Attending the 54th Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) British Islands and Mediterranean Regional (BIMR) conference in Cardiff provided an opportunity ‘to explore the needs of a modern parliament’, the Speaker of the House of Keys has said.

Juan Watterson made the comment after returning from last month’s conference, hosted by the Senedd (Welsh parliament).

Mr Watterson was accompanied by Paul Craine MLC, Tim Crookall MHK and Kirstie Morphet MLC.

The delegation was supported by Carlos August-Phillips, head of legislative services in the Office of the Clerk of Tynwald.

The conference brought together parliamentarians from across the BIM region, and included Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland, Malta, Cyprus, Jersey and Gibraltar.

Topics for discussion included digital transformation and the wellbeing of parliamentarians. A core theme was diversity and inclusion in parliaments, which saw the launch of the BIMR LGBT+ network and a workshop held on the importance of LGBT+ voices in parliament.

Mr Watterson said: ‘Our annual regional meeting gives an opportunity to broaden our horizons on so many topics from accessibility of our buildings to the use of artificial intelligence.

‘We were also able to compare notes on how others operate youth parliaments as an active voice in policy development.

‘As parliamentarians, part of our job is to represent those without a voice in parliament, such as young people, persons with disabilities and the LGBT+ community.

‘How to be an effective voice for underrepresented groups was a key theme of this conference.’

Mrs Morphet acted as a panellist on a workshop that asked: ‘How can parliaments enable effective and full participations of persons with disabilities at all levels?’

She said: ‘The opportunity to learn from parliamentarians with knowledge of legislation, policy and practice and impact on people at the centre of delivery was invaluable.

‘This knowledge and new contacts will now be applied when scrutinising our future legislation, using the lessons that other countries have learnt, aiming to increase inclusion, equity and co-production within our government.’