3 December 2016

Speaker to represent New Zealand at Commonwealth Conference

The Speaker will represent New Zealand at the 23rd Conference of Speakers and Presiding Officers of the Commonwealth (CSPOC) taking place in Malaysia early next year.

CSPOC brings together the Speakers and Presiding Officers of the national parliaments of the independent sovereign states of the Commonwealth. It aims to maintain, foster and encourage impartiality and fairness on the part of Speakers and Presiding Officers of Parliament. As the immediate past host of CSPOC, the New Zealand Parliament is currently a member of the CSPOC Standing Committee, which meets before the official opening of the conference.

The Speaker, Rt Hon David Carter, said the conference is a valuable tool for promoting knowledge and understanding of parliamentary democracy and strengthening parliamentary institutions.

“After hosting CSPOC here in Wellington in 2014, it was apparent to me that this conference provides a rare opportunity for knowledge sharing and professional development for Speakers, Presiding Officers and Clerks. I am very pleased to be able to participate in the upcoming conference in Malaysia and to present perspectives from the New Zealand Parliament and the Pacific region.”

The Speaker will also present a paper on orientation and development for MPs, highlighting New Zealand’s approach to this and exploring potential improvements to make this more systematic and effective.

The Clerk of the House, David Wilson, will also attend the conference which is being held from 9 to 14 January 2016.

ENDS

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