Parliament’s Deputy Speaker, the Hon. José Vanterpool recently represented Anguilla and its legislature during a week-long residency at McGill University’s Executive Institute in Montreal. The residency which took place from October 7th to 11th was the second part of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association’s (CPA) accredited Fundamentals Programme which aims to strengthen parliamentary practice and procedure within CPA small branches. The residency was well attended by parliamentarians representing Anguilla, Antigua, and Barbuda, the Bahamas, the Falkland Islands, Grenada, the Isle of Man, Jersey, Niue, St Kitts & Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, as well as Turks and Caicos Islands.
The residency comprised several intense lectures, debates and presentations on contemporary issues in parliamentary governance. Specific focus was placed on the following topics:
– Representation in Parliament
– Codes of Conduct
– Legislative-Executive Relations
– Oversight
– Challenges Facing New MPs
– Practice and Procedures
– Legislation
– The Role of Parties
– Administration & Financing of Parliament
– Committees & Executive Scrutiny
– Parliament & the Media
– The Loyal Opposition
– Leadership
This built upon work covered during the first part of the course which was facilitated online and focused on an Introduction to Commonwealth Parliamentary Governance. The remaining 2 parts of the 10 month course will also be online with the next beginning on November 4th and focusing on Advanced Commonwealth Parliamentary Governance. Upon successful completion of the course in March of next year, José will be awarded with a Professional Development Certification on parliamentary practice and procedure and international good practices of parliamentary democracy from Mcgill University.
Mr. Vanterpool, a former Valedictorian of the A.L.H.C.S. and Island Scholar, obtained his Master’s Degree from the University of Bristol in Computer Science with First Class Honours in July of 2018. He is an advocate for empowerment through education and continuous self-development.
When asked about the course and his time in Montreal, José shared the following sentiments:
“It was amazing being able to learn and share experiences with fellow MPs from around the world. The course was very engaging and informative. Open dialogue with the other MPs helped us to identify the common strengths and weaknesses in each of our parliaments which are all unique at the end of the day. The bonds formed through the networking which took place will prove invaluable in time to come as we pledged to lean on each other for support as we work towards strengthening good governance in all of our territories together.”
Mr. Vanterpool went on to express:
“I would like to thank the CPA and Mcgill University for offering such an amazing course as well as the Clerk and Speaker for bringing the opportunity to my attention as I sought out opportunities for formal training. Myself, along with the other MPs, were all of the opinion that all of our legislatures would benefit significantly if some of these courses were made mandatory for new MPs. While that may be only a dream for now, the reality today is that during my time in Montreal, along with the support of the Clerk and Speaker, I was able to advocate for a post-election seminar to follow the 2020 General Elections similar to the one held in 2015 as well as a pre-election seminar. This will hopefully ensure our candidates, both prospective and elected, know what they are signing up for and are equipped for their roles. While this is still merely a conversation that is taking place, I must again thank the CPA for their continued support to small states like Anguilla.”
