Online petitions set to give citizens a greater say

10.53.04pm BST (GMT +0100) Fri 8th May 2009

E-petitions will strengthen access and participation in democratic decision making, says Lib Dem councillor Paul Tilsley.

Local Liberal Democrats have welcomed the news that online petitions will soon be introduced by Birmingham City Council as a way for citizens to express their views on matters of concern. Councillor Paul Tilsley, Deputy Leader of Birmingham City Council, said: "The introduction of an e-petition facility will provide an additional mechanism for people to have their say on issues - strengthening and broadening citizens' access and participation in democratic decision-making."

"This promises to be major step forward for the city of Birmingham. As a council we are committed to embracing modern technologies and enabling citizens to make the most of the digital age. This project is clear evidence of this."

Under the plans, the new easy-to-use system, accessible via www.birmingham.gov.uk, will go live later this month.

E-petitoners will be able to upload external documents and images as supporting information and follow the progress of their petition through its life cycle thanks to a timeline function.

Additionally the system would give users access to support materials to market their petition to the public and be given the ability to create paper-based versions of petitions to run at the same time.

Funding for the system would be supplied by the EU, which would also foot the bill for any amendments and upgrades that are needed over the next two years.

This initiative follows a Liberal Democrat proposal for an e-petition facility to enable citizens to raise issues directly with the council which was adopted by Birmingham the City Council in October 2008.