Services offered by parliament in the parliamentary libraries of Finland and Estonia
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senior information specialist, Library of Parliament (Eduskunta)
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information specialist, Estonian National Library parliamentary information centre
In most countries, including Finland, the library of parliament is in the jurisdiction of the parliament, but in Estonia these functions are performed by the National Library.
The parliamentary libraries of Finland and Estonia differ from each other significantly in terms of their history as well as their size and collections, but their purpose is one and the same – satisfying legislators need for information. Both parliamentary libraries are characterized by the fact that the services they offer are constantly changing, because the needs of legislators change, too. Technology, especially the development of computer technology, forces libraries to remain in step with the times. An increasingly major part of information exchange has moved on to the Internet, and thus a large part of the relations with clients in the parliamentary service of both libraries are conducted through virtual channels.