Government E-petitions

[rov1100]

http://epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions

How do the successful ones seem to get instant recognition? To put in a petition it would obviously start at the bottom of hundreds of pages out of sight to the normal reader.

[boxtops]

The ones in which I have taken part have been notified to me by people interested in that particular topic - sometimes I've had an email saying "go here to sign up" or there's been in a link in our local paper, or from organisational newsletters than we are signed up to.

[Gromit]

I haven't looked at which have been successful, but I expect those that were were sponsored or heavily publicised by national newspapers with an agenda to promote.

[modeller]

Gromit Hasn't everyone got an agenda ? You make it sound like a crime .

When the government wanted to sell off all our forests a couple of months ago it was someone's agenda and petitions that made them drop the idea.

In my area it was a personal agenda and a petition which forced the council and the developer to agree to put in a ramp for the disabled and mum's with push chairs.

[rov1100]

I wondered if was anything to do with Twitter or Facebook?

[Gromit]

Modeller,

Yes everyone has an agenda, but only national newspapers are able to orchestrate a campaign to persue certain aims. If we tried on here we'd get 30 or 40 people to agree on a stance. A newspaper could mobilise 100,000 easily.

[modeller]

gromit // A newspaper could mobilise 100,000 easily. //

Is that a bad thing. If 100,000 people feel strongly about something shouldn't it be looked into ?

All the big scandals including the abuse by priests and MPs expenses have been uncovered by the press. As I said the selling of our forests and the petitions organised by the press succeeded where your or my 30/40 would have had no effect.
I think Twitter, Facebook and AB. all play their part to give ordinary people a voice that our leaders are forced to listen to.
So don't always knock the press because of your vendetta sorry agenda.