COMMONWEALTH PARLIAMENTARY ASSOCIATION BRANCH EXECUTIVE MEETING MINUTES

Transcription

1 COMMONWEALTH PARLIAMENTARY ASSOCIATION BRANCH EXECUTIVE MEETING Meeting Date: Tuesday 11 October 2011 Present: Joyce Watson AM, Chair Mohammad Asghar AM William Powell AM Simon Thomas AM MINUTES Natalie Drury-Styles, Acting Branch Secretary Al Davies, Branch Secretariat 1. APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE. None Received 2. MINUTES OF THE LAST MEETING Attendees present concurred with the minutes of the previous meeting 3. MATTERS ARISING FROM MINUTES. None. 4. REVIEW OF RECENT ACTIVITIES Feedback and follow-up of recent events and conferences CPA Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference (CPC) London, July The Chair gave a short verbal report of her attendance at this summer s CPC in Westminster hosted by the CPA UK Branch. Of particular interest to her had been the meeting of the Commonwealth 1

2 Women Parliamentarians (CWP) which had included presentations by countries including Nigeria and Rwanda (which at present has the world s highest percentage of women elected parliamentarians). There were many positive developments relating to women s issues within Africa and also in India but clearly a long way to go. Education of women, particularly within developing countries, was clearly of paramount importance. The Chair also noted the influence and potential of social networking on the development of opportunities for women discussed at the meeting. The Chair added that as well as the positive developments the CWP had also been insightful with regards learning of the considerable obstacles and prejudice faced by women in politics in some commonwealth countries. These, along with an account of the conference in general would be discussed in the report. William Powell AM commented that the issues discussed at the CWP might be of interest to the Assembly s Cross Party Group on Women in democracy, on which he sits. Mohammad Asghar AM, who attended the CPC as an observer, gave a brief account of the conference to supplement his written report. He mentioned in particular how he had highlighted at the conference the professional training and support offered to Members by the Assembly Commission which was of interest to other parliamentarians. The Branch Secretariat also gave an overview of the Regional (BIMR) AGM at which he had accompanied Members and of which a formal note was provided for reference. Commonwealth Youth Parliament (CYP) 6-9 September 2011 The Chair informed the Branch that given that this was a rare opportunity for the Branch to invite young people to attend a CYP so close to home at minimal cost, we had been keen to take advantage of this invitation issued during the summer recess. The Branch had therefore worked with our Outreach Service and selected two recommended young people, through the Young Farmers Wales Forum to invite. Both Aled Jones & Steffan Evans were very grateful to the CPA Wales Branch for this excellent opportunity, which had culminated in a debate with their peers from across the Commonwealth on Climate Change in the House of Lords and their report clearly reflected the very positive impact which the conference has had on them. This led to a broader conversation about extending opportunities for Welsh young people to attend CPA conferences and events beyond Funky Dragon, as had previously been the default case. In light of this recent positive experience of working with the YFW through the 2

3 Outreach Service Members agreed that this approach should be used again with other suitable young people s organisations. Action Point: Branch Secretariat to discuss with the Assembly Outreach Team. Recent visits to / by Commonwealth Countries Inward visit by delegation from the Parliament of Western Australia This one day visit the previous week had been arranged in conjunction with the Assembly s Committee Services as the Western Australian delegation were primarily interested in meeting with the Chair and Members of our Constitutional & Legislative Affairs Committee (CLAC) to discuss areas of mutual interest. Inward visit by Prince Seeiso, Lesotho High Commissioner The Presiding Officer had met with the High Commissioner, Prince Seeiso, the previous day. The High Commissioner will shortly be leaving his diplomatic post after six years and returning to Lesotho so this was an opportunity to wish him well. Discussions had also touched upon our Branch s links with the Lesotho Parliament since 2005 including the successes and challenges highlighted by the Wales- Lesotho Legacy report. 5. FORWARD PLANNING Forthcoming Conferences/Meetings 9 th CPA Canadian Parliamentary Seminar, Ottawa, October 2011 The Chair wished William Powell AM well at the seminar the following week and looked forward to learning of his experience and contribution to the seminar upon his return. CPA IPC on Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), Westminster 28 November 02 December 2011 The Chair noted that unfortunately, despite some early expressions of interest from Members, none were able to attend the full conference and it was therefore with regret that the Branch had withdrawn from this conference. 3

4 22 nd Commonwealth Parliamentary Seminar, New Delhi, India November 2011 Given that the CPA India Seminar, originally intended to take place in Kerala in September, had now changed both dates and location at such late notice it was decided that the Branch would not take up the place offered at the seminar. Action Point: Branch Secretary to notify CPA HQ and CPA India Branch organisers. BIMR Conference, Edinburgh 12 June 2012 An early notification was given of the location and provisional date of the next Regional conference to be hosted by the CPA Scotland Branch. Forthcoming Events Visit by the Destiny Africa Children s Choir (Uganda) The Chair informed Members that the Branch Secretariat had, since the last meeting, met with both the event organisers and the Urdd. The Outreach Team were also liaising with youth organisations to invite them to attend the event. The Presiding Officer s suggestion of inviting the Only Boys Allowed choir to perform at the event was also looked into. This was unfortunately not practical for this particular event but their participation could be looked at again for future events, such as the Branch s Commonwealth Day celebrations next March The Branch agreed to contribute towards the cost of the choir s overnight accommodation in the Urdd hostel, on the basis that: - there was a precedent for this, for instance with the Assembly having paid for young people s accommodation so that they could attend the Royal Opening; and - that the overall cost of the visit would cost no more than that of last year, with savings being made with the evening catering. Action Point: Branch Secretariat to organise this and manage event finance to ensure it comes in on budget as agreed. Forthcoming Visits Scheduled and Proposed Sir Alan Haslehurst MP, CPA Executive Committee Chair date tbc 4

5 The Regional Secretary Andrew Tuggey had contacted the Branch to indicate that Sir Alan Haslehurst MP, the recently elected CPA Executive Committee Chair would like to visit the CPA Wales Branch. This would provide an excellent opportunity for the Branch to formally meet Sir Alan and to discuss areas of interest and priorities for our Branch. The Secretariat was therefore requested to arrange this visit at a suitably convenient date and it was suggested that the BEC could host a lunch for Sir Alan Haslehurst and also an opportunity where other Assembly Branch Members could meet with him. Action Point: Branch Secretariat to organise visit. Branch Sponsorship Scheme Darren Millar AM South Africa (October 2011) Members were contacted over the Summer recess and approved Darren Millar AM s proposed visit to the Republic of South Africa under the CPA Wales Branch Sponsorship Scheme. Darren had submitted a draft programme which included proposed visits with parliamentarians within the Western Cape Province and also Community Faith Group Leaders. The Chair confirmed that Darren Millar AM would as a condition of the visit be submitting a formal post visit report and the Branch also decided to invite Darren to give a supplementary verbal report of his visit at the next meeting. Action Point: Branch Secretariat to issue invitation to Darren Millar AM to attend the next meeting. 6. DATE OF NEXT MEETINGS: 15 November NEW ITEMS / ANY OTHER BUSINESS Wales-Lesotho Legacy Report Members were requested to consider this report and its recommendations for discussion at the next BEC Meeting in November. Branch Secretariat October