Seasonal Greetings and a 2025 Recap
Ending the year with a concrete example of AI in parliaments
BY BEATRIZ REY
It’s hard to think of a better way to close the year at ModParl than with a concrete example of what it actually looks like when a legislature steps into its AI journey. The House of Assembly of Anguilla, a British overseas territory, has just launched House Assembly AI, an initiative that serves both as the parliament’s official website and as a fully integrated, AI-powered Hansard system.
Let me focus on the Hansard. As the official written record of parliamentary proceedings, it now draws on audio captured through the “For the Record” (FTR) system to produce accurate, official transcripts. The system lets users search debates by sitting date, member, or keyword — including exact phrases used by MPs. You can pull verified quotes, share them confidently, and jump straight to the moment an MP begins speaking in the corresponding YouTube video.
An integrated AI chatbox adds another layer of access. Instead of wading through long and technical debates, users can ask for context or plain-language explanations when discussions get complicated. At the same time, a built-in legislative tracker makes it easy to follow bills as they move through the parliamentary process and to see clearly where each one stands.
What makes this especially striking is the context. Anguilla’s House of Assembly is small — just eleven members, including seven district representatives and four island-wide representatives, plus two ex-officio members (the Deputy Governor and the Attorney General) and a Speaker who presides over proceedings. That matters because conversations about AI in parliaments often assume that real innovation only happens in large, well-resourced legislatures. Anguilla proves otherwise, and we’ll be watching its experience closely in the year ahead.
Before we turn the page, here’s a quick recap of what we brought you at ModParl this year:
We traveled to Spain, Germany, France, Portugal, and Brazil to learn about their legislative modernization initiatives.
We joined the Athens Democracy Forum in Greece, where AI dominated conversations about democracy’s future; the AFRIPAL conference in Africa, which launched the creation of the African Association of Legislation (AAL); and the Artificial Intelligence Conference in Malaysia, where we observed legislatures trying to figure out how AI can improve their work.
We spoke with legislative modernizers around the world about the work they’re doing inside parliaments, such as Andy Neale (New Zealand) and Matthew Lynch (UK).
And we shared new insights from academia, different regions, and organizations such as the International Parliament Engagement Network (IPEN) and INTER PARES, along with our own analysis — including deeper dives into proxy voting and the role of parliamentary speakers.
I’m grateful to have started this conversation more than a year ago — our first ModParl newsletter went out in April 2024. I can’t imagine my professional life without this ongoing dialogue with you. I wish you all a happy holiday season, and I look forward to continuing our work on legislative modernization together in 2026.
The Last from 2025
The UK government has made its parliamentary intelligence tool, Parlex, available within the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology. Parlex enables civil servants to efficiently search, track, and interpret parliamentary activity. At the same time, the government has published an Algorithmic Transparency Record Standard (ATRS), which allows civil servants to see exactly how Parlex works, what data it draws on, and how its outputs support decision-making.
Pakistan’s National Assembly has taken its first major step toward digital transformation by launching an e-Parliament system. The initiative will digitize parliamentary records, enable online session recording, support e-voting, and create new platforms for citizen engagement. Members will also be able to access the Order of the Day and other legislative documents digitally on their designated iPads.
Events
February 23-24: IPU’s Regional Seminar for Parliaments of the Western Balkans (Podgorica, Montenegro)
April 15-19: 152nd IPU Assembly and Related Meetings (Istanbul, Turkey)
July 15-17: CALC Conference (Singapore)
Modern Parliament (“ModParl”) is a newsletter from POPVOX Foundation that provides insights into the evolution of legislative institutions worldwide. Learn more and subscribe at modparl.substack.com.
