Canadian Regional Council Meeting

The annual meeting of the Canadian Regional Council of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association was held in Ottawa on June 6, 1992. Twelve Speakers and two deputy Speakers from Canada's fourteen legislatures were in attendance along with the Chairman of the Canadian Federal Branch, Senator William Doody, the Canadian Federal Regional Representative Girve Fretz and a number of Clerks and other observers from various legislatures. The Secretary General of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association, David Tonkin, was also in attendance.

The President of the Canadian Region, Speaker Joan Sawicki of British Columbia opened the meeting and the members were welcomed by Speaker John Fraser of the House of Commons and Deputy Speaker Rhéal Belisle of the Senate.

Regional Representative Girve Fretz reported on activities of the Working Party on CPA and proposed changes to the constitution. Speaker Sawicki noted the need to create opportunities for meetings of women parliamentarians in the context of CPA conferences. Speaker Edward Clark of Prince Edward Island reported on the work of the selection committee for a new Secretary General of CPA and announced that the unanimous recommendation of the Committee was Arthur Donahoe, former Speaker of the Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly.

In other business Speaker Tom Lush of Newfoundland reported on plans for the Canadian Regional Conference in July. Speaker Jean-Pierre Saintonge reported on arrangements for the Symposium on Parliamentary Democracy to be held in September. Speaker Shirley Dysart reported on plans for the 14th Atlantic Parliamentary Conference in Fredericton in June 1992. The Deputy Speaker of the Northwest Territories Legislative Assembly, Ludy Pudluck reported on the construction of a new legislative building in the Territories

The Council also agreed that the 40th Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference to be held in Canada in 1994 would take place at the Convention Centre in Banff, Alberta. A proposal by the Centre for Legislative Exchange for a seminar on the special characteristics of the US political system to be held in Washington in September 1992 was also approved.

Thirty Second Canadian Regional Conference, Newfoundland

The Thirty-Second Canadian Regional Conference will be held in St. John's Newfoundland from July 26 - 31,1992. Seven topics have been selected for discussion. These include: Trade Barriers between Provinces and their economic consequences; Foreign and Domestic overfishing on the Grand Banks; Health Care Rationalisation; Constitutional Experiment and Referenda in Newfoundland and Labrador; Controlling the deficit; Accountability of members; and Members private lives vs their public lives. How much should the public know.