Interparliamentary Activities and Reports

Leading up to the 65th Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference, which is due to be held from 21–27 August 2021 in Halifax, Canada, the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) Headquarters Secretariat hosted virtual workshops.

The objective of this workshop was to gain a better understanding of the relevance of International Humanitarian Law (IHL) to legislatures and to parliamentarians. Participants were given a general introduction to IHL and its history. The Honourable Marilou McPhedran, Senator, gave a presentation on the roles and responsibilities of parliamentarians in implementing and upholding IHL at the domestic and international levels. She provided several examples from the Parliament of Canada’s perspective. The workshop was also attended by the Honourable Salma Ataullahjan, Senator, the Honourable Kim Pate, Senator, and Ms. Yasmin Ratansi, MP.

Mr. Larry Bagnell, Member of Parliament for Yukon and Mr. Larry Maguire, Member of Parliament for Brandon-Souris, Manitoba, represented the Canadian Parliament at the meeting of the Standing Committee of Parliamentarians of the Arctic Region (SCPAR) held virtually on February 25, 2021. The meeting featured a report from the Icelandic member on the work of parliamentarians to have the Government of Iceland respond to recommendations included in past conference statements on topics such as health, economic development and digital broadband among others. Members of SCPAR provided updates on the status of COVID-19 cases in circumpolar regions and advances in vaccination distribution. The social and economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic have been significant in most countries. A common issue of concern was that border closures in Nordic countries have been problematic as many people work and live in different countries. Further, border closures have hindered the mobility of Sami across their traditional territories. Members from the European Parliament, the Kingdom of Denmark and the Russian Federation provided updates on their strategies for the Arctic. A new study from Greenland highlighted that Greenlanders would like closer collaboration with Iceland, the United States, and Canada. SCPAR members also finalized the themes for the April Conference Statement.

The Winter Meeting provides an opportunity for OSCE parliamentarians to hold discussions on timely issues, to be briefed by high-level OSCE officials, and to meet with representatives of the OSCE's governmental side. It consists of meetings of the Standing Committee, each General Committee, and a joint session of the three General Committees.

Leading up to the 65th Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference, which is due to be held from 21–27 August 2021 in Halifax, Canada, the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) Headquarters Secretariat hosted virtual workshops.

This workshop focussed on the role of parliamentarians in advocating, introducing, and implementing climate change policy as well as on how they can help close important policy gaps between the global, national, and local levels of governance. During this workshop, Mr. Terry Duguid, MP, gave a presentation that focussed on Canada’s domestic response to climate change and the challenges of climate action in the Canadian federal system. Mr. Duguid also answered questions relating to the role of parliamentarians in elaborating and implementing climate change legislation. The workshop was also attended by the Honourable Kim Pate, Senator.

The Sub-Committee on Open Parliament held its third virtual meeting and discussed the development of a Canadian Open Parliament Action Plan.

From February 22 to 24, 2021 and on March 1st 2021, the Secretariat of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) hosted a series of post-election seminars for returning and recently elected parliamentarians to the Parliament of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. The main purpose of the event was to help develop knowledge and understanding of parliamentary practices and procedures. Members of the Canadian Branch of the CPA gave presentations during the following post-election seminars:

Giving Parliamentarians a Voice: Amendments, Debates, Parliamentary Questions, and Motions

This session provided an overview of the various tools parliamentarians can use to draw the attention of their respective chambers to issues of importance to them and to their constituents. The Honourable Yuen Pau Woo, Senator, was invited to share his knowledge and experiences as Facilitator of the Independent Senators Group in the Senate of Canada. His presentation drew parallels between the Parliament of Canada and the Trinidad and Tobago Parliament. Senator Woo touched on Private Members Bills, Question Period, and the selection of the Speaker.

Public Financial Management

This session focused on various aspects of public financial management in a parliamentary context. As a member of Standing Committee on Public Accounts, Mr. Greg Fergus, MP, gave a presentation on the unique roles and responsibilities of this committee in the Parliament of Canada. He discussed the work of the committee, the Auditor General’s reports to the committee, as well as the important contribution civil society can make in keeping members of the committee informed.

Ethics and Standards

This session looked at various ways Commonwealth parliaments are working to establish ethical parliaments. Ms. Brenda Shanahan, MP, presented some of the Parliament of Canada’s various mechanisms for holding parliamentarians responsible and accountable. She also stressed the importance of transparency as well as personal and institutional responsibility in building trust between parliamentarians and the public.

The following members of the association participated in the activity: The Honourable Jim Munson, Senator (Co-Chair), The Honourable Salma Ataullahjan, Senator (Vice-Chair), The Honourable René Cormier, Senator (Vice-Chair), Mr. Sven Spengemann, M.P. (Co-Chair), Mr. Greg Fergus, M.P. (Vice-Chair), Ms. Heather McPherson, M.P. (Vice Chair), Ms. Yasmin Ratansi, M.P. (Counsellor). Representatives from Global Affairs Canada provided an update about the overall current situation in Africa with regards to COVID-19 and other political, economic and social regional issues related to countries such as : Ethiopia, Tanzania, Uganda, Mali and other countries. The update was followed by a session of questions and answers. Senior representatives from the Parliamentary Centre offered a presentation about its mission, projects and initiatives as well as opportunities for engagement with parliamentarians. The presentation was followed by a discussion with parliamentarians.

On 17 and 18 February, a delegation from the Canadian Group of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (UIPU) participated in the Inter-Parliamentary Union’s (IPU) Annual Parliamentary Hearing at the United Nations. Held in a virtual format for the first time, the theme of this year’s annual hearing was Fighting corruption to restore trust in government and improve development prospects. Senator Salma Ataullahjan, Senator Marilou McPhedran, Hon. David McGuinty, PC, MP, Ms. Marilène Gill, MP, and Ms. Stephanie Kusie, MP participated in the event .

The hearing included remarks by United Nations General Assembly President Volkan Bozkir, and IPU President, Duarte Pacheco, as well as a video address from United Nations Secretary-General, António Guterres. The keynote speech, entitled How corruption undermines democracy and development: the need for parliamentary engagement, was delivered by Ms. Delia Ferreira Rubio, Chair of the Board of Transparency International. During a panel on gender-sensitive anti-corruption policies, Senator McPhedran made a statement highlighting gender parity in the Senate of Canada and gender-sensitive aspects of the Government of Canada’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic as best practices and asked panelists about the role of gender quotas for members of parliaments in the fight against corruption.

During a panel on key anti-corruption measures, Senator Ataullahjan asked panelists how anti-corruption measures can be better designed to facilitate effective enforcement and implementation and Mr. McGuinty highlighted the effectiveness of imposing targeted sanctions against corrupt foreign officials, such as through Canada’s Sergei Magnitsky Law.