They still won’t let the TV cameras in but Senators will now let you gather around your radio-like machines and listen to live audio feeds of the Senate in action!
Senate to Make Audio Proceedings of Chamber Publicly Available
Ottawa (November 21, 2013) – Beginning November 26, 2013, audio proceedings in the Senate Chamber will be made publicly available, announced today the chair of the Senate Standing Committee on Internal Economy, Budgets and Administration.
Senator Gerald Comeau said “I am very pleased to announce that, in the interest of openness and transparency which I think are important attributes for a public institution, my colleagues and I have authorized the Clerk to make the audio broadcast of Senate proceedings publicly available. This is long overdue.”
Audio proceedings in the Senate Chamber will be publicly available via ParlVU, the Senate’s webcasting service that allows users to access live and archived streams of Senate committee proceedings and now, Senate Chamber proceedings.
“The message from Canadians has been loud and clear. They want access to the debates in the Senate. Listening to the audio webcast of the Senate proceedings is just another avenue for Canadians to follow the work of the Senate and its senators,” said Senator George Furey, deputy chair of the committee.
Canadians can also follow the work of the Senate and its senators online, in person in the public galleries, on CPAC and on Twitter by using the hashtag #SenCA.