Automating consultation analysis: bringing data science to the heart of decision making
This project analyses free text responses to a consultation gathering opinions on a recent consultation of National Assembly for Wales.
Dr Chaitanya Joshi
Data Science techniques were used to analyse responses to the National Assembly for Wales Children,Young People and Education Committee’s consultation on the Children (Abolition of Defence of Reasonable Punishment) (Wales) Bill (“the Bill”) - introduced by Julie Morgan AM, Deputy Minister for Health and Social Services. The Assembly’s Business Committee had remitted the Bill to the Children, Young People and Education Committee.
The Welsh Government’s stated purpose for the Bill is to abolish the common law defence of reasonable punishment so it is no longer available in Wales to parents or those acting in loco parentis as a defence to assault or battery against a child. The Welsh Government states that the Bill is intended to support children’s rights by prohibiting the use of physical punishment, through removal of this defence.
Moe details about the consultation can be found here
http://senedd.assembly.wales/mgIssueHistoryHome.aspx?IId=24674
Saleint phrases detection using:
Word collocation
Term-frequency inverse document frequency
Context around the key phrases (particularly important where similar key phrases appeared in different stratas)
Supports Welsh Assembly colleagues in analysis and decision making. In addition to the Committee’s own analysis of the consultation responses, the work undertaken by the Data Science Campus formed a part of independent analysis of the responses, to identify the main issues raised by respondents.The work was presented to the Children, Young People and Education Committee members and formed part of the Stage 1 report published by the Committee on 2nd August 2019
http://www.assembly.wales/laid%20documents/cr-ld12708/cr-ld12708-e.pdf