Government signs up to Twitter

Central Office of Information will distribute announcements via the microblogging service

Twitter is an easy way to let people know government news

The Central Office of Information (COI) has opened an official Twitter account in a sign that the government is looking to increase use of the channel for official communications.

Cabinet ministers Jim Knight and Tom Watson are already using the microblogging service to update followers on news. Even Gordon Brown – or one of his aides – regularly updates the 10 Downing Street Twitter feed.

But this is the first time the COI – the government's official news source – has engaged with the technology.

To automatically receive updates, members of the public need to create their own Twitter account and then sign up to "follow" COI's account - @COIgovuk.

The government is currently recruiting a "director of digital engagement" to encourage more ministers to blog and use Web 2.0 technologies to keep citizens informed of their activities.