Canadian Regional Seminar Halifax, November 1981

The Seventh Regional Seminar on Parliamentary Practice and Procedure will be held in Halifax from November 25, 1981. The theme will be "Improving the Parliamentary System" and each session will be devoted to a particular parliamentary function including the political function, the financial function, the legislative function and the investigative function.

This format will allow legislators from across Canada to discuss a wide variety of topics ranging from the role of committees, to the use of question period. There will also be an opportunity for a panel to review and evaluate the discussions.

Nova Scotia thus becomes the second province, after Ontario In 1979, to host a CPA parliamentary seminar. In 1977 the Quebec National Assembly also hosted a special seminar on "The British Parliamentary System: An Anachronism or a Modern Reality?" Thus it seems a tradition is developing of alternating seminars between Ottawa and various provincial capitols; a practice that can only benefit the growth of parliamentary institutions across the country.

Commonwealth Parliamentary Association Conference

Fiji, October, 1981

The Fiji Branch will host the Twenty-Seventh Commonwealth Parliamentary Association Conference to be held from October 1125, 1981. Invitations have been extended to all branches of the CPA. to the United States Congress, the Inter Parliamentary Union, the Association internationale des parlementaires de langue française, the European Parliament, the Commonwealth Foundation. former members of the Executive Committee and to the Commonwealth Secretariat.

The CPA Executive Committee meeting will take place in Suva on October 8 and 9. A mini conference for delegates from smaller branches (population of less than 250,000) will also be held in Suva at the same time. Beginning on October 12, delegates from all branches will spend five days visiting various points of interest on the islands. The actual conference will start October 19. The agenda includes plenary sessions on The Commonwealth and World Security", Control of Pollution and Protection of the Environment". Commodity Prices and the Relations between Industrialized and Primary, Producing Countries", "The Relevance of the Westminster Parliamentary. System in a Changing World", "Parliament and the Security of the Executive". and "The Member's Responsibilities to the Nation, to his Party and to his Constituency". There will also be four panels where delegates will have the opportunity to discuss "Population Growth and Control". "The Year of the Disabled", The Promotion and Development of Tourism, and The Social Consequences of Continuing Inflation and Unemployment."

The goal of the conference as for all CPA activities, is to provide a forum for the exchange of views on matters of mutual interest to parliamentarians and to facilitate understanding among individuals engaged in parliamentary institutions throughout the Commonwealth.

Canadian Regional Conference St. John's, August 1981

The Twenty-first conference of the Canadian Region of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association took place in St. John's, Newfoundland, August 2-7, 1981 The conference was attended by some eighty delegates from all provinces and territories, as well as by federal members and senators. Representatives from the United Kingdom and eight Commonwealth Caribbean countries were also in attendance along with many observers, mainly parliamentary staff from across Canada. For the first time in CPA history, a simultaneous translation of the entire proceedings was available in Inuktitut.

For many delegates the highlight of the working sessions was a discussion of Elected Representatives and their Communications. It focussed on the question of electronic eavesdropping and whether such acts constitute a breach of parliamentary privilege. The discussion was led by a panel consisting of Claude Vaillancourt, Speaker of the Quebec National Assembly, Walter Baker, Opposition House Leader in Ottawa; Ray Speaker, Opposition House Leader in Alberta and George MacMinn, Deputy Clerk of the British Columbia Legislature. The conference discussed other issues such as electoral reform, constitutional reform, the role of committees, the transportation of dangerous goods and the Crowsnest freight rates.

By, the end of the weeklong conference delegates had experienced all sorts of traditional Newfoundland hospitality including a cruise on Conception Bay and a lobster boil in Harbour Main. Perhaps the most unique social event was the house parties hosted '~y members of the House of Assembly. The hospitality, offered by Les Thoms, Tom Lush, John Carter, John Butt, Paddy McNicholas, Robert Aylward, Sieve Neary, William Marshall, Gerry, Ottenheimer, and Hal Andrews was greatly appreciated and will long be remember by all who attended.

New Lieutenant Governor of Newfoundland

The new Lieutenant-Governor of Newfoundland is Dr. W.A. (Tony) Paddon. A graduate of New York State Medical School, Dr. Paddon served as surgeon in the Royal Canadian Navy during the Second World War. For many years his father, Dr. Harry Paddon, had provided medical services to the isolated outposts along the Labrador coast, a tradition continued by his son who eventually succeeded him as head medical officer in Northwest River. Tony Paddon later served as director of northern medical services for the International Grenfell Association. Over the years he has received the Order of Canada and many other awards for his humanitarian work. Upon taking office on July 1, 1981 Tony. Paddon became Newfoundland's seventh Lieutenant-Governor since that province joined Canada in 1949.

New Clerk Assistant in New Brunswick

The New Brunswick Legislative Assembly. has appointed a new fulltime Clerk Assistant. The new table officer is Jean Martin, a lawyer previously, in private practice in Edmundston. The office of Clerk was also upgraded to a fulltime position. David Peterson who served previously, as Clerk on a part-time basis now becomes the permanent senior official in the legislature.