Guernsey hosts Commonwealth politicians for event

Guernsey has been hosting politicians from across the world as part of an event to help elected officials improve the way they work.

Representatives from Kenya, Jamaica, Pakistan, Belize, Australia, Nova Scotia, Saint Lucia, South Africa, Eswatini, Namibia, Sri Lanka, Scotland and Sark are in attendance.

As part of the trip, which is paid for by the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA), delegates will be visiting Sark, the newest member of the CPA.

States Assembly and Constitution Committee (SACC) President Sarah Hansmann-Rouxel said the conference was designed to help parliamentarians understand what makes a good parliament.

Across the week politicians from across the commonwealth will be taking part in mock debates and networking with other elected officials.

Mentors from the CPA are also on hand to give advice to parliamentarians.

Former Guernsey chief minister Lyndon Trott is one of the mentors at the sessions and is also on the board of the CPA's trustees.

Hansmann-Rouxel said: "It's a really important networking event as well.

"You get people from different parliaments and sometimes there are aspects of policy that you might be dealing with, particularly something like violence against women."

The island's Home Affairs Committee has just announced the development of a new strategy to prevent violence against women and girls (VAWG) in Guernsey and Alderney.

Hansmann-Rouxel said: "A lot of the work you can co-ordinate. If you have done a strategy in another parliament, in another jurisdiction, that might be similar to yours."

From Guernsey, former chief minister Gavin St Pier, the island's newest deputy Ross Le Brun and Munazza Malik were in attendance, alongside Hansmann-Rouxel.

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