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A Facebook lesson for Sir Humphrey: Senior civil servants get social network training
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18 June 2008
Senior civil servants are to be taught to use Facebook and Bebo by junior ranking colleagues more in touch with the internet age.
Ministers hope the younger generation will 'enlighten' their bosses on how to engage with the social networking sites.
Cabinet Office minister Tom Watson yesterday said Whitehall mandarins had been given new guidelines 'to encourage civil servants to take the first steps to engage with online social networks'.
Yes Minister: Nigel Hawthorne (L) played the civil servant Sir Humphrey Appleby in the classic BBC series. Many top civil servants are perceived to be out of touch.
He told the Commons: 'There is an incredibly large number of young people, digital pioneers across the civil service who perhaps are junior in status and one of my jobs is to try and join them all up so they can perhaps enlighten their counterparts in more senior positions.'
The rules are meant to help officials 'speak with an authoritative voice' online.
Tory MP Peter Bone asked Mr Watson whether the new guidelines covered sending sensitive material to ministers.
Mr Watson said: 'There won't be any top secret documents placed on Facebook.'
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