Interparliamentary Activities and Reports

This meeting – held in the context of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe’s Parliamentary Assembly (OSCE PA) Call for Action – Helsinki +50 initiative – focused on challenges to the effective functioning of the OSCE due to Russia’s war in Ukraine. The meeting included interventions by OSCE PA President Margareta Cederfelt; Secretary General Roberto Montella; Director of the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) Matteo Mecacci; Allison Hart, Senior Advisor/Chief of Staff to the OSCE Secretary General; and Doug Wake, former US diplomat and senior OSCE official. During the open debate, participants spoke about the need for continued international support for the OSCE to ensure it has the funding necessary to continue its peace and security work.

On 29 May 2023, the Executive Committee of the Canada–United Kingdom Inter-Parliamentary Association (RUUK) hosted a meeting with the Speaker of the United Kingdom House of Commons, Sir Lindsay Hoyle, M.P.; Deputy Speaker of the United Kingdom House of Commons, Nigel Evans, M.P.; and British High Commissioner to Canada, Her Excellency Susannah Goshko. James Maloney, M.P., Chair of RUUK, provided opening remarks, to which Speaker Hoyle responded. What followed was a lively discussion about the two countries’ shared commitment to Ukraine’s defence, the use of trade to advance common international objectives, and strategies to protect parliamentarians and their staff.

On May 29, 2023, Ms. Iqra Khalid, M.P., Vice Chair of the Canadian Branch of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association met with the Rt. Hon. Sir Lindsay Hoyle, Speaker of the United Kingdom (U.K.) House of Commons, the Rt. Hon. Nigel Evans, Deputy Speaker of the U.K. House of Commons and Susannah Goshko, the British High Commissioner to Canada. Meeting participants discussed negotiations towards a Canada–U.K. free trade agreement (FTA), noting the importance of working together to create joint programs and share professional expertise in sectors such as artificial intelligence and defence. Further, participants identified the need for the FTA to include mechanisms to facilitate foreign credential recognition between Canada and the U.K. The importance of relationships between Commonwealth countries was also discussed, and Ms. Khalid shared her experience attending seminars and events hosted by the U.K. Branch of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association.

Plastic pollution can alter habitats and natural processes, reducing ecosystems' ability to adapt to climate change, affecting millions of people's livelihoods, food production capabilities and social well-being at large. Building on the momentum of the United Nations resolution adopted in March 2022 to end plastic pollution and forge an international legally binding agreement by 2024, this meeting explored how this global plastic treaty can help parliaments in creating legislation and support new collaborative complementary actions to reduce plastic production and foster a circular plastics economy.

On May 23, the Permanent Delegation of the APF Bureau—consisting of Francis Drouin, President; Bruno Fuchs, Parliamentary Secretary General; Faustin Boukoubi, First Vice-President; Mars Di Bartolomeo, Treasurer; and the six Vice-Presidents—met by videoconference. Participants discussed upcoming major APF meetings and international events in 2023, such as the 48th Session of the APF, the Regional Francophone Youth Parliament in Benin and the Ministerial Conference of La Francophonie in Yaoundé. Discussions also touched on updating the budget to account for new resources and revising APF regulations when future statutes are adopted.