MEDIA RELEASE
For release: 2 October 2018

New Zealand Parliamentarians to attend major global parliamentary conference

Deputy Speaker, Hon Anne Tolley is leading a five-member delegation to Geneva, Switzerland, to the 139th Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) Assembly from 13 to 18 October 2018.

The delegation comprises Rt Hon David Carter, Jenny Marcroft MP, Greg O’Connor MP, and Tim van de Molen MP. Hon Anne Tolley is on the IPU Bureau of Women Parliamentarians and Rt Hon David Carter on the IPU Committee on the Human Rights of Parliamentarians.

Our Members of Parliament will be actively engaging in conference subjects such as legislating on food and nutrition; building bridges between parliaments and scientific communities; and where parliaments sit in the fight against sexism and harassment, and in combatting terrorism and violent extremism.

This IPU conference has 178 Member Parliaments, spanning the world. New Zealand belongs to two of the geopolitical Assembly groups, 12 plus and Asia-Pacific.

The New Zealand delegation leader Hon Anne Tolley will be addressing the Assembly on the subject of “Parliamentary leadership in promoting peace and development in the age of innovation and technological change.”

The Speaker noted that “this cross-party delegation will connect with colleagues from around the world and share thinking on a wide range of issues affecting parliaments and citizens. Topics such as addressing gender equality in parliaments and encouraging youth engagement and younger MPs are positive for democracy.”

The delegation will also make brief bilateral visits before the IPU conference. First they will head to Belgium to meet with parliamentarians from the European, Belgian Federal, and the regional Wallonian and Flemish Parliaments. Then they will head to France to meet with the France-New Zealand Parliamentary Friendship Group in the post-2017 election National Assembly and with members of the Senate.

These visits are designed to provide opportunities for members to engage with and learn directly from legislators from other countries. Members are able to provide perspectives on New Zealand and enable the New Zealand parliamentary processes on legislation and political representation to be better understood.

ENDS

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