Dutch legislators get iPads, go fully digital

[The Northerner]

THE HAGUE, Netherlands—Dutch senators have begun using 21st-century tablet computers in their 17th-century meeting hall in an effort to eliminate the mountain of paper they used to generate.

The First Chamber of Dutch parliament claims to be the first legislature in Europe to completely scrap paper and distribute proposed law changes and all other documents to senators via a specially developed app.

The move introduced on Tuesday means senators will put iPads on their green cloth-covered desks of Parliament's upper house instead of mounds of paper.

The Senate said in a statement that buying iPads for all 75 senators and developing the app cost some euro148,000 ($200,000), but the savings in printing and courier costs would amount to more than euro142,000 ($194,000) in the first year.

Source: http://www.boston.com/business/technology/articles/2011/09/13/dutch_legislators_get_ipads_go_fully_digital

[provis99]

1. this will not end well.

they will wind up having the Ipads, and also the paper trail; they said the personal computer would end paper, and instead it multiplied it.

Plus ignorant politicians will now have an opportunity to have secret government documents on their Ipads accidently distributed to the whole world, not to speak of Weinergate type scandals breaking out all over, as the senators try to figure out the Internet Tubes and such.

[Sherman A1]

2. I think this is super!

Although there are potential problems there is also potential for great benefit as documents are easily accessed via the iPad as opposed to mounds of paper. There will still need to be paper, but perhaps much less of it as each will not need to have a copy of each bill or piece of legislation when they are archived electronically. It could also open up more transparency as the public may be able to look at pending work and add comments and such.

[MilesColtrane]

3. But...they don't have USB ports!

They don't do Flash!

(heh)