironic. Clearly it's much more adult not even to discuss the budget in the EU Parliament, dear me no, not when it hasn't been signed off by auditors in the last 16 years. How childist would that be to get upset about the theft of taxpayers' money and maybe even have a (hush) confrontational argument? Ditto in the US, where 'earmarks' are waved through. Nothing to 'bicker about' there either!

People who are against 'infantile argument' are actually against free speech and democracy, as who's to say whether an argument is 'grown up'? You? The Government?

Countries where all the politicians are polite to each other tend to have more revolutions. The vituperative and often ugly nature of Parliament is what has protected us for centuries from blood being spilt on the streets. Long may it last.

[Dick Puddlecote]

Yep, fully in agreement. If you wish to add signatories, count me in. Great campaign.

[Purlieu]

Is there an actual Law preventing this ?
Or just "regulations"

[RTaylorUK]

I regularly mention this ban on the public taking notes in the commons "strangers' gallery" when writing about openness and transparency.

http://www.rtaylor.co.uk/cambridgeshire-county-council-october-2010.html

When I experienced the ban myself it appeared the security staff were not keen on people having anything in their hands which they could throw at the MPs below. I would have thought this potential problem ought now have been solved by the plastic screen and that there is no justification for the ban continuing.

I would like to see Parliament's video streams improved. Parliament has been offering, on occasion, the live stream via a "Beta smoothing player" which allows you to pause rewind and fast-forward the live stream. I think lobbying Parliament, asking them to consistently provide that service would be of more practical help to independent individuals who write about what's going on in Parliament than allowing pens in the public gallery. Also not all committee meetings are covered on video, some are audio only, and it is much harder to follow what is going on and who is speaking without the images. Hopefully the inexplicable and ridiculous ban on taking notes can be used to draw attention to the other problems.

Why are individuals there to report on proceedings, not merely as tourists, not allowed in the press-gallery in any case?

--

Richard Taylor
Cambridge
http://www.rtaylor.co.uk
http://www.rtaylor.co.uk/tag/parliament