Canadian Group of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (UIPU)

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.

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, and Sven Spengemann, M.P., member of the Bureau of the IPU Committee on Democracy and Human Rights, were invited to an informal virtual meeting of the Twelve Plus Group’s Steering Committee on 15 February 2021. They joined other delegates from Belgium, France, Romania, Serbia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Ukraine and the United Kingdom who also hold offices on the four standing committees of the IPU. Arda Gerkens (Netherlands) chaired the meeting, her first since being elected to the position by the Twelve Plus Group membership on 26 October 2020. Attendees were briefed on developments at the IPU’s recent Executive Committee meetings. They also discussed various administrative matters in anticipation of future decision-making meetings of the geopolitical group.

The Twelve Plus Group is a collective of 47 IPU member states that caucus together to discuss key issues and coordinate action regarding IPU matters.

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 third sitting of the 285th session of the International Executive Committee which took place virtually on 8 February 2021. Members continued their consideration of the legislative situation in Venezuela as well as recent developments in Myanmar. They also received an update regarding efforts to achieve universal membership. The International Executive Committee also approved various administrative matters for recommendation to the Governing Council at its next session.

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.

On 20 January 2021, the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) organized a webinar entitled, “Reforming the Security Council: When?”, the third in a series of briefings for parliamentarians on United Nations processes. The event brought together approximately 120 participants from over 40 countries, including eight members of the Canadian Group of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (UIPU) : Senator Rob Black, Senator Patti LaBoucane-Benson, Senator Marilou McPhedran, Senator Kate Pate, Senator Mohamed-Iqbal Ravalia, Senator Raymonde Saint-Germain, Ms. Iqra Khalid, MP, and Mr. Sameer Zuberi, MP. The briefing began with summaries of three proposals for UN Security Council reform as presented by a representative of each proposing group: Italy on behalf of the Uniting for Consensus group (to which Canada belongs); India of the G4 group comprising as well Brazil, Japan and Germany; and the Ezulwini Consensus on behalf of the African group. The session highlighted points of convergence, such as general agreement that the membership of the Security Council should be increased in order to improve representation of underrepresented regions. Participants also heard diverging views about expanding the categories of membership (e.g., longer-term seats), increasing the number of permanent members, as well as extending veto authority and limiting its application.

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 a session of the International Executive Committee by videoconference on 18 January 2021. The meeting was the first one chaired by the new IPU President, Duarte Pacheco (Portugal), who was elected at the 206th Extraordinary Virtual Session of the IPU’s Governing Council in November 2020. Members discussed several items related to the IPU’s calendar of events, including the 142nd Assembly. They also considered the future direction of the IPU, specifically the modalities for developing the organization’s Strategy 2022–2026 and for achieving universal membership. The International Executive Committee expects to hold additional meetings to continue the discussion on these and other matters.

Members of the Canadian Group of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (UIPU) were invited to participate in the Third Expert Roundtable on the Common Principles for Support to Parliaments co-organized by the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) and the Parliament of Uganda. The roundtable took place virtually on December 9, 2020 and featured presentations by several experts and parliamentarians from around the world who engage in parliamentary monitoring and evaluation. Participants raised several aspects of parliamentary monitoring and evaluation, notably its relationship with accountability, public trust, and the importance of buy-in on the part of all stakeholders.