BBC launches on-demand political site

The BBC has launched a new political website offering access to live and on-demand coverage from the major democratic institutions in the UK and Europe.

Titled Democracy Live, the new online resource features specialist search technology to enable users to easily navigate and follow debates on various political issues.

A key feature of the site is an eight-screen video wall on its homepage, offering live coverage from full sittings of key governmental institutions.

Available content will derive from sessions at the House of Commons, House of Lords, Scottish Parliament, Northern Ireland Assembly and Welsh Assembly (in Welsh), along with full sittings of the European Parliament and Westminster Select Committees.

In addition to the live streaming, the site uses a speech-to-text search system for users to browse the BBC archive of on-demand political content.

Head of BBC political programmes Sue Inglish said: "Democracy Live is an important addition to the way the BBC brings politics to our audiences across the UK, allowing people to see first-hand the work of their elected representatives and ensuring we have a healthy and informed democracy.

"This is precisely the sort of different content the BBC should be providing in fulfilling our public service remit and representing all of the democratic institutions in the UK."

Democracy Live also hosts a Historic Moments archive of memorable video clips from the past two decades in politics, and a series of guides to political institutions.

All main BBC political blogs will be available on the site, including a series of guest contributors, starting with House of Commons speaker John Bercow MP discussing ways to rebuild the public trust in Parliament.