Tips on meeting with your Member of Parliament
Your Member of Parliament is the main access point to the Government of Canada, however, they are often unaware of many of the issues that concern you. They may not have had the opportunity to be informed on the subject so it is our job to educate them on these issues and move them towards positive change for peace. There are many ways to do this such as letter writing and petitioning but this list is designed specifically for the face to face meeting with your MP. Here are a few things you can do to make your meeting with your MP more successful.
What to Do Before the Meeting
1. When you are booking the appointment it is always advisable to specifically state the purpose of the visit.
2. It is best to take some time before a meeting to decide what specific questions or comments you would like to put forward. Streamline your arguments to two or three key points.
3. It is always a good idea to bring one or two other people with you for the meeting preferably representatives from different groups or sectors. This will give your arguments more weight.
4. Try and find out what your MP's position is on a particular issue. Also look to see what policies or regulations already exist on the subject. If you can't find that out beforehand then ask when you get there. If you need more information call the CPA office and we may be able to help.
5. Prepare your questions and comments as a lesson plan. Remember we are here to educate them on an issue.
6. Bring resources like photocopies of relevant articles or other educational material.
What to do at the Meeting
7. Ask for them to do something specific like take your petitions or concerns to the House of Commons, cabinet or caucus.
8. Prepare an Aid Memoir, or a record of the meeting. This can be very useful for follow up discussions. Try to write notes or remember specific wordings they use and keep them as a reference. This is the best way to keep your MP accountable to what they say in the meeting.
What to do After the Meeting
9. Follow up with a letter thanking them for the visit and asking for an update on the tasks you asked them to do for you.
» For more in depth advice, see Communicating with your MP: A how to kit for the voluntary sector, a report prepared by the Voluntary Sector Roundtable.
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Canadian Peace Alliance
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phone: 416-588-5555
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