15/04/2009
Over the last decade the Scottish Parliament’s public petitions process has become a model of best practice with more than 1,200 petitions and an e-petition website that records more than one million hits a month. But is it still fit for purpose and can it be improved?
These questions will be considered at a roundtable discussion on 21 April. The meeting is the latest in the committee’s year-long inquiry into the public petitions process examining how to increase awareness of and participation in the public petitions system.
Committee Convener Frank McAveety MSP said: “To create a petitions system that is fit for the future we want to know what works and where we can make improvements. Our research tells us that the average petitioner is a 53-year-old, white, middle-class male and that is clearly not representative of a cross-section of Scottish society.
"It is our duty to ensure we create an open and accessible petitions process for everyone and build on the very positive responses we have received to date from our public meetings. We hope this inquiry will find practical ways to improve awareness and use of the public petitions process for a wider range of social, economic and ethnic groups across Scotland.”
The committee has invited some former members of the Consultative Steering Group, which established the founding principles of the Scottish Parliament, to attend. Also invited is the chief executive of Young Scot, whose petition (PE1065) inspired the committee inquiry, the current Minister for Parliamentary Business and the developer of e-petitioning.
- Professor Alice Brown - former Scottish Public Services Ombudsman and CSG member
- Joyce McMillan - Chair of the Hansard Society Scotland and former CSG member
- George Reid - former Presiding Officer and CSG member
- Campbell Christie - former CSG member
- Bruce Crawford MSP - Minister for Parliamentary Business
- Professor Ann Macintosh - Professor of Digital Governance at Leeds University and former head of International Teledemocracy Centre, Napier University, Edinburgh which developed the e-petitions system used by the Scottish Parliament.
- Louise Macdonald - Chief Executive, Young Scot
- Ali Jarvis – Scottish Funding Council and former Director of Communication, Commission for Racial Equality in Scotland
- Rosemary Everett - Head of Education and Participation at the Scottish Parliament
Background
The Public Petitions Committee is undertaking a year-long inquiry into the public petitions process. The inquiry was prompted by a petition from the youth organisation Young Scot on enhancing engagement of young people through emerging forms of information and communication technology.
The Public Petitions Committee is undertaking a year-long inquiry into the public petitions process. The inquiry was prompted by a petition from the youth organisation Young Scot on enhancing engagement of young people through emerging forms of information and communication technology.
The committee held meetings at Berwickshire High School in Duns, John Wheatley College in Easterhouse and Fraserburgh Academy earlier this year, where it actively engaged with the public, school pupils, teachers, community groups and petitioners past and present on what people want from their petitions process.
Further details are available via the inquiry homepage. The inquiry is part of the Scottish Parliament’s programme of activities across Scotland to mark ten years of devolution. It was announced earlier this month that Her Majesty The Queen will visit the Scottish Parliament on Wednesday 1 July to meet both MSPs and ‘1 July babies’, Scottish children born on 1 July 1999.
Other events include the ‘Moving Stories’ touring exhibition; Winnie Ewing unveiling a portrait of herself by the late artist David Donaldson; the search for a 25th quote for the Canongate wall; a tartan design competition; a range of new partnerships, a new conference and new educational events.