HL Deb 12 November 2003 vol 654 c205WA
Lord Norton of Louth

asked Her Majesty's Government:

What guidance is given to government departments on the construction and presentation of departmental websites; and what plans there are to improve the layout and accessibility of such websites.[HL5410]

Lord Bassam of Brighton

The Cabinet Office has publishedGuidelines for UK Government Websites: Illustrated Handbook for Web Management Teams a best practice guide for departments on the building and management of websites. Additionally in July 2003 the Office of the e-Envoy published the Quality Framework for UK Government Website Design, which covers usability issues.

Since February 2001 it has been government policy that all new or redesigned websites meet the World Wide Web Consortium's (W3C) Web Accessibility Initiative Guidelines.