Winchester MP, Steve Brine, has been on the Gold Coast in West Africa recently as part of the UK delegation attending the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association Annual Conference.
Over the course of the week, he connected with fellow parliamentarians from across the Commonwealth on joint campaigns including combating climate change, health and social care and equal representation in Parliament. The event, which was held during the first week of October, brought hundreds of MPs together from national and provincial parliaments in the Ghanian capital Accra.
Steve Brine says; “I attended last year’s event, in Halifax, Canada, so was keen to take that experience to Ghana and it was an incredible experience once again.
“We are all so different but, as fellow parliamentarians, have a great deal in common and it’s always incredible how we share many of the exact same political challenges. The Commonwealth is an amazing organisation and I was proud to represent the UK as part of our cross-party travelling group.
“While in Accra we met with Government – and Opposition – Ghanaian politicians to express our concern at the proposed new law which would make homosexuality a criminal offence punishable by imprisonment. They were not easy meetings but friends can talk frankly with each, with respect, and I think we did that.”
You can find out more about the CPA and the conference at cpahq.org
