e- for economic – Will tougher times signal renewed interest in new technology for participation?

These are remarkable times, with thoughtful people concluding that the tectonic plates of economic, social and political structures are shifting. A few short months ago, we looked at Banks as among the most commanding heights of our economy; right now, the motor industry is on its knees and virtually every other business battening down the hatches and adopting a survival strategy.

Wisely, the Government has avoided making matters worse with huge public expenditure reductions, so Councils and other public bodies will not face drastic cuts … for now. But the destabilising effect of the seismic shifts all around us, and the inevitably increased demands for some services in times of recession changes everything. In particular, the climate of decision-making changes and, with previous certainties now a distant memory, there is a tendency to veer towards the cautious, and to avoid taking risks.