Written question asked by Lord Moonie (Labour), in the House of Lords. It was answered by Lord Brabazon of Tara (Non-affiliated) on Wednesday, 9 February 2011.

House of Lords: IT

Question: To ask the Chairman of Committees how much time is being spent on problems experienced by Members of the House of Lords from the upgrade of their computers to Windows 7; what efficiencies have been gained by PICT; what difficulties are being experienced by PICT staff; and what training will be introduced to enable Members to understand the new system.

Answer: The PICT Service Desk has received a small number of calls relating to the upgrade. It is still early in the migration and as a result it is difficult to assess efficiencies experienced by PICT. These should become clearer once the migration is complete and services are decommissioned. PICT staff have been working with Windows 7 and Office 2007 since early in 2010. The engineers, Service Desk personnel and other support staff are experienced in the use of the system. PICT’s experience with other groups in Parliament is that the Windows 7 and Office 2007 solutions are more stable and have fewer problems. PICT’s approach to training has been to work directly with Members during the upgrade. This has included the option of one-to-one coaching and specifically written training material available as a booklet and online.

Secondary information

Type: Written question
Reference: 6296; 725 c66WA
Session: 2010-12
Subjects: Software House of Lords Peers Training Parliamentary Information and Communications Technology Service
Link: View this Written question on www.publications.parliament.uk