International Strategy
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Table of Contents
Introduction ....................................................................................................................... 3
Our aims ........................................................................................................................... 3
Our focus: The ‘three core elements’ ................................................................................ 4
i. Policy .......................................................................................................................... 4
ii. Parliaments................................................................................................................ 5
iii. Organisations............................................................................................................ 5
Visits ................................................................................................................................. 5
Inward ........................................................................................................................... 5
Outward ........................................................................................................................ 5
Outcomes and implementation ......................................................................................... 6
Outcomes ...................................................................................................................... 6
Implementation.............................................................................................................. 6
Annex A: Strategic Plan .................................................................................................... 8
Annex B: Parliaments ....................................................................................................... 8
Canada ...................................................................................................................... 8
House of Representatives of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan .............................. 8
National Assembly of Malawi ..................................................................................... 8
Moroccan House of Representatives......................................................................... 8
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly ................................................................................ 9
United States of America ........................................................................................... 9
Western Balkans ....................................................................................................... 9
Annex C: Organisations .................................................................................................. 10
British Irish Parliamentary Assembly ....................................................................... 10
Commonwealth Parliamentary Association ............................................................. 10
Westminster Foundation for Democracy ................................................................. 10
Europe ..................................................................................................................... 11
Presiding Officer engagement with other Speakers and Presiding Officers ............ 11
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Scottish Parliament’s International Strategy
Introduction
1.
This document sets out the current aims and focus of the Scottish
Parliament’s international relations engagement. It builds on work from previous
Sessions and seeks to ensure that the best use of resources from across the
organisation is made in maximizing the outcomes from such activities.
2.
The International Relations Office (IRO) supports the Scottish Parliament in
the development, implementation and monitoring of this Strategy which will be
reviewed annually through a report (by IRO) to the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate
Body.
Our aims
4.
The overarching aims of this Strategy are to:
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promote the Scottish Parliament, its role and practices as an open, accessible
and participative Parliament, amongst other parliaments;
develop the reputation of the Scottish Parliament, through relations with other
legislatures, in representing the people of Scotland and holding the Scottish
Government and other public bodies to account;
provide opportunities for the continuous professional development of both
MSPs and officials through engagement with elected Members and officials in
other legislatures; and
export the skills and knowledge of MSPs and officials through such
engagements.
5.
The Strategy outlines how our resources can be used corporately to support
the Scottish Parliament’s Strategic Plan. At a practical level the Strategy aims to:
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set activities which are key to the Scottish Parliament with a direct link to our
Strategic Plan and other key documents (Annex A);
better point to the purposes of our international relations and what outcomes
we are aiming for;
identify parameters around what can, and perhaps just as importantly, what
cannot, be supported;
better plan and programme inward and outward visits and projects and leave
sufficient space for supply-and-demand tasks as they arise;
identify activities and countries/regions and illustrate why these are
strategically important to us (Annex B); and
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identify organisations of which the Scottish Parliament is a member or with
which it has a key working relationship (Annex C).
6.
These aims will be achieved through a mixture of meeting parliamentarians
and officials from other legislatures who visit the Scottish Parliament, our
involvement with the organisations of which we are a member or with which we work,
and our outward visits. These aims sit across each of the core elements below.
Our focus: The ‘three core elements’
7.
The focus of this Strategy is split into three core elements and which provide
the straightforward purpose and direction for what we do. However, it is flexible
enough to allow us to accommodate ad hoc work as and when it arises.
i. Policy
8.
This identifies the issues that are central to us and on which we will, through
this Strategy, seek to develop relationships with, and therefore learn from, other
parliaments and organisations. Central to this is the Scottish Parliament’s Strategic
Plan which will ensure that the key issues important to us as a Parliament are also
core to our international relations activities. It is these issues which will largely inform
why, when and who we seek to work with internationally.
9.
The current priorities set out in the Strategic Plan are:
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strengthen our processes, systems and support to enable Members to deliver
the highest standards of scrutiny;
support Members to excel in their parliamentary and representative roles
through the successful implementation of an on-going development
programme;
proactively influence proposals for constitutional and procedural change to
enhance the Parliament’s oversight and legislative roles;
deliver public and external engagement activities that improve the quality and
visibility of the work of the Parliament;
optimise our financial, physical, information and staff resources by
modernising business activities and developing new arrangements for
resource allocation decisions;
drive more efficient, effective and flexible working environment for Members,
their staff and the Scottish Parliamentary Service, enabled by secure digital
technologies; and
support our staff to achieve their full potential through the delivery of our
organisational development programme.
10.
The Strategic Plan outlines our high-level goals and aims. However, there are
a number of key documents (Annex A) which sit in support and set out in more
‘practical’ terms what our specific interests are and would form the basis for
discussions with international audiences.
11.
When and where possible (and appropriate), with each outward and inward
visit we shall seek discussions on the above priorities and report accordingly (see
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‘Outcomes’ below). This way, through our international relations, we can seek to
further develop our knowledge and experience of these issues.
ii. Parliaments
12.
While the policy element above will inform which parliaments and
organisations we work with, there are some parliaments with which we currently
have a direct and distinct relationship (Annex B). A consequence of our discussions
on the key priorities above may be that other countries are added to this list.
iii. Organisations
13.
It is firmly within the interests of the Scottish Parliament to maintain and foster
relationships across institutions which can support the delivery of this Strategy (and
thereby develop understanding and thinking on the above priorities). Such
relationships provide opportunities for Members and staff to learn from the common
experiences of other parliaments across the world thereby supporting the continuous
professional development of MSPs and officials through engagement with other
legislatures.
14.
Annex C identifies organisations which the Scottish Parliament will work with
in support of this Strategy.
Visits
Inward
15.
Inward visits are a key component of our international relations. They are a
visible and immediate representation of all aspects of the Scottish Parliament,
through the building itself, its Members and officials and the role they play in
ensuring the Parliament fulfils its core role, and how it seeks to represent the people
of Scotland. To provide planned, relevant and successful inward visits, Guidance and
a Visit Information Form have been produced by IRO.
16.
The Form seeks information about the key areas of interest to the inward
delegation and what it is they wish to discuss with the Scottish Parliament. However,
it also seeks information about current issues and developments within that
parliament. IRO will seek to maximise the opportunities which inward visits offer by
tapping into visitor experiences in the areas of interest to us.
17.
Details of inward visits will be published on the International Activity page of
the website
Outward
18.
The Strategic Plan helps to provide a clear emphasis for our external visits
and we will always seek the opportunity to build in discussions on its key priorities,
for all our external visits. However, it is not the exclusive focus for why we undertake
outward visits. Our ‘organisational’ work or the direct relationship we have with other
countries (see Annexes) also determines why and when we undertake such visits.
19.
This approach therefore establishes easily and early what outward
engagement the Scottish Parliament will undertake. We will therefore be clear in
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specifying our purpose and explaining why the visit is necessary and beneficial to the
Scottish Parliament.
Outcomes and implementation
Outcomes
20.
Sitting across our international engagement activity are four key principles
which will be applied when considering what specific activities we undertake and will
inform the broad outcomes we are seeking. They are:
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parliamentary focused: ensure that any international relations activity helps
support the development of the Scottish Parliament as an institution, the
professional development of MSPs and staff, and parliamentary business;
partnership: identify where we can capitalise from working with other
organisations, share resources and, where appropriate, jointly-deliver similar
activities;
reputational value: recognise that certain types of activity pro-actively support
our institutional and international reputation and which, if not undertaken,
could adversely affect that; and
supporting Scotland: through our participation, support activities which could
bring wider economic benefit and added value to Scotland.
21.
We will demonstrate outcomes from the application of this Strategy. Failing to
identify the purpose of, in particular, outward visits and produce tangible outcomes
could have a significant impact on our reputation and result in the less than efficient
use of the financial and human resources committed.
22.
We will continue to closely assess value for money and costs associated with
our activity. The IRO will provide an annual report to the Scottish Parliamentary
Corporate Body (SPCB) for its consideration, outlining the activity undertaken over
the course of each financial year. In addition, IRO will submit to the SPCB twiceyearly overviews of the Scottish Parliament’s international activity.
23.
In addition, reports will be produced for outward visits. To ensure a
consistency in reporting, IRO will provide for each Member focussed outward visit,
alongside briefing and logistical material, a report template covering the following:
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location
sponsor (e.g. CPA)
date of visit
purpose of visit and theme (e.g. attend CPA conference on public
participation)
outline of programme and discussions held
outcomes and action/learning points for the Scottish Parliament
Implementation
24.
IRO will publish the outward visit report on its website and take forward the
action/learning points as necessary through the circulation to relevant committees of
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the Parliament (who may be conducting scrutiny of related policy issues), to other
Members and Parliament officials.
25.
It will similarly share information and reports which emerge from the work of
the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association, the British Irish Parliamentary
Assembly, and the participation by MSPs and officials in their conferences, seminars
etc.
26.
IRO will manage such information for future reference and follow up with
delegations which may re-visit the country concerned.
27.
IRO will also gather and share information from across the Scottish
Parliament on non-IRO outward and inward visits (for example, those undertaken by
committees as part on an inquiry). This core information (relating to date, location,
name of visitors/delegation, areas of interest/purpose) will be utilised by IRO and
other offices in relation to any follow up visits to those countries.
January 2017
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Annex A
Strategic Plan
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Organisational Performance Framework measures performance against the
Strategic Plan
Delivery Plan sets out how the Parliament will achieve its strategic priorities
Public Engagement Strategy sets out activities and plans with regards public
engagement
Annex B
Parliaments
Canada
 the Scottish Parliament has maintained strong friendships and links with
Canadian parliaments, both federal and state, since 1999
 we will seek to build on these links to further strengthen and find further
opportunities, for example through the work of the Commonwealth
Parliamentary Association, to share knowledge and experiences of core
parliamentary issues
 we will seek to utilise the opportunity which outward visits provide to meet
with Canadian parliamentarians and integrate the work of parliamentary
committees, the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (Scotland Branch),
and the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body as the focus for such
discussions
House of Representatives of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan
 working with the Westminster Foundation for Democracy we will seek to
continue to work with the House of Representatives and share knowledge in
the development, implementation and monitoring of a strategic plan
National Assembly of Malawi
 Scotland has a close bond with Malawi, and a concentrated part of our
international activity over the last 10 years has been through parliamentary
focused advice and assistance to the National Assembly of Malawi
 we will, subject to the development of a deliverable programme, seek to
continue to engage with the Assembly on what its priorities are and whether
and how the Scottish Parliament can assist
Moroccan House of Representatives
 working with the Westminster Foundation for Democracy we will seek to
continue to work with the House of Representatives and share knowledge in
the development, implementation and monitoring of a strategic plan
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Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly
 we will seek to continue to work with the British Council in assisting the
Pakistani Provincial Assembly of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in a ‘Parliamentarian
Capacity Building Programme’ which seeks to expose Assembly members to
best practice in the Scottish Parliament with the intention of replicating these
in the Assembly. The overarching aim is to bring about positive changes in
parliamentary culture and processes in the Assembly with an emphasis on
using our practices and procedures as examples and how these might be
applied by Assembly Members in holding their government to account.
 the six weekly, two day visits to the Scottish Parliament are expected to run
through to December 2017 and will focus on the:
 legislative process and types of Bills and the role and operation of the
Non-Governmental Bills Unit;
 Parliamentary Questions and Motions;
 role and operation of the Parliamentary Bureau, with a particular focus
on the scheduling of parliamentary business and management of time
in the Chamber
 Scottish Parliament Information Centre and the support it provides to
Members, parliamentary committees and officials
 budget process and how the Financial Scrutiny Unit provides
assistance to members in the scrutiny of the budget.
United States of America
 since 1998, Tartan Day has been recognised by the US House of
Representatives as an official celebration of the contribution of AmericanScots to US culture and life (fifty million people across the world claim Scottish
heritage, the majority being in America and Canada). Over the past 10+ years
Scotland-focused activity around Tartan Day has grown into a week-long
programme to promote Scotland in North America and is now called Scotland
Week.
 we will seek to continue our participation with Scotland Week as part of our
‘Supporting Scotland’ principle, looking to integrate the work of parliamentary
committees and the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body as the focus for
discussions with US legislatures
Western Balkans
 the Westminster Foundation for Democracy’s (WFD) programme in the
Western Balkans on Strengthening the Role of Parliaments in Promoting
Competitiveness and Economic Growth aims to:
 promote regional cooperation between parliaments, line ministries and
the business and investment communities (through the Network of
Parliamentary Committees for Economy, Finance and European
integration of Western Balkans )
 address weaknesses in parliamentary processes through targeted
assistance, best practice sharing and peer review
 working with the WFD we will seek to continue to work with parliamentarians
from Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia and
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Kosovo, specifically on matters of budget and financial oversight, and offer
continuing support to the National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia and its
parliamentary budget office
Annex C
Organisations
British Irish Parliamentary Assembly (BIPA):
 we will foster goodwill and participative dialogue between ourselves and the
other bodies represented
 through our agreed membership of five MSPs and four alternate MSPs we will
participate in the bi-annual Plenary Sessions and three Subject Committees
(European Affairs; the Economy and Environmental and Social Issues)
 we will assist in raising the profile of BIPA amongst our Members by
encouraging BIPA committees to meet in Scotland
 we will support the pursuit of stronger links between BIPA and its
governmental equivalent body, the British Irish Council
Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA)
 we will continue, through the CPA Scotland Branch, to participate and engage
in plenary, regional conferences, seminars, visits and exchanges of
delegations which promote parliamentary democracy and co-operation with
other networks and organizations dedicated to good governance
 we will seek opportunities offered through attendance at CPA conferences,
such as those of the British Islands and Mediterranean Region and the
Commonwealth Women Parliamentarians to engage with parliamentarians
from across the Commonwealth to discuss the key policy issues above to
benefit Members and the Scottish Parliament
 specific activities to be undertaken by the CPA Scotland Branch will be
outlined in its agreed work programme papers
Westminster Foundation for Democracy (WFD)
The WFD, in partnership with UK legislatures and other institutions such as the
British Council and the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association seeks to build the
capacity of parliaments to conduct financial scrutiny; strengthen committees; enhance
parliaments’ research and training capacities; support multi-party bodies in parliament
and advise parliaments’ leadership and help them develop their strategic plans.
The Scottish Parliament’s work with the WFD has increased noticeably over the last
two years and it is now a key partner for us. We have developed strong and
meaningful relationships, through the WFD, with a number of parliaments and we will
seek to promote and develop this partnership with the WFD further through our
existing involvement in its parliamentary programmes (see above) as well as through
future involvements.
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Europe
 we will continue to monitor and participate as appropriate in the work of a
number of bodies within Europe such as the Conference of Regional
Legislative Assemblies of Europe
 outwith of this Strategy, the Culture, Tourism, European and External
Relations Committee has responsibility for the consideration and reporting on
the following:
 proposals for European Union legislation
 the implementation of European Communities and European Union
legislation
 any European Communities or European Union issue
 the development and implementation of the Scottish Administration’s
links with countries and territories outside Scotland, the European
Union (and its institutions) and other international organisations
 co-ordination of the international activities of the Scottish Administration
 culture and tourism matters falling within the responsibility of the
Cabinet Secretary for Culture, Tourism and External Relations
Presiding Officer engagement with other Speakers and Presiding Officers
 the Presiding Officer will continue to meet with the Presiding Officer of the
National Assembly for Wales, the Speaker of the Northern Ireland Assembly,
and the Speaker of the House of Commons in quad lateral meetings to
discuss issues of mutual interest
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