Stephen Twigg, the Secretary-General of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA), visited the New Zealand Parliament from 27 – 28 March 2023.

In his first visit to New Zealand, the CPA Secretary-General was greeted by a Mihi whakatau (Māori welcome) to Parliament and formally welcomed by Rt Hon Adrian Rurawhe, Speaker of the New Zealand House of Representatives, before Question Time on 28 March 2023.

During the visit, Twigg met with Speaker Rurawhe bilaterally to discuss opportunities for further collaboration between the CPA and the New Zealand Parliament, amongst a range of other topics.

The CPA Secretary-General also met Hon. Gerry Brownlee, Father of the House of Representatives and Pacific Regional Representative on the CPA International Executive Committee; David Wilson, Clerk of the House; and senior leaders from the New Zealand Parliamentary Service.

Human rights and women’s representation in the Commonwealth were on the agenda at a meeting with Hon. Anahila Kanongata’a Suisuiki MP, who represents the Pacific Region on the CPA Working Group on Human Rights and is an active member of the Commonwealth Women Parliamentarians (CWP) New Zealand Group.

The CPA Secretary-General spoke to young people about the past, present and future of the Commonwealth at an interactive workshop with Victoria University of Wellington International Programme students and a meeting with representatives of Commonwealth Youth New Zealand.

Discussing the visit, the CPA Secretary-General said:

“I would like to thank the Speaker, Members and staff at the New Zealand Parliament for such a warm welcome on my first visit to the country. I was particularly encouraged to hear about ongoing collaboration between New Zealand and other Pacific Parliaments, which I saw first-hand at the CPA Post-Election Seminar in Tonga earlier this month. I was also impressed by the ideas and questions on the future of the Commonwealth discussed at the workshop with students from the Victoria University of Wellington.”

The visit was the final leg of a series of engagements within the CPA Pacific Region for the CPA Secretary-General, including a three-day CPA Post-Election Seminar in Tonga and a separate visit to the Parliament of Fiji by Secretariat staff.

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The Commonwealth Parliamentary Association connects, develops, promotes and supports Parliamentarians and their staff to identify benchmarks of good governance and the implementation of the enduring values of the Commonwealth. The CPA is an international community of around 180 Commonwealth Parliaments and Legislatures working together to deepen the Commonwealth’s commitment to the highest standards of democratic governance.

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