The Feed went to Westminster last Tuesday and took a front row seat at the Orange Future of Politics debate. The main crux of the paper presented by Orange was the ways technology could reshape British politics.

We’re talking blogs, social network pages, YouTube channels, emails and text messages: but do our politicians understand the online and mobile advantage?

Speakers were Graham Fisher of Orange Research and Development in the UK, Tom Savigar of Future Laboratories who co-wrote the report, political blogger Iain Dale and the chair was MP Nigel Evans. Here’s the best bits…

We live in an age of total connectivity. Tom Savigar asked the room: who turns their phone off at night? No one said yes, which is pretty enlightening.

So if we’re not switching off, why aren’t politicians switching on? Iain Dale is one of a small band of political figures who is. He believes that most MPs are technophobes who see online and mobile as a threat, not an opportunity.

But, Dale asserts, it doesn’t have to be that way. A blog raises profile and important issues. Comments can be used to see the positives and negatives about things that get under your skin. And, Dale argues, that’s a good thing because well, that’s keeping it real.

Of interest in the Orange Tech Lab is the idea of ‘finding’ people through technology, says Graham Fisher. Imagine using your laptop or mobile to see who can answer your questions. Can your local councillor respond by email? Can your MP send you a text from Parliament? Or can someone talk to you online in realtime?

Take a look at the image above. It represents a futuristic parliamentary office and an MP using the web and phone to solve a problem with all the people involved. It shows how technology can connect MP with voter.

Social networking is a strong contender for creating meaningful encounters between MPs and voters online, argues Tom Savigar. We might not attend townhall meetings very much nowadays, but like-minded people can form digital communities and campaign positively together.

The conversation between technology and politics has been kick-started. Other bloggers have been talking about it too, including Iain Dale.

What do you think? Do you think attitudes will change dramatically enough to make some of these theories a reality? Tell it to The Feed.