Through its programme of activities, the BGIPU seeks to engage Parliamentarians in key global issues and works to expand awareness and understanding of foreign relations and the contribution to be made by the UK Parliament to consolidate parliamentary democracy worldwide.
Here you can read the reports of our activities, including our Outward Delegations, IPU conferences and events and inward visits to Westminster.
You can search for specific reports by using keywords, themes, categories or date using the fields on the right.
From 18-20 June, BGIPU hosted the Speaker of the Uruguayan House of Representatives, Mr Jorge Gandini, for a 3 day programme at Westminster. Mr Gandini was accompanied by his party colleague Mr Gustavo Penades MP and Mr Roberto Chiazzaro MP, Member of the ruling Frente Amplio Party. The visit reinforced the already close relationship between the two countries and showed how helpful and important regular personal contact remains in the field of parliamentary diplomacy.
At an event arranged by the Chair of the APPG for Human Rights, Rt Hon Ann Clwyd MP, and attended by members of the APPG for Malaysia led by its Chair, Sir William Cash MP, the UK Parliament warmly welcomed the recent full pardon of Anwar Ibrahim, the former Deputy Prime Minister of Malaysia. In his comments to MPs and Peers, Mr Anwar recognised the important role parliamentarians had played in supporting his struggle for justice, particularly through the work of the IPU Committee on the Human Rights of Parliamentarians.
A BGIPU delegation, led by our Chair Nigel Evans MP, visited Bosnia & Herzegovina during the Whitsun Recess (27th May – 1st June) to meet with parliamentary counterparts. This visit consolidated the close links between the UK Parliament and the various Parliaments of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and was an important precursor to BGIPU’s upcoming International Seminar on the Western Balkans in September.
Belarus is a country of contradictions. On this visit I had expected to be see a drab, dour and austere country, redolent of so many east European countries after the fall of the Berlin Wall. What I found was an attractive country and a well maintained and occasionally picturesque capital city. There is, however, another side to Belarus, which at first glance is not so apparent, but is very real. Below the ‘skin’ of Belarus, there is a country that is still a presidential dictatorship.
From 28th May to 1st June BGIPU Vice-Chair Rt Hon John Whittingdale OBE MP led a cross-party delegation of six MPs to Belarus, the second only since Independence. The programme was busy and varied, including meetings with counterparts, government representatives, and visits to manufacturing facilities, the Opera House, Nesvizh Castle and meetings civil society. The delegation left with the impression that Belarus is a country somewhat overlooked by the UK both politically and economically and were determined to change that.
The United Nations General Assembly has adopted its latest resolution on the interaction between the United Nations, parliaments and the IPU. The resolution, co-sponsored by over 90 UN Member States, reaffirms the commitment of all parties to continue efforts to bridge the democracy gap between the international agenda and its implementation at the national level. The resolution recognizes particularly the work of the IPU in mobilizing parliamentary action to implement the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals.
Chair of the APPG on the UN Global Goals, Lord McConnell attended the Development Cooperation Forum at the UN HQ in New York 21-22 May 2018 with BGIPU support. Having also attended previous meetings, he found that there continues to be a wide acceptance of the Global Goals and a willingness to talk about building national strategies and domestic capacity to deliver them. But he sees insufficient progress on data collection, measuring results, and targeting resources requiring further attention and prioritisation.
From 14-18 May a cross-party parliamentary delegation from Lithuania led by former Prime Minister Mr Andrius Kubilius MP from the opposition Homeland Union and five colleagues visited UK Parliament and the Welsh Assembly. The delegation visited at a pivotal time in parliamentary consideration of the EU Withdrawal Bill and was able to gain significant insights into not only the process but many of the motivations behind Brexit. They also shared common perceptions with UK counterparts on the hybrid and multi-dimensional threat posed by Russia.
In a delegation visit to Nepal 6-12 May 2018 led by BGIPU Nigel Evans MP, UK MPs and Peers were impressed by the detemination of the people of Nepal after such hardship and misfortune to take positive and outward looking steps for its future. With its new political system in place and earthquake reconstruction efforts advancing, the delegation was given every expectation Nepal would be able to continue on a path to improving economic development and greater prosperity for all its people.
From 7-11 May 2018, a parliamentary delegation from Liberia visited the UK for a five-day visit. This visit was key in re-establishing ties between the Liberian Parliament and the UK Parliament, especially given that Liberia – although not currently a Member of the IPU – was one of the original founding member parliaments of the organisation in 1889. This visit was a notable success with the delegation expressing a keen desire to rejoin the IPU.
