Minister for Communities and Local Government to speak at International e-Participation Symposium in London

On February 28, the Minister for Communities and Local Government in the UK, the Rt Hon Hazel Blears MP, will address the Opening Plenary at the International eParticipation and Local Democracy Symposium – Empowering Citizens through Technology and Participation in London. Citizen Engagement is a key priority for the UK Government, as demonstrated by the launch of the Communities and Local Government’s (CLG) ‘Action Plan for Community Empowerment’. The Rt Hon Hazel Blears will set out the Government’s position and expand upon the Action Plan at the Symposium in February.

Other additions to the exciting agenda include:

• Hon Ina Gudele, Special Assignments Minister for Electronic Government Affairs, Latvia
• Hon. Dr. P.M. Sekatle, Secretary of State for Local Government, Lesotho
• Hon. Sec. Pedro Cortes, Secretary of State for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, USA
• Iain Dale, Political Blogger, Commentator and Journalist
• Prof. Lawrence Pratchett, Local Democracy, De Montfort University
• Cllr. Luke Akehurst, London Borough of Hackney

Topics to be discussed include:

• Web 2.0
• Community Empowerment
• Managing Success
• Youth Engagement
• Virtual Worlds
• Participatory Budgeting
• Legislative Processes
• Regulations
• Much, much more..!

The winners of the ICELE International Awards will also be announced at the Symposium. The awards will be presented in two categories – Organisational eParticipation, and ePolitician. In addition, a special Ministerial Award will be presented to one of the nominees. Local eDemocracy Minister, Parmjit Dhanda, said "it is a pleasure to support the work of ICELE and the International Awards and in particular to give backing to the 'Ministerial Award' in this field." The Symposium is managed by an International Steering Group including the UK Department for Communities and Local Government (CLG), the International Centre of Excellence for Local eDemocracy (ICELE), the Council of Europe, the United Nations’ Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA) and the National Association of Secretaries of State, USA (NASS).

To register for the event and for more information visit www.empowerment-symposium.com. To meet potential delegates and discuss the Symposium join the Facebook Group: Citizen Empowerment Symposium '08.