PHILIPSBURG:--- Member of Parliament Sarah A. Wescot-Williams on Thursday reported key outcomes from the recent Inter-Parliamentary Kingdom Consultation (IPKO), including a new commitment that every IPKO will begin with formal follow-up on decisions taken at the previous meeting.
“Too many times we’ve agreed on actions that then quietly dissipate. From now on, every IPKO starts by checking what was done and decided before,” said MP Wescot-Williams.
Top outcomes highlighted by MP Wescot-Williams
Standing follow-up item: Each IPKO will review the status of decisions from the prior IPKO.
Geopolitical updates: Parliaments, especially those directly affected in the Caribbean, are to receive timely, direct information on developments in the Kingdom’s region of responsibility.
Council of State (70 Years of the Charter) advice: Countries will respond to recommendations; Sint Maarten’s government has already issued a reaction, which MP Wescot-Williams says Parliament should now debate.
Aging population: The islands will leverage Dutch analytical capacity to map trends and plan for aging—“a cross-Kingdom challenge we must prepare for together.”
“The presentation we received on geopolitical developments was sobering. This is not alarmism—it’s prudence. Parliament must be informed in real time,” she concluded.
