Stefan Mileschin

Fanboy MPs are to see iPad services expanded in the House of Commons, as Members increase reliance on digital services.

According HoC Commission representative John Thurso, MP, the House will look at expanding the services made available through iPads.

Following a pilot scheme, tablets were deemed secure to use in Parliament and in specific circumstances they have been loaned to MPs in a bid to drive towards digital services, saving cash and helping the environment.

Currently iPads are used to peruse Select Committee documents, Order Papers and, probably, play Temple Run or Angry Birds, but the Commission reckons that there is a lot more that can be done with them besides.

The Commission has now requested an “examination of the potential to deliver a wider range of information and services to Members through iPads”.

It seems that Apple’s tablets are the shiny black rectangles du jour in both Houses, with the Lords also keen on the devices and little talk of rival Samsung. So far, over £17,000 has been spent on handing out the devices to some Members of Parliament.

For those not receiving one the situation was different. One MP revealed to TechEye that there had been a culture of fear amongst MPs over claiming Apple’s iconic tablet on expenses. Tory MP Simon Hart said that some MPs had even been too scared to buy an iPad, and were instead picking the less “extravagant” Galaxy devices for fear of public backlash.

http://news.techeye.net/hardware/mps...-in-parliament