61. The House continued to maintain a wide range of contacts with overseas parliaments and international assemblies.

62. The Lord Chancellor received a visit from the Speaker of the New Zealand Parliament, Mr Jonathan Hunt, in October. Amongst the visiting parliamentarians for whom programmes were arranged were those from the Czech Republic, Russia, Poland, Spain, Australia, and Zambia. Visits from Clerks and other officials were received from many Parliaments, including those of Ireland, Hong Kong, India, Trinidad and Tobago, Finland and Japan; from several of the Canadian parliamentary assemblies; and from the US Senate. In addition, programmes were arranged for members of the House of Traditional Leaders of the Republic of South Africa and for participants in the first Parliamentary Co-operation Programme for Clerks from African Commonwealth countries.

63. The Lord Chancellor was represented by Lord Tordoff, then Chairman of Committees, at the Conference of Council of Europe Speakers held in Zagreb in May 2002 and at the Conference of European Speakers held in Madrid in June 2002.

64. Overseas visits by Lords as representatives of the House included the attendance of three women Members at the Euro-Mediterranean Women's Forum in Madrid in October; and Earl Attlee's participation in the Golden Jubilee celebrations of the Indian Parliament in January.

65. Members continued to serve on UK delegations to international assemblies.

Relations with Devolved Assemblies

66. Officials maintained a range of contacts with their counterparts in the devolved Assemblies. The Clerk of the Parliaments represented the Lord Chancellor at a meeting of Presiding Officers of the UK, Ireland, the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands, held in Belfast in June 2002. The Administration was also represented at meetings of Principal Finance Officers and Information Officers of the devolved Assemblies and of the British-Irish Parliamentary Reporting Association.