The Parliament is to amend its Standing Orders to introduce new digital facilities such as video conferencing. “We will be taking steps to make a few changes in the Standing Orders so that members can join committees from wherever they are in the country. We will also be introducing video conferencing in Parliament,” Parliament Secretary General Dhammika Dasanayake told The Sunday Morning. He said that committee meetings too can be held virtually, allowing Members of Parliament (MPs) to remain in their electorate and attend to duties. “Once they take oaths, the MPs can look at changes that can be made and the committee procedures because committees can easily run virtually; all of them needn’t attend committee meetings physically and can participate remotely,” he noted, adding that video conferencing can also be used to communicate with various public officers across the country. “Steps are being taken to have the necessary infrastructure installed so that MPs don’t have to summon officials from all over the country – they can be interviewed through the video conferencing system.” He said the first sitting will go according to tradition, after which the MPs can look at changing the Standing Orders. “As far as the main plenary is concerned, we will be following the normal procedure as the Standing Orders don’t allow anything else. Until the Standing Orders are amended or changed, we have to follow the same rules and regulations, which apply to the first day of Parliament.” By Skandha Gunasekara