Interparliamentary Activities and Reports

The Caribbean Workshop on Human Trafficking, Forced Labour and Contemporary Forms of Exploitation, organized by CPA UK, took place online from February 2 and 3, 2021. Parliamentarians and officials taking part in the workshop represented the UK, Barbados, Belize, Guyana, Jamaica, St Vincent & Grenadines, Trinidad and Tobago and Virgin Islands (UK). The programme explored topics such as child exploitation, debt bondage and the role of the hospitality sector. There was also opportunities for elected representatives to discuss their role in tackling these issues, through debates in parliament, strengthening legislation, providing scrutiny and educating constituents. With the other participants, Senator Julie Miville-Dechêne was invited to discuss the role parliamentarians and officials can play towards eradicating human trafficking, forced labour and other contemporary forms of exploitation. Senator Julie Miville-Dechêne talk about the bill she presented to the Senate in February 2020, Modern Slavery Act, currently numbered S-216.

On January 29, 2021, three Canadian parliamentarians attended the 53rd Meeting of the Board of Directors of ParlAmericas:

• The Honourable Senator Rosa Galvez, Vice-Chair of the Canadian Section of ParlAmericas (CPAM) and Treasurer of the Board of ParlAmericas Corporation;

• Marc Serré, Member of Parliament, Chair of CPAM, Canada’s representative on the ParlAmericas Board of Directors and Chair of the Board of ParlAmericas Corporation; and

• Randy Hoback, Member of Parliament, Member of CPAM and Member of the Board of ParlAmericas Corporation.

At this meeting, Mr. Serré led the discussion regarding the decisions to be made by the ParlAmericas Corporation Board. During this discussion, Senator Galvez presented the 2020 ParlAmericas audited Financial Statements, which were approved.

The 53rd Meeting of the Board of Directors enabled members to approve the calendar of activities for 2021 and to discuss the events to be organized for ParlAmericas’ 20th anniversary. The meeting concluded with an exchange of information on recent initiatives related to ParlAmericas’ work spearheaded by various parliaments or legislators in their respective countries. In this regard, Senator Galvez and Mr. Serré presented the activities of CPAM’s Sub-committee on Open Parliament.

The Canadian Branch of the CWP is administered by a steering committee that represents the views and concerns of women parliamentarians throughout Canada and develops programs to support the objectives of the CWP in the region. This committee is composed of one representative from each province and territory and one from the federal Parliament. A chair oversees its activities and represents Canada on the CWP international steering committee. Ms. Yasmin Ratansi, M.P., Chair of the Canadian Branch, sits on the CWP steering committee of the Canadian Region. This virtual meeting was attended by the CWP International Chairperson and the CPA Secretary General.

Executive members of the Canadian Parliamentary Association of Canada-Europe (CAEU) joined their counterparts from the European Parliament’s Delegation for Relations with Canada (D-CA) on a videoconference call on January 26, 2021. Mr. Scott Simms, M.P., President, CAEU, the Hon. Peter Boehm, Senator, the Hon. Percy Downe, Senator, the Hon. Larry Bagnell, M.P., the Hon. Michael L. MacDonald, Senator, the Hon. Wayne Easter, M.P., the Hon. John McKay, M.P., and Mr. Stéphane Bergeron, M.P. were joined by Mr. Javier Zarzalejos (Spain), Ms. Danuta Hübner (Poland), Mr. Ondrej Kovarík (Czechia), and Ms. Ruža Tomašic (Croatia). The main items discussed were the EU–UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement, the Canada–U.K. Trade Continuity Agreement, and relations with the United States (U.S).

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 Twelve Plus geopolitical group, participated in the second sitting of the 285th session of the International Executive Committee which took place virtually on 22 January 2021. Members agreed to a roadmap for developing the organization’s Strategy 2022–2026 as well as the schedule of activities for 2021 while also emphasising the importance of flexibility and greater consideration of the possibility for holding hybrid events. Members also held preliminary discussions about the legislative situation in Venezuela, and will continue their consideration of this matter at the next meeting of the International Executive Committee.