Parliament's international work
The UK Parliament works closely with other national and international parliaments and is an active member of various international parliamentary assemblies. Some of Parliament’s select committees focus on international matters too.
Foreign parliamentarians regularly visit our Parliament to study policy issues, share ways of working and exchange views. Members of the UK Parliament also make similar visits abroad.
The purpose of this work is to:
- exchange views
- improve understanding on issues of mutual concern
- develop good working relationships
- scrutinise and inform UK policies
Doing these things advances UK interests.
The Speakers
Mr Speaker and the Lord Speaker represent the two Houses to the Parliaments of other countries.
Interparliamentary Relations Office
The House of Commons Interparliamentary Relations Office supports incoming visits to the UK Parliament by overseas parliamentarians and parliamentary officials and provides advice and assistance to fellow parliaments on the practices and procedures of the UK Parliament.
It also supports the work of the delegations to the Parliamentary Assemblies of the Council of Europe (PACE), North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO PA) and the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE PA).
Email: ipro@parliament.uk
Lords Overseas Office
The Overseas Office is responsible for relations between the House of Lords and overseas parliaments. This includes advising and supporting the Lord Speaker; supporting Lords participation in international conferences; and supporting inward visits of Parliamentarians and officials.
Email: paulz@parliament.uk
The NATO Parliamentary Assembly has 266 delegates from parliaments of the 29 NATO member states.
The Parliamentary Assembly on the OSCE brings together 323 delegates from 56 parliaments.
The Parliamentary Assembly is the deliberative body and the driving force of the Council of Europe.
The Parliamentary Partnership Assembly was established by the UK-EU Trade and Co-operation Agreement and acts as a forum for the UK Parliament and the European Parliament to exchange views on the partnership.
