Speaker of the Montserrat Legislative Assembly Invited to Strengthen Bermuda’s House of Parliament

Montserrat’s Honourable Speaker of the Legislative Assembly has been invited to join a team that will work towards strengthening the Bermuda Legislative Assembly.

While in Hamilton Shirley Osborne will present on topics such as Parliament, Democracy and Civil Society; what it means to be an elected representative; representing constituents; the relationship between Parliament and the people; the power of gender-equal parliaments; and bringing young people into the parliamentary process.

Speaker Osborne says there is a keen and growing sense among Caribbean parliaments of the importance of sharing expertise and supporting one another's development, adding that this is the second time she has been asked to do Parliamentary Strengthening in a Caribbean territory.

In 2017, Ms Osborne conducted parliamentary strengthening training at the Turks and Caicos Islands Parliament.

Speaker Osborne says Parliaments play a crucial in nurturing state capability, accountability and responsiveness and in ensuring the delivery of governance that is effective.

She says it is important that parliamentarians be made familiar with parliamentary best practices, legislation, scrutiny, and representation, which are benchmarks of good governance, as well as codes of conduct for parliamentarians both within the parliament precincts and in the conduct of their personal lives

Speaker Osborne says she is honoured and proud that her work in the Montserrat Legislative Assembly and in the wider Commonwealth is considered to be that good that people think they have something to learn from her.

Ms Osborne will travel to Bermuda in early 2019.