MPs: cyber‐men or cyber‐shy?

Abstract

A study was conducted shortly after the 2001 general election to ascertain whether those elected to the House of Commons were keeping pace with their constituents by embracing the use of cyber‐technology. This was achieved by researching what percentage of MPs from the “Big three” parties had an e‐mail address and/or Web site, the degree of interactivity on politicians’ Web sites and the features offered on the sites. Interviews were also carried out to gauge the opinions held by MPs on cyber‐democracy and interactivity. The findings showed that the Liberal Democrat party has embraced the potential of the digital technology to an extent that shames the party of government and the official opposition. Labour and the Tories have a long distance to travel to catch up with the Lib Dems. They run the risk of becoming an irrelevance in an online world.