Raise awareness of Parliamentary business in plain and transparent language including visual media. Core principle: Use clear and direct language and visuals to communicate information about parliament, including legislation Undertake research into the general public’s level of trust and knowledge about the everyday work of the Scottish Parliament.
Laws cant be to simple. But a summary would be useful.
People need to be educated in the workings of parliament and in how they can engage in the decision-making process. I just checked on the profile of one of my representatives to find out his general views - I found the information incomprehensible - and I am educated to Masters level. Both adults and children need to become more involved in government by making the language easier to understand. Forget the undertaking of more research. That wastes money and time. Just take steps to make real democracy a reality now.
We always should aim for public communication that is clear, concise and direct. However we also should recognise that all organisations have their jargon - the kirk session, "offside" in football - and so Parliamentary business will also have its own that needs to be kept. We also need to recognise that direct people are interested - for one person clear and direct may sparse and boring. We therefore need to communicate information in a variety of ways if we are to raise awarness of the work of the Scottish Parliament.
Schools should be teaching children about the Scottish Parliament and how it works.
Technical language and processes is a massive barrier. As well as improving accessibility, you need to empower people to understand the language used by those in the know. The Scottish Parliament should produce a guide to processes and terminology. Existing training and outreach to support people to engage with the Parliament should be increased.
Simple and effective communication is essential.
Plain English is a must but producing Easy Read information would be of enormous assistance also. A substantial proportion of Scotland's citizens have literacy issues and Easy Read documents would enable more of them to understand the Parliament's work.
This is a really good recommedation. It gives people an idea what is involved in the Scottish Parliament and means people can share views on laws. People find politics confusing so this is a good way to explain how Scottish Parliament works. This needs to be promoted as far and wide as possible as people might not be interested in politics but they care about issues.
JustCitizens believe that the Scottish Parliament could find ways to discuss its work in more inclusive and efficient ways. Instead of promoting their own political agenda, MSPs should use social media to explain what they do, to promote engagement and to ask questions to citizens directly. SPICe could also produce short videos to summarise their briefings. Many people may not understand the different sectors of governance that exist in Scotland; this is especially the case for people with language barriers or groups that are socially ostracised. One way to increase engagement is to break down complex concepts into understandable terminology without being condescending to the groups one is trying to reach. This must be done without taking away from the complexity of legislation and political components, giving people the opportunity to access the full picture, rather than small snippets. News programmes tailored for kids can also help in raising awareness of Parliamentary business.
The low turnout at elections prove the present system is broken, a citizens assembly should take over, that is where the action should be taken.
This content is created by the open source Your Priorities citizen engagement platform designed by the non profit Citizens Foundation