CPA NEWS SPEAKERS FROM UK AND OVERSEAS TERRITORIES MEET IN ANGUILLA FOR DISCUSSIONS ON DEEPENING PARLIAMENTARY DEMOCRACY
The 2nd Commons and Overseas Territories Speakers’ Conference (COTSC) has been held at the Anguilla House of Assembly from 3 to 5 April 2023 on a theme of ‘Deepening Parliamentary Democracy in the British Overseas Territories - A Roadmap to 2030’. The conference was hosted by the Speaker of the Anguilla House of Assembly, Hon. Barbara Webster-Bourne. Speaker WebsterBourne is also the CPA Small Branches Vice-Chairperson. Commonwealth Speakers and representatives attended from Anguilla, Bermuda, Cayman Islands, Falkland Islands, Montserrat, St Helena, Turks and Caicos and Gibraltar as well as the United Kingdom. The conference continued the discussions at the inaugural COTSC hosted by Rt Hon. Sir Lindsay Hoyle, MP, Speaker of the UK House of Commons in the UK in 2022, where it was noted that well-structured and resourced Legislatures are essential to a vibrant democracy in the Overseas Territories. At this year’s conference, the Speakers, alongside Parliamentary Clerks and constitutional experts, examined different aspects of building strong Legislatures and effective parliamentary democracy. Over a series of sessions, deliberations provided a roadmap to supporting good governance in each Overseas Territory. The CPA Headquarters’ Head of Programmes, Matthew Salik also presented on the CPA’s Democratic Benchmarks and Model Law for Parliaments which provide frameworks for excellence in Commonwealth parliamentary and legislative practice. All the Legislatures attending are Branches of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association across two of the CPA’s Regions - the CPA British Islands and Mediterranean Region and the CPA Caribbean, Americas and the Atlantic Region.
ANGUILLA ASSEMBLY ENDORSES NEW CODE OF CONDUCT AND REGISTER OF INTERESTS
The Anguilla House of Assembly passed a motion approving a new Code of Conduct and Register of Interests for Members on 28 March 2023. The new regulations were developed by the Administration Committee of the Anguilla House of Assembly with support from the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) through a Technical Assistance Programme. The motion, presented by Hon. Dee-Ann Kentish-Rogers, acknowledged ‘the community’s expectations of high standards from their elected representatives as well as the desire of Members of this honourable House to enhance propriety and to strengthen the community’s trust in the Assembly’. The new Code of Conduct and Register of Interests will require Members to abide by a set of principles, establishes the position of Commissioner of Standards, outlines a process for dealing with breaches of the Code (including sanctions) and requires Members to submit a declaration of interests. In December 2022, Tom Duncan, Clerk of the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly, visited Anguilla to help draft the new Code of Conduct and Register of Interests, guided by the CPA’s Recommended Benchmarks for Codes of Conduct applying to Members of Parliament. This was one of several activities outlined in CPA’s Technical Assistance Programme. Other activities included a review of the Standing Orders, a Governance, Organisational and Administrative review and the development of outreach and educational resources. Hon. Barbara Webster-Bourne, Speaker of the Anguilla House of Assembly, said: “We are appreciative of the partnership that we have forged over the years with the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association’s Headquarters. The technical expertise provided by Tom Duncan of the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly, under the auspices of the CPA HQ, and the spirit in which it was delivered were an integral part of the process and its success. We look forward to building on that relationship.”
CPA SUPPORTS ANGUILLA WITH NEW EDUCATION VIDEO FOR SCHOOLS
The Commonwealth Parliamentary Association has supported the launch of new education resources with the Anguilla House of Assembly aimed at helping students to learn about democracy and the work of the Legislature. A new educational video produced in partnership with the CPA Headquarters will be used in schools as a tool to educate students about the work of the Assembly. The Speaker of the Anguilla House of Assembly, Hon. Barbara WebsterBourne, said: "If we are to strengthen our democratic systems, our young people as the inheritors of these systems must be educated about those systems and the values that hold them together." The Speaker also expressed her "sincerest appreciation to the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association Secretariat for their ongoing commitment to the Anguilla House of Assembly." The CPA Headquarters has been working with the Anguilla House of Assembly and CPA Anguilla Branch on CPA Technical Assistance Programme. The CPA Headquarters also engaged a Creative Digital Intern who worked on the video resource project.
The Parliamentarian | 2023: Issue Two | 100 years of publishing | 111