Theyworkforyou.com is a superb project, and is a useful tool for journalists and political commentators alike. I’ve been using it to track climate change and global warming mentions in parliament for a few years now. This just dropped into my email, a typical exchange from Scottish parliamentarians George Foulkes and Richard Lochhead, and of no major use other than to promote the tool as a means of tracking what politicians are saying on our behalf:
George Foulkes (Labour) says:
Is the cabinet secretary aware that the average person’s carbon emission is 5.5 tonnes per year? I have used the National Energy Foundation‘s carbon calculator to do some calculations on the First Minister‘s carbon footprint. On travel alone—without taking account of any of his household emissions—his footprint is over six times that amount. Since he became First Minister, Alex Salmond has travelled by train only once and takes regular trips by limousine from Bute house to Holyrood. Should he not also set an example or, as is usual with the First Minister, is it another example of, “Do as I say and not as I do”?
Richard Lochhead (SNP) Says:
Sometimes I think that the best way to help to tackle global warming would be for the member to reduce the amount of hot air that he produces in the chamber. Unlike many others who have to travel to the Parliament from far and wide around Scotland in their everyday business as ministers and members of the Scottish Parliament, the member does not have far to travel from his constituency office and home. If we had not inherited such a neglected public transport system from previous Administrations, perhaps the situation would have been different.
Riveting stuff. But there’s been more important words captured by the project. The site is part of mysociety.org, which also runs Whatdotheyknow.com for Freedom of Information requests, and a number of other projects using new media to make democracy more transparent and inclusive.
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