Report of the Parliamentary Delegation to Western Canada
REPORT OF THE PARLIAMENTARY DELEGATION TO WESTERN CANADA JUNE 2014 Presented by the Hon. Barry House MLC President of the Legislative Council 26 June 2014 21 Page Members of the Western Australian parliamentary delegation at the British Columbia Legislature with Clerk of the Legislative Assembly, Mr Craig James 3 I Page Introduction Western Australia and the Western Canadian provinces of Alberta, Saskatchewan and British Columbia share a great number of similarities, including parliamentary institutions, socio-economic circumstances, issues of national-provincial relations, indigenous matters and cultural diversity. Both Western Australia and Western Canada are resource rich, have very extensive agricultural undertakings, deal with vast and often remote areas, experience some climatic extremes, and have medical, educational, and other challenges, particularly in remote areas. At the parliamentary level, even though British Columbia, Alberta and Saskatchewan are unicameral and Western Australia is bicameral, we have evolved from a similar background and have Houses and Committees operating under similar circumstances. In 2012, the idea was mooted to establish a much closer association between the Parliaments of British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan and Western Australia by an initial exchange of delegations. The aim of this exchange program was to encourage practical professional development through learning from each other, examination of practices and by the sharing of information and experiences amongst members and parliamentary staff in the respective legislatures. The three Canadian Provinces, particularly Saskatchewan, welcomed a closer association with the State of Western Australia, and it was therefore proposed that the first delegation would come from Saskatchewan to Western Australia in September 2013, and a return delegation from Western Australia to Saskatchewan in the first half of 2014.
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