The Liberal Democrats launched their new website today, on the eve of their spring conference. It's designed to be as "accessible as possible and encourage participation", according to the press release the party sent me - and, on initial inspection, it looks good.
The site includes a good breakdown of the party's policies, which is what most undecided voters are interested in, although its layout can be a little confusing. But in terms of participation, it offers few opportunities for people to get involved in the election other than by joining the party or sending them a large cheque.
While the importance of the internet in last year's US elections has been exaggerated, there is no doubt that both the Democrats and the Republicans found new ways to get people politically involved via the web. It would be a pity if our political parties stuck merely to tried and tested campaign techniques and didn't experiment at all.
