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Delegation Reports
PARLIAMENTARY DELEGATION FROM THE
REPUBLIC OF ALGERIA 25-29 FEBRUARY 2008
Delegation
Mr Bouzid Lazhari
Leader of the delegation
Member of the Upper House of the Algerian Parliament
(Conseil de la Nation)
Mr Belabes Belabes
Member of the Upper House of the Algerian Parliament and
the Rassemblement National Democratique Party (RND)
Mr Tahar Zichi
Member of the Upper House of the Algerian Parliament and
the Mouvement de la Societe et la Paix Party (MSP)
Mr Ahmed Bennai
Member of the Lower House of the Algerian Parliament
(Assemblee populaire nationale)
Mr Abdelmalek Zennir
Member of the Lower House of the Algerian Parliament and
the RND Party
Mr Abdelhamid Ben Salem
Member of the Lower House of the Algerian Parliament and
the MSP party
Mrs Zineb Bouyoucef
Algerian Upper House Parliamentary Official
The delegation led by Mr Bouzid Lazhari arrived at Heathrow on Sunday,
24 February and was met on arrival by His Excellency Mr Mohamed Salah
Dembri, Ambassador, Embassy of the Republic of Algeria, and Dominique
Rees, Deputy Secretary of the British Group IPU.
The official programme started on Monday morning with a meeting at the
British Council where the delegation agreed that the increase in English
Language training in Algeria would certainly help further relations between
the two countries.
Sue Wallace Shaddad, Deputy Geographical Director, Europe, Middle East
& Americas
then outlined the British Council’s future plans for their activities
in Algeria.
The delegation moved on to Parliament, and after a welcome by Kenneth
Courtenay, General Secretary of the British Group, were given a presentation
on Parliamentary Procedures by Liam Laurence Smyth, Clerk of the Overseas
Office. The delegation asked many questions varying from the time limit
of speeches in debates to how an MP keeps in contact with his or her constituents
and on how to tackle the problem of low turn outs at elections.
Lunch that day was at Shepherd’s restaurant hosted by Baroness Hooper.
The theme of this lunch was energy and climate change, and the delegation
and invited guests had a very lively discussion.
After lunch, the delegation visited Scotland Yard and had a most interesting
meeting with Detective Chief Superintendent Alan Mitchell and Peter Thurloe.
DCS Mitchell outlined how Scotland Yard structures its counter terrorism,
and Mr Thurloe described how they worked with local communities to encourage
them to come forward with intelligence.
Following this meeting, the delegation enjoyed a fabulous view over London
at dusk on the London Eye.
Monday’s programme ended with the official welcoming dinner in Parliament
hosted by Sir Nicholas Winterton MP, Treasurer of the BGIPU.
Tuesday morning began with a tour of the Palace of Westminster led by
Eric Illsley MP.
The delegation moved on to a meeting with Mike Gapes MP, Chairman of the
Foreign Affairs Committee, who briefly explained the Select Committee
system in the House of Commons and then went into detail on the work of
the Foreign Affairs Committee. Mr Gapes also explained that the Committee
had produced a report on the Maghreb region in 2003/2004. He added that
he thought more focus should be given to the region, especially as we
faced a common threat from terrorism.
The last meeting of the morning was with the Economics Affairs Committee
in the Lords, chaired by Lord Vallance and attended by Lord Kingsdown
and Lord Moonie. Lord Vallance described the role of the Committee and
explained how they looked at monetary policy and met with the Governor
of the Bank of England. But that they were largely concerned with broader
macro-economic affairs and individual situations, for example, The Economics
of Climate Change.
Lunch that day was at Lancaster House and was hosted by Lord Bach, Government
Whip and Government Spokesperson for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.
In the afternoon, the delegation had a meeting with the Confederation
of British Industry chaired by Gary Campkin and colleagues who had recently
visited Algeria with the Duke of York.
Mr Campkin stated that he understand the enormous potential Algeria had
for investors, not just in the energy sector but also in the financial
services sector, education, infrastructure and tourism. He was encouraged
by the reform process underway; that in Algeria issues such as the rule
of law, good governance and good economic management would be important
to investors.
The delegation then returned to Parliament for the final meeting of the
day which was with the Council for the advancement of Arab British Understanding
(CAABU) hosted by John Austin MP and Crispin Blunt MP, two of the co-chairs
of the organisation.
Mr Austin introduced the organisation and explained their role in painting
a true picture of the arab world and correcting any misconceptions.
The delegation agreed that relations between the two countries had improved
as was evident by the creation of an All Party Parliamentary country group
and the visit of President Bouteflika in 2006.
In the evening, the delegation enjoyed a reception hosted by the Ambassador,
His Excellency Mr Mohamed Salah Dembri, at his residence.
Wednesday morning began with a two-hour round-table discussion with members
of the British Group IPU chaired by Sir Stuart Bell MP, Chairman of the
Algeria All Party Parliamentary Group.
The topics covered at this meeting were constitutional reforms and the
forthcoming Presidential elections in 2009; the importance of Algeria
in the energy sector, highlighted by the fact that Algeria could be supplying
up to 10% of the UK’s gas demand in 2010; Algeria’s relations
with the EU and the UN; and the situation in Western Sahara and its impact
on Algerian-Moroccan relations.
After the discussions, the delegation observed Prime Minister’s
Question Time, and this was followed by lunch in Peers’ Dining Room
hosted by Lord Dykes.
Following lunch, the delegation headed straight to the Paddington Station
for a train to Cardiff.
The first night in Cardiff was spent at a dinner at Fonmon Castle hosted
by Mrs Rosemary Butler AM, Deputy Presiding Officer. The delegation was
able to enjoy a brief history of the building before sitting down to a
lively dinner.
Thursday morning began in the Assembly Building with a presentation on
the constitutional position of Wales by Dianne Bevan, Chief Operating
Officer at the Welsh National Assembly.
The delegation were given a tour of the new Assembly building before having
an informal meeting with Jeff Cuthbert AM who shared with the delegation
his experiences of politics in Wales.
Lunch that day took place in Member’s Dining Room and was hosted
by Sandy Mewies AM. The afternoon was spent on visit of the Cardiff Bay
development and barrage. Dinner was an informal farewell to the delegation
hosted by Kenneth Courtenay.
On Friday morning the delegation boarded a train for London and later
departed from Heathrow to Algiers.
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