Commonwealth Summit 2018

Lord Chidgey Excerpts

Thursday 2nd November 2017 Lords Chamber

Asked by

[Lord Chidgey]

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will ensure that the programme for the Commonwealth Summit in London in 2018 includes a People’s Forum and a Parliamentary Forum, the outcomes of which are recorded in the final communiqué, as has been the case for similar summits in the past.

[Lord Chidgey (LD)]

My Lords, allow me first to offer your Lordships my apologies. This debate, tabled in June, was scheduled to take place in early September, at the end of the Summer Recess. Unfortunately, due to illness, it was postponed until today, some two months later. The good news is that in those two months a good deal of organisational and administrative progress on the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting 2018 has taken place, which this debate can now reflect on. I declare my interests as co-chair of the all-party groups for the Commonwealth and for Africa, the former chair of the Commonwealth Policy Studies Unit, and the president of the National Liberal Club Commonwealth Forum.

There have been a number of debates and Oral Questions in your Lordships’ House on the Commonwealth and connected issues over the past year, but I called this debate specifically to concentrate on the importance of parliaments in the process. Over the last two decades or so the importance of strengthening democracy in developing countries, of capacity building and of monitoring Governments held to account by parliaments has been recognised, first in the millennium development goals and now in sustainable development goal 16. Parliamentary forums have been included in international meetings on aid and development effectiveness—for example, at the fourth high-level forum in Busan, where I had the opportunity to present the parliamentary communiqué to the final plenary session of the high-level forum.

Similar procedures were followed at high-level meetings on global partnerships for aid and development—sponsored by the UN—in Dhaka, Bangladesh, Mexico City and Nairobi, and in other meetings. Considering the engagement of parliaments helped to establish that the strength of parliamentary capacity in a developing country was an important indicator in monitoring aid and development effectiveness.

Over time, there was a gradual acceptance in the development and aid community that parliaments as well as Governments had a key role to play in the process. Institutions such as the UN stopped referring to Governments as the custodians of democracy. Instead, they began referring to parliaments as having the authority of a mandate from the people. NGOs, donor Governments, development institutions and parliamentarian organisations now work together more readily on projects for strengthening democracy for the benefits that this can bring.

The forthcoming London CHOGM provides a golden opportunity for our Parliament to be at the centre of activities to reinforce parliamentary democracy throughout the Commonwealth, by example and through opportunity. The all-party parliamentary group on UN global goals found on a study visit to New York in July an intense interest in synergy between the UN’s sustainable development goal 16 and the objectives of the London CHOGM, and liaison has now been established.

Dialogue is now taking place between the various all-party groups, particularly those for the Commonwealth, for sustainable development goals and for Africa. We are engaging with the Royal Commonwealth Society, the Commonwealth Secretariat and the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association UK Branch, as well as civil society, in support of the aims of the London CHOGM, the Commonwealth goals and the UN global goals.

Since this debate was first scheduled in June, there has been progress on a wide front; for example, a two-day conference organised by the Commonwealth Round Table and round tables from the CPA in preparation for a parliamentary forum in London in March 2018.

At the last CHOGM, in Malta in 2015, the final communiqué reaffirmed a commitment to the values and principles of the Commonwealth charter. It acknowledged that all human rights are equal, indivisible, interdependent, interrelated and universal. It urged promotion and protection of all human rights and freedoms. Given that such objectives are a major plank in the Government’s ambitions for the London CHOGM, it will be interesting to hear their views on progress so far.

The Malta communiqué observed that good governance and respect for rule of law are vital for stable and prosperous societies and require efficient, effective and accountable public institutions. It called for continued efforts by member states to ensure responsive, inclusive, participatory and representative decision-making at all levels. The role of parliaments and parliamentarians in monitoring and scrutinising the Executive was clearly promoted and supported. Have the UK Government plans to assess progress so far as part of their preparations for the London CHOGM?

In their preparations for the London CHOGM, the Government have set out four forums: business, people’s, youth and women’s. The business forum recognises that shared values, regulatory systems and language bring the potential of increasing intra-Commonwealth trade and reducing costs. The City of London Corporation is expanding its capacity to promote UK trade and investment opportunities across Commonwealth member states. As founding partners of the Commonwealth Enterprise and Investment Council, the corporation has been commissioned to deliver the business forum. The Lord Mayor hosted the Commonwealth Trade Ministers’ inaugural dinner at Mansion House as part of two days of discussions as a precursor to the 2018 CHOGM.

The people’s forum is organised in partnership with the Commonwealth Foundation and provides the single largest opportunity for civil society to engage with leaders and influence Commonwealth policy. It provides a potential platform for parliamentarians to make the case for strengthening democratic institutions, as in the Malta CHOGM communiqué, there being no parliamentary forum as such at the London CHOGM.

At the 62nd Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference in London in December 2016, the opening address stated that the CPA,

“provides a unique platform for inter-parliamentary dialogue … on how to strengthen parliamentary democracy Commonwealth-wide and discuss … innovative approaches on how to do so”.

The Secretary-General of the Commonwealth, the noble and learned Baroness, Lady Scotland, said:

“Thanks to Commonwealth Parliamentarians coming together, law reform and progressive social and economic development are accelerated. Exchanges of knowledge and expertise lead to institutions of governance being strengthened”.


The 2018 CHOGM draws on the Malta CHOGM and the Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference in December 2016 with the theme “Towards a Common Future”. Within that theme there are four principal areas of focus. These include “A Fairer Future”, which highlights the democratic values and principles set out in the Commonwealth charter, our collective commitment to the rule of law and human rights, good and honest governance, and tackling gender inequality. The Commonwealth has a proud history of taking action to promote and protect democratic principles. By upholding and promoting those principles, we can promote a fairer future for all citizens and members of the Commonwealth, and provide an essential platform for sustainable development.

The UK branch of the CPA has come forward with the initiative of holding a Commonwealth Parliamentarians’ Forum prior to the CHOGM summit, in late February 2018. From its excellent concept note, it is clear that there will be a huge opportunity to highlight the prospect of a global Britain and a 21st-century Commonwealth. The aim is for some 150 parliamentarians from across the Commonwealth to engage in the summit agenda themes at the forum. It is hoped that they will then be in a stronger position to press for these priorities at home. This CPA UK initiative is aimed at maintaining momentum through the UK’s two years as chair-in-office of the Commonwealth until 2020, with the belief that effective parliamentary engagement will support better sustainable development outcomes across the Commonwealth.

I opened this debate by describing similar international gatherings under the auspices of the United Nations and the Inter-Parliamentary Union, where parliamentarian engagement continued through the forum to the closing plenary session and into the final communiqué. I noted how important it was that, over time, civil society and parliaments have moved from competition to co-operation in the space for strengthening democracy. To maintain this very positive development, there needs to be the strongest possible link between the Commonwealth Parliamentarians’ Forum and the forums at the Commonwealth summit. Parliamentarians and members of civil society must be able to work together—prior to, during and after the summit—in influencing, scrutinising and monitoring the implementation of the national strategies and policy decisions that evolve.