Month: September 2024

A polling station in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia on June 28, 2024. © Hector RETAMAL / AFP

IPU observes that super election year sees few gains for women MPs so far

The first eight months of 2024 have seen limited progress in women’s representation in parliaments worldwide according to the IPU’s mid-year provisional analysis. With roughly half the world’s population going to the polls in 2024, the year started with high hopes that women’s representation would increase in the lead-up to thirtieth anniversary next year of the Beijing Declaration and […]

The 148th Assembly in March 2024, Geneva. ©IPU

149th IPU Assembly to focus on Artificial Intelligence, science and technology

Hundreds of parliamentarians from around the world will gather in Geneva for the 149th IPU Assembly, taking place from 13-17 October 2024. Under the overarching theme: Harnessing science, technology, and innovation for a more peaceful and sustainable future, legislators will consider parliamentary action to maximize the benefits, but also mitigate the risks, of new technologies, with a particular focus […]

UN Photo/Loey Felipe

IPU welcomes enhanced role for parliaments in UN Pact for the Future

The Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) welcomes the UN General Assembly’s adoption of the Pact for the Future, a landmark initiative to reboot multilateralism and address 21st-century challenges. The IPU particularly welcomes Action 55 of the Pact, which recognizes the importance of “United Nations engagement with national parliaments in United Nations intergovernmental bodies and processes, in accordance with […]

UK delegation meets State Secretary Latvian MFA, Andzejs Vilumson.

UK delegation to Latvia spotlights strength of relations & support for Ukraine

A small but perfectly formed delegation of myself, John Whittingdale MP, Baroness Ros Scott, John Slinger MP and Joe Perry (IPU) travelled to Latvia between Sunday 15 and Wednesday 18 September for a short but intensive programme. That this was only the second outward IPU delegation of the new Parliament underlines the point made many […]

Delegation with the British Ambassador and their team.

UK delegation to Berlin engage on foreign policy concerns and growing cooperation

This first BGIPU outward visit of the new Parliament saw a small, balanced group of four parliamentarians plus the wonderful Mathilde Ollivo of the BGIPU travel to Berlin for a series of high-level meetings at the Bundestag as well as visits to the Bundesrat, British Embassy and British Council. Given that the Prime Minister and […]

Two women collect water from a fresh-water source in Bangladesh, April 2024. ©Zabed Hasnain Chowdhury/NurPhoto via AFP

IPU equips parliamentarians with new tools for peace and security with new publication

The Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) has published a new toolkit designed to equip parliamentarians worldwide with innovative approaches to address conflict and promote peace. Human security and common security to build peace offers a comprehensive guide for legislators to tackle security challenges both domestically and internationally. Conflicts on the rise The 2024 Global Peace Index, a leading measure of […]

IPU making preparations for the 149th IPU Assembly in Geneva in mid-October

The 149th Assembly of the IPU will take place in Geneva, Switzerland, on 13-17 October 2024. All IPU statutory bodies, including the Governing Council, Standing Committees, Committees on the Human Rights of Parliamentarians and on Middle East Questions, as well as the Forum of Women Parliamentarians and the Forum of Young MPs, will meet on […]

The Common Principles for Support to Parliaments outlines 10 ways that parliaments can become stronger and more effective.

Celebrating 10 years of adoption of the Common Principles for Support to Parliaments

The Common Principles for Support to Parliaments outlines 10 ways that parliaments can become stronger and more effective. Their core tenet is that parliaments are responsible for their own development while taking an inclusive approach by involving all political persuasions, as well as parliamentary staff and other relevant stakeholders. The Common Principles were first drafted 10 years […]