The Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA), previously known as the Empire Parliamentary Association, is an organisation which works to support good governance,

democracy Democracy (from , ''dēmos'' 'people' and ''kratos'' 'rule') is a form of government in which political power is vested in the people or the population of a state. Under a minimalist definition of democracy, rulers are elected through competitiv ...

and

human rights Human rights are universally recognized Morality, moral principles or Social norm, norms that establish standards of human behavior and are often protected by both Municipal law, national and international laws. These rights are considered ...

. In 1989 the

patron Patronage is the support, encouragement, privilege, or financial aid that an organization or individual bestows on another. In the history of art, art patronage refers to the support that princes, popes, and other wealthy and influential people ...

of the CPA was the Head of the Commonwealth, Queen

Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 19268 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. ...

. The vice-patronship rotates amongst

Heads of State A head of state is the public persona of a sovereign state.#Foakes, Foakes, pp. 110–11 " he head of statebeing an embodiment of the State itself or representative of its international persona." The name given to the office of head of sta ...

and of Government of the

Commonwealth nations The Commonwealth of Nations, often referred to as the British Commonwealth or simply the Commonwealth, is an International organization, international association of member states of the Commonwealth of Nations, 56 member states, the vast majo ...

who host its forthcoming annual Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference. The Association's supreme authority is the General Assembly, constituted by delegates to the annual Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference. The business and activities of the CPA are managed by an Executive Committee, which reports to the General Assembly. The CPA's funds are derived from membership fees paid by its branches, as well as from two trust funds and benefactors. The official publication of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association is ''The Parliamentarian'', the Journal of Commonwealth Parliaments which was first published in January 1920. The organisation administers the Commonwealth Women Parliamentarians (CWP), a network across the Commonwealth which promotes greater representation for women in Parliament; the CPA Small Branches network, representing parliaments and legislatures with populations below 500,000 people; the Commonwealth Parliamentarians with Disabilities (CPwD) network; and the Commonwealth Youth Parliament, an annual gathering of young people hosted by a Commonwealth Parliament. The Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) currently has approximately 180 branches and is divided into nine regions: Africa, Asia, Australia, British Islands and Mediterranean, Canada, Caribbean, Americas and Atlantic, India, Pacific, and

South-East Asia Southeast Asia is the geographical southeastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of China, east of the Indian subcontinent, and northwest of the Australian mainland, which is part of Oceania. Southeast Asia i ...

. The CPA Headquarters Secretariat is based in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

History

Pandit Ram Kishore Shukla at 30th Commonwealth Parliamentary Association conference at The Isle of Man in October 1984

The CPA was founded as the Empire Parliamentary Association in 1911, with its first branches being Australia, Canada,

Newfoundland Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region of Labrador, having a total size of . As of 2025 the population ...

, New Zealand, South Africa and the United Kingdom, the latter branch administering the Association as a whole. In 1948 the Association changed its name to the current Commonwealth Parliamentary Association, and invited all branches to participate in the organisation's administration.

Officers

The office of

Chairperson The chair, also chairman, chairwoman, or chairperson, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a Board of directors, board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by ...

of the CPA Executive Committee is held by Ian Liddell-Grainger of the

Parliament of the United Kingdom The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, and may also legislate for the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories. It meets at the Palace ...

since August 2022. He was previously Acting Chairperson from April 2021. Previous CPA Chairpersons have included: Emilia Monjowa Lifaka, Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly of Cameroon (2017-2021); Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury, Speaker of Jatiyo Sangsad Bhaban of

Bangladesh Bangladesh, officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, eighth-most populous country in the world and among the List of countries and dependencies by ...

(2014–2017), who succeeded Alan Haselhurst (2011–2014), formerly Chairman of Ways and Means of the

UK Parliament The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, and may also legislate for the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories. It meets at the Palace of ...

. The position of CPA Vice-Chairperson is currently held by Osei Kyei Mensah Bonsu, Majority Leader and Member of the

Parliament of Ghana The Parliament of Ghana is the unicameral legislature of Ghana. It consists of 276 members, who are elected for four-year terms in single-seat Electoral district, constituencies using a first-past-the-post voting system. History Legislature, L ...

. Since August 2022, the CPA Treasurer is Anurag Sharma (politician), member of the

Parliament of India The Parliament of India (ISO 15919, ISO: ) is the supreme legislative body of the Government of India, Government of the Republic of India. It is a bicameralism, bicameral legislature composed of the Rajya Sabha (Council of States) and the Lok ...

. Since August 2022, the Chairperson of the Commonwealth Women Parliamentarians is Zainab Gimba, MP from the

House of Representatives (Nigeria) The House of Representatives (also called Green Chamber) is the lower chamber of Nigeria's bicameral National Assembly of Nigeria, National Assembly. The Senate of Nigeria, Senate is the upper chamber. The Green Chamber has 360 members who ar ...

. Previous CWP Chairpersons include: Shandana Gulzar Khan, MNA from the

National Assembly of Pakistan The National Assembly of Pakistan, also referred to as ''Aiwān-ē-Zairīñ'', is the lower house of the bicameralism, bicameral Parliament of Pakistan, with the upper house being the Senate of Pakistan, Senate. As of 2023, the National Assem ...

; Noraini Ahmad, MP from the

Parliament of Malaysia The Parliament of Malaysia (; Jawi script, Jawi: ) is the national legislature of Malaysia, based on the Westminster system. The bicameral parliament consists of the Dewan Rakyat (House of Representatives, Literal translation, lit. "People's As ...

; Rebecca Kadaga, MP from the

Parliament of Uganda The Parliament of Uganda is the unicameral legislature of the Republic of Uganda. One of its primary functions is to pass laws that support effective governance in the country. Government ministers are required to answer to the people's represe ...

; Alix Boyd Knights, House of Assembly of Dominica; Kashmala Tariq,

; Lindiwe Maseko,

Parliament of South Africa The Parliament of the Republic of South Africa is South Africa's legislature. It is located in Cape Town; the country's legislative capital city, capital. Under the present Constitution of South Africa, the bicameralism, bicameral Parliamen ...

and

Gauteng Provincial Legislature The Gauteng Provincial Legislature is the legislature of the South African province of Gauteng. It is a unicameral body of 80 members elected every five years. The current legislature, the seventh, was 2019 Gauteng provincial election, elected on ...

. Since August 2022, the Chairperson for the CPA Small Branches is Joy Burch, MLA and Speaker of the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly. Previous CPA Small Branches Chairpersons include Niki Rattle, Speaker of the

Parliament of the Cook Islands The Parliament of the Cook Islands () is the legislature of the Cook Islands. Originally established under New Zealand administration, it became the national legislature upon independence in 1965. The Parliament consists of 24 members dir ...

and Angelo Farrugia, Speaker of the

Parliament of Malta The Parliament of Malta () is the constitutional legislative body in Malta, located in Valletta. The parliament is unicameral, with a democratically elected House of Representatives and the president of Malta. By constitutional law, all gover ...

. Since August 2022, the Chairperson of the Commonwealth Parliamentarians with Disabilities (CPwD) is Laura Kanushu, MP from the

. Previous CPwD Chairpersons include Dennitah Ghati, HSC from the

National Assembly (Kenya) The National Assembly of the Republic of Kenya (formerly House of Representatives) is one of the two Houses of the Parliament of Kenya. Between 1966 and 2013, it served as a unicameral house. In 2013 (11th Parliament of Kenya, 11th Parliamen ...

, and Kevin Murphy (Canadian politician), former Speaker of the House of Assembly of Nova Scotia.

Secretaries-General

The CPA's 8th Secretary-General is Stephen Twigg. He was appointed in August 2020 for a four-year term. Twigg was elected to the

as a Member of Parliament from 1997 to 2005 ( Enfield Southgate) and from 2010 to 2019 ( Liverpool West Derby). During his parliamentary career, he held several senior positions including chairing the International Development Select Committee, Minister for Schools and a range of Shadow Front Bench roles. Previous Secretaries-General have been: Karimulla Akbar Khan, UK/Guyanese Lawyer (2016-2019); William F. Shija, former Minister Tanzania Parliament (2007–2014); Denis Marshall, former Minister New Zealand Parliament (2002–2006); Arthur Donahoe, former Speaker Nova Scotia House of Assembly (1993–2001); David Tonkin, former Premier South Australia (1986–1992); Sir Robin Vandervelt from

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

(1961–1985); Sir Howard d’Egville (1949–1960).npg.org.uk
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Members

Members of the CPA are listed below. Both

nation A nation is a type of social organization where a collective Identity (social science), identity, a national identity, has emerged from a combination of shared features across a given population, such as language, history, ethnicity, culture, t ...

al and subnational parliaments are included.

Additional links

* The CPA Secretariat Headquarter
CPA HQ
– you will also find links to The Parliamentarian, the Journal of Commonwealth Parliaments, published by the CPA
Link to The Parliamentarian
* The Africa Region of the CP
CPA Africa
* The British Islands and Mediterranean Region and UK Branch of the CPA is based in Westminste
CPA UK
* The Canadian Region of the CP
CPA Canada
* The Australia Region of the CP
CPA Australia
* The Caribbean, Americas and Atlantic Region of the CP
CPA CAA
* American Institute of Parliamentarians – similar association for

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. *

References

Notes

www.oxfordjournals.org

Commonwealth Round Table
International Forum and Journal of the Commonwealth

External links

*
UK Parliamentary Archives, Records of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association
{{Authority control Commonwealth Family 1911 establishments in the United Kingdom International organisations based in London Organizations established in 1911 Politics of Africa Politics of Asia