Interparliamentary Activities and Reports

Bureau Meeting – July 6 The Bureau is delegated the authority to oversee the implementation of Plenary Assembly decisions. It ensures the implementation of the motions adopted, the resolutions made, and the advice and recommendations issued by the Plenary Assembly, and it can make any decisions it deems useful for that purpose. It considers, on the basis of a report from the General Secretariat, issues involving branch membership and changes to their status, and it adopts the APF’s budget. Francis Drouin, MP, Chair of the Canadian Branch and First Vice-Chair of the APF; Chris d’Entremont, Vice-Chair of the Canadian Branch; and Joël Godin, MP and Chair of the APF’s Parliamentary Affairs Committee, each participated in this meeting by videoconference. Parliamentarians in attendance discussed new requests for APF membership. Branches represented at the meeting gave status updates on the pandemic situation in their nations, with Mr. Drouin giving the update on the situation in Canada, and they also discussed the effects of the pandemic on the general operation of the APF’s International Secretariat. Several reports on activities were presented, and the report on activities for the Parliamentary Secretary General and the cooperation programs were considered. The Treasurer’s report on the 2019 accounts was also discussed. Lastly, the chairs of the committees and networks shared the results of their proceedings: Mr. Godin, the Chair of the Parliamentary Affairs Committee, gave an update on the work of his committee, including a Canadian initiative under the leadership of Mr. d’Entremont on how parliaments are operating during the pandemic. Lastly, an update was given on the status of the APF’s statute review and the APF’s regional activities.

The AdHoc Committee on Migration held a second meeting as a series in a regular discussion with the European Commission on key issues related to migration and asylum policy. Ms. Paraskevi Michou, Director-General for European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations discussed the current state of affairs followed by a question and answer period with members of the committee. Dr. Hedy Fry, P.C., M.P., participated in the meeting.

At this meeting, MP Cheryl Gallant joined other members of the Committee in attendance to consider two draft reports. The first was a special report entitled “COVID-19, International Security, and the Importance of NATO’s Science and Technology Network,” and the second was a report of the Sub-Committee on Technology Trends and Security entitled “Urban Warfare.”

Dr. Hedy Fry, P.C., M.P., attended a meeting of the AdHoc Committee on Migration on Friday July 3. As part of the Committee’s regular discussions with the European Commission on key issues related to migration and asylum policy and as well as the situation in frontline countries, members of the committee invited top European Commission official Ms. Monique Pariat, Director-General for Migration and Home Affairs.

MP Cheryl Gallant attended this meeting, where two draft reports were discussed: one being a general initiative entitled China’s Belt and Road Initiative: A Strategic and Economic Assessment and the other a special initiative entitled The Economic Consequences of the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Senator Cordy attended this meeting, where members talked about studying a draft report for advancing the “Women, Peace and Security” agenda. The committee also studied another draft report entitled The Impact of the COVID-19 Crisis on the Civil Dimension of Security.

Meeting of the Political Committee (PC) – June 29, 2020 The Political Committee of the Assemblée parlementaire de la Francophonie (APF) considers political issues, the rule of law in francophone countries, relations with francophone institutions, the APF’s overall priorities, and legal issues concerning its statutes and enforcement provisions. With the honourable Dennis Dawson, Senator and rapporteur of the Canadian Branch, in attendance, the committee addressed a number of topics. Rapporteurs from the Canadian Branch asked the other APF branches to answer a survey that would be sent to them about their practices in the areas being studied. The committee heard a summary of the health situation in each country represented at the meeting. Senator Dawson presented the situation in Canada to the other participants. He shared a statistical table with the number of reported COVID-19 cases and the number of deaths across Canada. He also spoke about the steps the Canadian government had taken to support the economy during the pandemic. Lastly, he described the measures in place so that the Parliament of Canada could continue meeting. The Committee also heard from Lauren Jimenez of the Political Affairs and Democratic Governance Directorate at the International Organization of La Francophonie (OIF). She discussed issues involving governance and democracy during the pandemic in francophone nations and the OIF’s contributions in this area. In closing, members were given a status update on the work of the working group reviewing APF statutes. The draft agenda for its next meeting was adopted.

The Honourable David McGuinty, P.C., M.P., President of the Canadian Group of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (UIPU) and the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) Executive Committee Vice-President for the 12+ geopolitical group, participated in the ongoing Extraordinary Session of the International Executive Committee by videoconference on June 26, 2020. During this meeting, the members reviewed various reports and discussed next steps. The Executive Committee oversees the administration of the IPU and makes recommendations to the IPU Governing Council on various matters.

Meeting of the Parliamentary Affairs Committee (PAC) – June 26, 2020 Joël Godin, Member of Parliament, chairs the Parliamentary Affairs Committee, which considers parliamentary issues of common interest, the overall direction of interparliamentary cooperation, legal issues in the French-speaking world, and rights, freedoms and democratic development. At this meeting held by videoconference, Member of Parliament Chris d’Entremont presented a draft report on the organization of parliaments during the pandemic. The committee heard from senior officials of four APF member parliaments on how their parliaments are operating in these unique circumstances and the associated challenges. A draft report was also presented to members in attendance about open parliament and bringing institutions and populations closer together. Members also heard about other study topics, such as using geolocation in a pandemic context and barriers to legislative initiatives by parliamentarians. In addition, the committee chair reported on cooperation activities with some APF member countries. To close, the committee chair proposed a draft convention with the Réseau francophone d’éthique et de déontologie parlementaires and heard from the president of this network. To conclude, members discussed subjects on the agenda for the Committee’s next meeting.

Meeting of the Cooperation and Development Committee (COOP) – June 25, 2020 The Cooperation and Development Committee considers issues pertaining to human development (health, population and poverty), sustainable development (environment, energy and agriculture) and economic development, from the perspective of cooperation, democracy and solidarity. At the meeting, honourable Éric Forest, Senator and rapporteur of the Canadian Branch, presented his work on the draft report on the four areas of international cooperation for climate change. These four areas are financial support, technology transfer, sharing information and best practices, and technical support for developing countries. Rapporteurs of the Canadian Branch asked all APF branches to answer a survey that would be sent out on their practices in the areas being studied. Participants also discussed resolutions about food loss and food waste, as well as transportation and tourism and their economic impact as a source of development. They were also briefed on the status of WTO international trade negotiations; rural populations and vitality; the status of resolutions adopted at the Luxembourg (2017) and Quebec City (2018) assemblies; and the status of children without identity papers and the consequences for economic development in francophone countries. To conclude, members discussed subjects on the agenda for the Committee’s next meeting.