From My Desk On The Hill – short intro to www.parl.gc.ca: how to find the latest briefing on Libya, and much more
Posted by admin on 12 Oct 2011 at 02:12 pm | Tagged as: Uncategorized
On the welcome page, I often start by clicking on English. (A vision-impaired person explained to me that nothing on a website is accessible unless its welcome page is. Because those who can’t see their screens can’t scroll effectively to click, an up-to-date site provides alternatives for those who would like them. I don’t know whether people with disabilities can use this site efficiently – I hope so.)
Now there are lots of choices. Under House of Commons (in the middle), look down a bit and click on Webcasts. Then click on Month. For Tuesday, October 4, scroll down and click on FAAE Meeting No. 4, then View this Clip, then Floor Audio, to hear the Libya briefing I attended. Floor Audio contains both French and English, whatever language whoever was speaking chose to use. Many who speak switch back and forth frequently.
Another useful choice, on the page after the Welcome page, is Parliamentary Business (at the top). Click, then click on House of Commons Committees, then, on the left, click on Committee List. Clicking on the name of any committee will bring up a list of some recent events (if any), in reverse chronological order. In the summer, I clicked on Subscribe, for one committee, then registered. Almost every day, I receive an automated email; most say nothing is scheduled for that committee, but some have been very helpful in alerting me to planned meetings.
Also, on the first page with details for any committee, on the left, clicking on Membership will bring up a list of all members (below the calendar – scroll down). Clicking an M.P.’s name will provide links to her/his photo (M.P. Profile), and more.
There’s a wealth of data on this huge site. Much is linked in several ways, making it easier to find.