A few weeks after the announcement that one of their former colonies was set to usher the iPad into the halls of government, it seems that The British House of Lords is looking to provide their members with access to electronics devices as well. As the behavior of the Lords routinely stoops down to the level of forum trolls during debates, bringing 21st century technology into Britain's parliament actually makes a whole lot of sense.
According to The Telegraph, the decision to allow the iPad and other electronic devices into parliament as part of a one year pilot program was made after the Lords Administration and Works Committee declared that their current rules excluding electronics from parliament was "incomplete, outdated and contradictory". According to the new rules, members of the British House of Lords will be allowed to use electronic devices to search for and access parliamentary papers that are "clearly and closely relevant to the business before the House".
Given how much English parliamentary debates already resemble online flame wars, it's going to be interesting to see how the introduction of devices like the iPad or iPhone and the access to information they allow will influence the way the Lords bicker amongst themselves.
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