The Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) successfully concluded its 152nd Assembly, hosted by the Grand National Assembly of Türkiye in Istanbul from 15-19 April 2026. The “parliament of parliaments” drew over 1,500 delegates, including more than 720 parliamentarians from 126 countries. Women comprised 37% of lawmakers present. Some 13% of the parliamentarians attending were under 40. The high-level […]
The Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) will elect its ninth Secretary General at the 152nd IPU Assembly, which will be held in Istanbul, Türkiye from 15 to 19 April 2026. The Secretary General serves as the Chief Executive of the Organization, overseeing the management of the Secretariat and reporting directly to the IPU Governing Council. Together with the President, the […]
The Inter Parliamentary Union (IPU) will convene its 152nd Assembly in Istanbul, Türkiye, from 15 to 19 April 2026. Hosted by the Grand National Assembly of Türkiye, the overall theme of the event is Nurturing hope, securing peace and ensuring justice for future generations. Against a backdrop of unfolding and ongoing wars, with severe humanitarian consequences, in […]
From Monday 16 March to Thursday 19 March BGIPU welcomed a visit to London by a delegation from the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine. The delegation was led by Lesia Vasylenko MP, Chair of the UK Friendship Group in the Verkhovna Rada, who was joined by Yehor Cherniev MP, Andrii Zhupanyn MP, Larysa Bilozir MP, Iryna […]
Following a very successful delegation to the UK from the Parliament of Moldova in November 2024 and a brief fact-finding visit by Anneliese Dodds and John Whittingdale last September, this outward delegation to Moldova and then onto Romania from 1 to 5 March 2026 was much anticipated. The delegation was very balanced and harmonious. I […]
From 26 to 28 January 2026 BGIPU welcomed to Westminster a delegation from Poland for a bilateral visit to the British Parliament. The delegation was led by Senator Gabriela Morawska-Stanecka, Vice-President of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), and included Senator Stanisław Gawłowski and Senator Wiktor Durlak. As well as members of the Sejm of the Republic […]
This was a long overdue outward delegation to the Swedish Riksdag to find out more about Sweden’s current political situation in the run-up to Parliamentary elections on 13th September this year and to get a feel for the state of the economy and society in a country regarded as one of our closest allies. The […]
In the lead-up to Human Rights Day, the IPU has published its latest data on human rights violations against parliamentarians. The data is compiled by the IPU Committee on the Human Rights of Parliamentarians, a unique international complaints mechanism with the specific mandate to defend the human rights of MPs. In 2025, the Committee reviewed a record 1,027 individual […]
From Monday 24 November to Wednesday 26 November BGIPU hosted a delegation from Lithuania led by Radvile Morkunaite-Mikuleniene, Deputy Speaker of the Seimas. She was joined by fellow Seimas members Ramunas Vyzintas and Modesta Petrauskaite, and the delegation was also accompanied by Asta Skirmantiene, Senior Adviser at the Seimas International Relations Unit, as well as […]
The IPU hosted another round of high-level parliamentary talks between Armenia and Azerbaijan this week during the 151st IPU Assembly in Geneva, Switzerland. On 21 October 2025, IPU Secretary General Martin Chungong welcomed the Speaker of the Azgayin Zhoghov (National Assembly of Armenia), Mr. Alen Simonyan, and the Speaker of the Milli Mejlis (National Assembly […]
