The Secretary-General of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association, Stephen Twigg visited the Parliament of Victoria in Australia on 8 August 2024.

The CPA Secretary-General met with the Joint CPA Victoria Branch Presidents – Hon. Maree Edwards, MP, Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of Victoria and Hon. Shaun Leane, MLC, President of the Legislative Council of Victoria.

The CPA Secretary-General briefed Members of the CPA Victoria Branch on the latest activities of the CPA, its work in the CPA Australia Region and preparations for the 67th Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference in Sydney later this year.

The CPA Secretary-General heard about work by the Victoria Parliament on the implementation of the ‘Transitioning to Life After Parliament’ recommendations and the establishment of a Parliamentary Workplace and Standards Commission.

In addition, the CPA Secretary-General was briefed on the work of the Parliament of Victoria through the Pacific Parliamentary Partnerships Fund which twins Legislature in the CPA Australia and CPA Pacific Regions. Through this scheme, the Parliament of Victoria is partnered with the Legislatures in Nauru, Tuvalu and Fiji to share best practice, training and equipment.

Recently, two Members of the Victorian Legislative Council shared their parliamentary knowledge and experience at an induction programme for Members of the Tuvalu Parliament and prior to this, the Deputy Clerk of the Victorian Legislative Council supported the CPA Democratic Benchmarks assessment visit to the Parliament of Fiji.

Later in the day, the CPA Secretary-General visited Deakin University to meet with academic staff who worked with the CPA Secretariat to develop an updated set of Standards for Codes of Conduct which was launched recently. Following a number of presentations made by current and former Australian Parliamentary Clerks, the CPA Secretary-General then gave remarks, reflecting on these presentations, and on the work of the CPA as a whole.

The CPA Secretary General was accompanied on the visit by Tom Marino, CPA Governance Officer.