CPA Library

The Youth Parliament Toolkit contains expert advice on establishing, planning, running and promoting a Youth Parliament with additional case studies and evaluation methods.

The CPwD Disability Inclusion Guidelines provide guidance to Commonwealth Parliaments and Legislatures on how to enhance and sensitize their communications with persons with disabilities. This version was updated and published in May 2024.

As a result of extensive research and consultation with Parliaments across the world, the CPA ‘Standards for Codes of Conduct for Members of Parliament and the Parliamentary Workplace’ provides guidance for Parliaments and Legislatures. With the need for continuous improvement and tackling the additional challenges of harassment, bullying and abuse in the workplace as well as the challenges of new technology and online harms, the CPA Secretariat worked with Deakin University to develop an updated set of Standards for Codes of Conduct.

Following the launch of the new ‘Standards for Codes of Conduct for Members of Parliament and the Parliamentary Workplace’ for use by Parliaments and Legislatures, the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) has published a research report detailing the extensive background research and consultation with Parliaments across the world. The CPA Secretariat worked with Deakin University to develop the updated set of Standards for Codes of Conduct.

This handbook provides a comprehensive overview of disinformation, including its different forms and the various techniques used to spread it. It also covers the basics of AI and synthetic media, including their potential applications and implications for democracy, within and beyond the electoral cycle. You can also view the handbook on our ISSUU platform click here >

This new CPA Handbook for Parliaments in Election Planning is designed to assist Legislatures in planning for an election and the influx of Members of Parliament that follows with examples of best practice from across the Commonwealth.

This Handbook provides recommendations on how to adapt best practices for financial oversight to the resource and size limitations of smaller legislatures.

This Field Guide complements the 'CWP Gender Sensitising Parliaments Guidelines', providing a blueprint for Parliaments interested in undertaking a gender sensitive review and making their institution more inclusive and representative.

These guidelines have been created to help Commonwealth Parliaments to become gender sensitive institutions, providing legislatures with an outline of gender sensitising standards that they can look to achieve. 

The Handbook has been developed in partnership with the British Red Cross to support Parliamentarians in promoting International Humanitarian Law (IHL) and ensuring its effective implementation. 

This case study compilation introduces Workplace Equality & Diversity Networks (WEDNs) and provides examples of their use in Commonwealth Parliaments.

This toolkit provides guidance, advice and education on how to protect and promote the mental health and well-being of Parliamentarians and parliamentary staff.

This Handbook provides guidance to Commonwealth Parliaments and Legislatures on how to increase public engagement and outreach, to ensure the public get a greater say in how they are governed.

This CPA report outlines comparative information on the salaries, benefits and allowances of Members of Parliament throughout the Commonwealth in 2020-2021 and provides an update on previous reports completed in 2004-2005 and 2000-2001.

The CWP Anti-Harassment Policy Guidelines support Parliaments across the Commonwealth in the effort to both address and remove all traces of harassment across parliamentary workplaces.

The CPwD Disability Inclusion Guidelines provide guidance to Commonwealth Parliaments and Legislatures on how to enhance and sensitize their communications with persons with disabilities.

The CPwD Disability Inclusion Guidelines provide guidance to Commonwealth Parliaments and Legislatures on how to enhance and sensitize their communications with persons with disabilities.

The Toolkit seeks to support parliamentarians from small states and jurisdictions to increase their understanding of Climate Change and how best to ensure adaptation and mitigation strategies are in place domestically and internationally. 

This toolkit provides various measures and recommendations that can be adopted by both Parliaments and Parliamentarians in order to continue to deliver on the Legislatures’ role of scrutinising legislation and delivering democracy during a global pandemic.

The Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) has developed a Model Law for Independent Parliaments to help empower Parliaments to take control away from the Executive to ensure it has the administrative, operational and financial resources it needs to function effectively.

This Handbook serves as an information resource on the adoption of lay members into small states and territories' parliamentary systems.

This Commonwealth Day Youth Engagement Handbook serves as a toolkit on how the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association’s branches can use Commonwealth Day as a means of public outreach and engagement for young people.

Read the essential tips that all newly elected or appointed parliamentarians should become familiar with. 

This Handbook provides a practical guide to the development and operations of Constituency Development Funds and seeks to assist Parliamentarians and parliamentary staff throughout the Commonwealth in addressing the full range of issues arising from the emergence of such funds. 

Building on the Commonwealth Latimer House Principles on the separation of powers, the CPA Recommended Benchmarks for Democratic Legislatures provide a framework for excellence in Commonwealth parliamentary and legislative practice.

The Field Guide is a useful resource to support legislatures to conduct their own internal self-assessment against the CPA Recommended Benchmarks for Democratic Legislatures. 

The Benchmarks set out best practice in designing an effective set of codes of conduct for Members of Parliament to uphold.

The Commonwealth Charter is a document of the values and aspirations which unite the Commonwealth. It expresses the commitment of member states to the development of free and democratic societies and the promotion of peace and prosperity to improve the lives of all the people of the Commonwealth. The Charter also acknowledges the role of civil society in supporting the goals and values of the Commonwealth.

The Commonwealth Latimer House Principles (officially titled: Commonwealth (Latimer House) Principles on the Three Branches of Government) highlight the importance of the separation of powers between the Legislature, the Executive and the Judiciary to ensure effective governance and democracy. 

A new report highlights successes in the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association’s Good Governance Project, with funding from the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), to further parliamentary democracy and good governance across the Commonwealth.

Read the Final Report of the Parliament of Lesotho's self-assessment using the CPA's Recommended Benchmarks for Democratic Legislatures.

Read the Final Report of the Parliament of Samoa's self-assessment using the CPA's Recommended Benchmarks for Democratic Legislatures.

Read the Final Report of the Parliament of Kiribati's self-assessment using the CPA's Recommended Benchmarks for Democratic Legislatures.

Read the Final Report of the Parliament of Cayman Islands' self-assessment using the CPA's Recommended Benchmarks for Democratic Legislatures.

Read the Final Report of the Parliament of Maldives's self-assessment using the CPA's Recommended Benchmarks for Democratic Legislatures.

Read the Final Report of the Parliament of Namibia's self-assessment using the CPA's Recommended Benchmarks for Democratic Legislatures.

The Legislative Assembly of the Australian Capital Territory was the first CPA Branch to undertake a CWP Gender Sensitive Parliament Self-Assessment. The report shares the final outcomes and recommendations.

This report summarises the findings from the three-day CPA Small Branches Workshop on Disaster Risk Management, hosted in partnership with the Institute of Hazard, Risk and Resilience at Durham University in May 2023.

This dissertation, written by CWP Co-ordinator Bénite Dibateza, studies the extent to which policy learning as a parliamentary diplomacy activity to achieve gender equality is important for women parliamentarians engaged in the Commonwealth Women Parliamentarians network.

Read the outcomes report from the two-day CPA Seminar for Parliamentarians of the 12th Parliament of Guyana held from 10 to 11 May 2022.

This report provides the outcomes of a Commonwealth Parliamentary Association Post-Election Seminar held from 15 to 17 December 2021 for newly elected and returning Members of Parliament in The Bahamas.

Concluding Report of a Review of the Governance, Organisation and Administration of the Anguilla House of Assembly conducted with the support of the CPA in September 2021. 

Read the outcomes report from the three-day CPA Post-Election Seminar for the Parliament of the Cayman Islands held between 4 to 6 August 2021.

Read the outcomes report from the three-day CPA Post-Election Seminar for National Assembly of Belize held between 3 to 7 May 2021.

The outcomes report of the three-day CPA Post-Election Seminar for the Parliament of Trinidad and Tobago held between 22 February to 1 March 2021.

The outcomes report on the outcomes of the CPA Post-Election Seminar, Bermuda House of Assembly, held from 1-3 December 2020.

The outcomes report of the  CPA Post-Election Seminar for the Parliament of Dominica held in September 2020.

Read the Outcomes Report of the CPA Post-Election Seminar, Anguilla House of Assembly, held from 20-24 July 2020.

Read the Final Report of the Montserrat Legislative Assembly's self-assessment using the CPA Recommended Benchmarks for Democratic Legislatures.

The outcomes report of the 2019 CPA Small Branches Sustainable Economic Development Workshop, held in Valetta, Malta.

CPA's general information leaflet provides the latest information on how the CPA is organised, the programmes it delivers and how we share information with our membership and beyond. 

The Commonwealth Parliamentary Association Strategic Plan for 2022-2025 sets out its support for our membership of 180 Commonwealth Parliaments as well as how the organisation will advance and develop support to CPA Members through focusing on six core objectives and cross cutting themes that will be mainstreamed across CPA operations and workstreams.

Read the Constitution of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association

Find out what the CPA achieved in 2023, including information on programmes, partnerships and finances.

The Commonwealth Parliamentarians with Disabilities (CPwD) Strategic Plan 2021 - 2024 sets out the network's mission statement, outcomes, outputs and thematic priorities.

This is a plain-text, accessible version of the Commonwealth Parliamentarians with Disabilities (CPwD) Strategic Plan 2021 - 2024, which sets out the network's mission statement, outcomes, outputs and thematic priorities.