COMMONWEALTH PARLIAMENTARY ASSOCIATION
NORTHERN IRELAND ASSEMBLY BRANCH – EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE - Tuesday 28 May 2024
Present:
Mr Jonathan Buckley MLA, Chair
Dr Steve Aiken MLA
Mr Keith Buchanan MLA
Mr Stewart Dickson MLA
Mr Paul Frew MLA
Ms Michelle McIlveen MLA
Apologies:
Mr Trevor Clarke MLA
Also In attendance:
Mrs Lesley Hogg, Clerk/Chief Executive
Ms Stephanie Mallon, Branch Secretary
Mrs Clare Maguire, Public Engagement Manager
Mrs Caroline Moore, Participation and Outreach Manager
Mrs Nicola Crawford, Parliamentary Engagement (Minutes)
1. WELCOME
The Chair welcomed Executive Committee Members of the CPA NI Assembly Branch to the meeting. The Chair also welcomed back the Members who attended the BIMR Conference in St. Helena.
2. APOLOGIES
Apologies were received from Mr Trevor Clarke MLA.
3. MINUTES OF PREVIOUS MEETING
The minutes were agreed.
Proposed by: Ms Michelle McIlveen MLA.
Seconded by: Dr Steve Aiken MLA.
4. BIMR CONFERENCE
The Chair advised Members that the annual British Isles and Mediterranean Region (BIMR) conference took placein St. Helena from the 20 – 24 May.
Dr Steve Aiken MLA, Mr Phillip Brett MLA, Mr Paul Frew MLA and Ms Michelle McIlveen MLA, accompanied by Mrs Lesley Hogg, attended the conference and the resulting report will be drafted for inclusion in the next meeting pack.
In response to the Chair’s invitation to reflect on their experiences, all attendees particularly noted that the conference presented excellent networking opportunities with other Commonwealth parliamentarians and especially those from smaller regions. Members noted that they had come away with an extensive list of contacts.
In addition, Ms McIlveen spoke of the opportunities to learn from, and provide learning to, other Commonwealth regions and Mr Frew stated that the conference had very interesting topics and was a great learning experience. Mrs Hogg noted that Members should be encouraged to participate in and engage with the CPA and take advantage of all the CPA activities and training available.
The hospitality and organisation of the conference was noted with Dr Aiken stated that the conference arrangements worked well. Mr Frew stated that the journey to St Helena was a long one and the island itself was very isolated, but he was very impressed by the friendliness of the people in St. Helena, which reminded him of home.
Ms McIlveen suggested that a letter of thanks be written to both the Chief Minister and the Speaker in St. Helena.
Thanks were noted to Assembly staff in supporting the Members’ participation and the research briefing provided by RaISe was particularly singled out as being instrumental in their conference input with Mr Frew describing the papers as being ‘second to none’.
ACTION: Letters of thanks to be drafted for the Chief Minister and Speaker of the St. Helena parliament.
5. PARTNER COUNTRIES
The Chair reminded Members of the intention to pursue partnerships with both the Gibraltar Parliament and the Legislative Assembly of Ontario. The Chair advised Members that a letter has been issued to the Speaker of the Gibraltar Parliament from the Chair, and a letter from the Speaker, as Branch President, will be issued to the Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario.
Dr Aiken advised that links with Gibraltar had been strengthened following the BIMR Conference.
6. VISIT BY CPA UK CHIEF EXECUTIVE
The Chair noted that Sarah Dickson OBE, the new Chief Executive Officer of CPA UK, has accepted the Executive Committee’s invitation to visit the Assembly. Unfortunately, she was not available to attend either this month’s meeting or the June meeting but the dates for the meetings in September and October have been sent to her and a response is pending.
7. COMMONWEALTH MEMORIALS
The Chair stated that at the last meeting it was agreed to further explore Commonwealth memorials, by contacting the Commonwealth Parliamentary Associations in Scotland and Wales to consider their interface with memorials, and the Commonwealth War Graves Commission.They have all been contacted and a response is awaited.
It was also agreed that the information on war memorials that has been sourced so far should be sent to Dr Christopher Stange, Consul General to St. Vincent and the Grenadines, as he had raised the matter at the Commonwealth Day event. This has now been issued and Dr Stange has been in contact to thank the Committee for the very useful information.
8. ELECTION OBSERVATION TRAINING
The Chair advised that it had been suggested at the last meeting to find out if it would be possible to hold Election Observation training specifically for CPA NI Assembly Branch Members. CPA UK were contacted and they advised that they do not offer additional training courses. They also advised that training does not expire and therefore, Members who have previously undertaken the training will not require refresher training in order to participate in missions.
The Chair asked for the Committee to be advised on which CPA Members have received election observation training.
Dr Aiken suggested that the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) may be able to provide election observation training. The Chair agreed that this could be looked into.
ACTION: Election observation training records to be checked and OSCE training to be investigated.
9. MEETINGS WITH UK CPA BRANCHES
The Chair stated that it had been agreed at the last meeting that the UK Parliament CPA Branch should be contacted and invited to participate in a meeting between the four UK-based CPA Branches. CPA UK have been contacted and we are awaiting a response. Once this has been received a meeting will be arranged between the Branch Chairs.
10. ANY OTHER BUSINESS
(i) Commonwealth Women Parliamentarians (CWP) Conference Report
The Chair advised Members that a report from the CWP Conference, held in Malta in March and attended by Ms Michelle McIlveen MLA, was in their meeting packs for them to note.
(ii) Letter to the former Chair & Executive Committee Members
The Chair advised that a letter from the Speaker as current President has now been issued to the former President Mr Alex Maskey.
(iii) Branch Strategy
The Chair advised that the CPA staff team is currently developing a draft strategy for the Branch and that he had met with the Branch Secretary to discuss initial proposals. The strategy will recognise the ambition of this Committee and outline plans and objectives for the Branch over the next three years. The draft strategy will be presented to the Executive Committee at our next meeting and at that stage the team will welcome input from all Members.
Members were content with this.
(iv) Annual General Meeting
The Chair stated that the current rules indicate that an AGM should be held in June each year. However, we held an AGM just three months ago in March to reconstitute the Branch, and therefore, our next AGM will be held in June 2025.
Members were content.
(v) Procedures Committee – Proxy Voting
Mr Dickson noted that the Committee for Procedures is currently considering proxy voting for those Members unable to attend Assembly Committee meetings and Plenary sittings, due to parental leave. He noted that the Committee for Procedures would welcome a response from the CPA Executive Committee on the matter.
There was a brief discussion about proxy voting (without confining it to specific circumstances or conditions) and Members indicated broad support for its use. While there was no additional time available to rehearse the subject at length, the CPA Executive Members were mindful that the Committee for Procedures are seeking views in advance of its 26 June meeting and directed that this broad position be communicated.
ACTION: Contact the Committee Clerk to the Committee for Procedures to note the Executive Committee’s broad support.
11. DATE OF THE NEXT MEETING
The next meeting will take place on Tuesday 17 September at 1.00pm in the Private Dining Room.
JONATHAN BUCKLEY MLA
CHAIR
