In my last “View from the Chair”, I expressed my gratitude to the Parliament of Sri Lanka for hosting our Annual Conference and praised the delegates in attendance for working so hard to ensure it was a productive and worthwhile event. CPC 2012 marks the end of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association calendar for 2012 and so now is a good time to look ahead to the coming year; there is a great deal to be hopeful about! As I write this, the 5th Commonwealth Youth
Parliament (CYP) is taking place in London; this is the first of the annual CYPs, approved by the Executive Committee in Sri Lanka as a fixture in the CPA calendar. With the Speaker of Andhra Pradesh observing this year’s, I am confident that Legislatures will be eager to take up the baton in future years. The Commonwealth Youth Parliamentarians I have had the pleasure to meet are enthusiastic, engaged and eager to make as much of the opportunity as possible. If they are representative of the next generation of Parliamentarians, I am optimistic for the future. In Sri Lanka, the Commonwealth Women Parliamentarians’ Steering Committee took on board a number of the proposals I had sent them for consideration. I am pleased that they accepted my suggestion and that more funding will be found to support regional CWPs. We must work towards building step by step active CWP structures in every region to ensure programmes and outreach work can be developed. I am a passionate believer in gender equality and I believe we must all continue to campaign to promote the CWP and to ensure it becomes the lead women’s parliamentary caucus in the Commonwealth. The recent International Parliamentary Conference on Gender in Politics in London in November was attended by the CWP Chairperson, Hon. Speaker Alix Boyd-Knights, MNA, Vice- Chairperson Ms Myrna Driedger, MLA, and former Vice-Chairperson Rt Hon. Rebecca Kadaga, MP. I am certain its workshops and discussion sessions will produce positive long-term results at national and grass-roots levels. Since the Annual Conference, I have travelled to Cape Town, South Africa,
and met with the CPA President, Chairperson Mahlangu, as well as the CPC 2013 organizing team. I am extremely confident that next year’s conference will be well organized and efficiently run. Additionally, I chaired the Co-ordinating Committee, which met in early December in London and was also attended by the Vice-Chairperson, the Treasurer and the Secretary-General. The meeting
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was productive, covering a range of topics concerning next year’s programmes and activities. To improve the transparency of the committee, the meeting was minuted and those minutes will be disseminated to the CPA Executive Committee. At the meeting I stressed the importance to the CPA of concentrating
on wider engagement with the Commonwealth. As mentioned in Sri Lanka, I shall shortly be writing to every Speaker and Presiding Officer, encouraging them to ensure that on or close to Commonwealth Day every Chamber should have a debate dedicated to the Commonwealth and hopefully the CPA. The CPA must also play an active role in promoting
Rt Hon. Sir Alan Haselhurst, MP, United Kingdom, and Chairperson of the CPA Executive Committee
the Commonwealth Charter, which was approved by the Commonwealth Foreign Ministers Meeting in New York in September. We have a responsibility as a leading Commonwealth organization to play our part in promoting and publicizing the Charter, and especially those aspects pertaining to democracy, the rule of law and good governance as well as other articles relating to our work. Unfortunately, the Commonwealth does not rank as
highly as it should in the foreign policy priorities of many Commonwealth governments, Parliaments and, most importantly, the public. As Parliamentarians, we have the capacity and influence to raise its profile and educate our constituents on its
values and relevance. In London, I am committed to working with as many Commonwealth civil society organizations as I can to strengthen our shared purpose and ideals. I hope that this work will continue to build momentum until the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in November 2013, where our aspiration is to hold a Commonwealth Democracy Forum concurrently with the main Heads of Government Meeting. The Secretary-General and I will continue to work to develop this project. Other key events in 2013 include our Mid-Year Executive Committee
Meeting, which the Legislative Assembly of the Cayman Islands and its Speaker, Hon. Mary J. Lawrence, MBE, JP, have generously agreed to host in March. One core issue for discussion will be the report on the CPA Headquarters Secretariat staffing review, which was conducted by Cass Business School. Having seen the report, I am positive that implementation of its recommendations will lead to an even more effective Secretariat and will be to the great benefit of the Association. As ever, I also remain committed to seeking resolution on the issue of