This dimension concerns the parliamentary website, which should provide comprehensive, timely and accurate information about parliament. The parliamentary website should also enable citizens to participate in parliamentary processes, for example by submitting comments and questions, and contacting MPs, committees and parliamentary officials.

Website content typically includes the following:

This dimension concerns the various means of communication that parliament uses to inform the public about parliament and its activities. Many parliaments have adopted an institutional communication policy or strategy and created specialized communications units to support this work.

Parliaments typically use a mix of channels as part of their efforts to reach all groups in society, including children and young people, people without access to the internet, and disadvantaged groups. This requires sufficient resources and tools to support the communication strategy.

This dimension concerns the transparency of the budget cycle, including budget development, adoption and execution. This includes transparency and clarity over parliament’s role in the budget cycle, as well as transparency over parliament’s own budget.

The national budget is the most important piece of legislation parliament considers on an annual basis. For this reason, the transparency of the budget cycle is vital for public understanding and parliamentary scrutiny of the executive’s spending priorities, planned revenues, capital investments and public debt.

This dimension concerns the transparency of the legislative process, from the introduction of a proposal for a law to its adoption law by parliament. It also relates to how information about legislation is made available to the public, including the scope, channels, forms and timing of such information. 

This dimension concerns the general principles, policies and practices relating to the transparency of parliamentary work.

This dimension concerns processes for the institutional development of parliament, including strategic planning, and the monitoring and evaluation (M&E) of parliamentary performance.

Like many other institutions, parliaments have increasingly started to take a strategic approach to planning their development, which involves setting long-term goals for the organization, diagnosing gaps in capacity or processes, and deciding on actions to achieve the goals. M&E systems, meanwhile, help to track progress and identify where adjustments are needed.

This dimension concerns various aspects of the professionalism of the parliamentary administration, including professional and ethical standards of conduct, complaints procedures and career management of parliamentary staff.

This dimension concerns legislation on the right to information as it applies to parliament. Commonly known as freedom of information (FOI) legislation, this type of legislation has been enacted in many countries. FOI legislation recognizes that, since public-sector agencies receive public funds, citizens and organizations should expect to be able to request access to specific information regarding their activities and operations. 

This dimension covers public procurement by parliament, which should follow a proper process that is transparent and competitive.

In some cases, this procurement process may be governed by a legal framework applicable to all publicly funded agencies. However, some parliaments have enacted a separate legal framework for parliamentary procurement, which meets the institution’s specific needs. In either case, these provisions should mandate clear and comprehensive procurement guidelines, based on the following key principles:

Parliament Parliament A national body of elected (or sometimes appointed) representatives that makes laws, debates issues and holds the government to account. ’s autonomy over the setting and spending of its own budget implies a need for transparency and accountability as to how these funds are spent. This dimension covers the rules, procedures and practices by which parliament ensures such transparency and accountability.