Commonwealth Parliamentary Association launches 2023 Commonwealth Parliamentarian of the Year Awards

As part of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association’s mission to strengthen parliamentary democracy through the promotion of good governance and sharing best practice, the Commonwealth Parliamentarian of the Year Awards will take place again in 2023.

The awards are open to nominees who are current Parliamentarians* across the Commonwealth with a main Commonwealth Parliamentarian of the Year Award 2023 as well as three further awards for the following categories: Parliamentary Equality and Diversity Award; New Parliamentarian Award; and Parliamentarian Life-time Achievement Award.

The awards aim to recognise and highlight inspirational and active Parliamentarians for excelling in their field and the CPA will share these case studies from amongst its membership with a wider audience. The Commonwealth Parliamentary Association’s unique membership includes national, state, provincial and territorial Legislatures and the awards are open to Members of the CPA’s over 180 Parliaments.

The CPA Secretary-General, Stephen Twigg said:

“The Commonwealth Parliamentarian of the Year Awards align to our strategic objective of promoting the values of the Commonwealth, parliamentary democracy and sustainable development to a wide audience. Through these annual awards, the CPA recognises and highlights the invaluable contributions that Parliamentarians are making to their local communities and both nationally and internationally within the Commonwealth.”

The 2023 award recipients will be announced at the forthcoming 66th Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference in Accra, Ghana in September/October 2023.

Nominate a Parliamentarian

Nominations for the Commonwealth Parliamentarian of the Year 2023 Awards are now open! 

* Nominees should be sitting Members of Parliament in a Commonwealth Legislature or have been a sitting Member of Parliament in a Commonwealth Legislature in the award period (from the opening of nominations on 23 January 2023 to the close of nomination on 1 August 2023). The award can be made posthumously. For full nomination criteria, download the information booklet below.

Submit your nomination ->

Previous winner

The inaugural winner of the Commonwealth Parliamentarian of the Year Award in 2022 was Hon. Kate Doust, MLC from the Parliament of Western Australia. She was recognised for working to promote women and people with disabilities in her community, working to address and combat domestic violence and embracing innovation and new ideas as the Presiding Officer of a State Parliament in Australia. Read about her award here.

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The Commonwealth Parliamentary Association connects, develops, promotes and supports Parliamentarians and their staff to identify benchmarks of good governance and the implementation of the enduring values of the Commonwealth. The CPA is an international community of around 180 Commonwealth Parliaments and Legislatures working together to deepen the Commonwealth’s commitment to the highest standards of democratic governance.

For media enquiries, please contact communications@cpahq.org.

Web page updated 24/01/2023