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Government E-Petitions UK
Government & Civic Records
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About
This dataset provides insights into petitions collected from the UK Parliament petitions website. It offers a structured view of public engagement with the UK government, detailing the purpose and context of various public requests. The dataset includes information such as the petition's background, the specific action requested, the number of signatures gathered, government responses, and reasons for petition rejections. It also covers additional details and outcomes, including transcripts of debates in Parliament for petitions that meet specific signature thresholds. Over 50,000 petitions are included, allowing for an examination of topics that concern the public and the government's reactions to them. Petitions reaching over 100,000 signatures are considered for debate in Parliament, while those with over 10,000 signatures receive a government response. The dataset is available in versions covering current Government petitions and a combined set from 2010 to the present.
Columns
- created_at: The timestamp when the petition entry was initially added to the database.
- id: A unique identifier assigned to each petition.
- links.self: The direct URL link to the petition on the website.
- action: The specific action or request outlined within the petition's background.
- background: The main descriptive text providing the context and details of the petition.
- additional_details: Supplementary information supporting the petition.
- state: The current status of the petition, such as open, closed, or rejected.
- signature_count: The total number of signatures accumulated for the petition.
- updated_at: The date when the petition entry was last updated.
- rejected_at: The date on which the petition was formally rejected.
Distribution
The dataset is typically provided in a CSV file format. It contains over 50,000 petitions from the UK Parliament website. The
created_at timestamps span from 2 March 2020 to 25 January 2024, with various counts across different date intervals. Similarly, updated_at timestamps range from 3 March 2020 to 5 February 2024. Signature counts vary widely, with a significant majority of petitions having fewer than 8,384.50 signatures, and counts extending up to 168,000. Petition states show that approximately 75% of petitions are rejected, 23% are closed, and a small percentage are categorised as 'Other'.Usage
This dataset is ideal for analysing trends in public sentiment and political engagement within the UK. It can be used for:
- Investigating the effectiveness of e-petitions as a tool for public influence.
- Studying government responsiveness to public demands.
- Analysing patterns in petition topics, success rates, and reasons for rejection.
- Developing Natural Language Processing (NLP) models for text analysis on petition content.
- Researching public policy development and the legislative process.
- Tracking civic engagement over time.
Coverage
The dataset covers petitions submitted to the UK Parliament petitions website. The petitions themselves originate from members of the public across the UK. The temporal scope for
created_at entries ranges from 2 March 2020 to 25 January 2024, and for updated_at entries from 3 March 2020 to 5 February 2024. A combined dataset version also includes petitions from 2010 to the present, providing a broader historical perspective. There are no specific demographic notes on data availability, as the dataset reflects public submissions broadly.License
CC-BY-NC
Who Can Use It
This dataset is suitable for a diverse range of users, including:
- Political Scientists and Academics: To research civic engagement, public policy formation, and government accountability.
- Journalists: For investigative reporting on public grievances, government responses, and political trends.
- Data Analysts and Researchers: To perform statistical analysis on signature counts, petition lifecycles, and rejection reasons.
- Students: For academic projects on UK politics and digital democracy.
- Organisations focused on transparency and advocacy: To monitor public issues and government actions.
- NLP Practitioners: For training and evaluating models on short-form text data relating to public opinion and government.
Dataset Name Suggestions
- UK Parliament Petitions Data
- Government E-Petitions UK
- Public Petitions UK Parliament
- UK Civic Engagement Records
Attributes
Original Data Source: UK Government Petitions
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