Delegation Reports
PARLIAMENTARY DELEGATION FROM NICARAGUA
12 TO 16 MAY 2008
Delegation
René Núñez Téllez
Speaker of the Nicaraguan National Assembly and Leader of the Delegation
Sandinista National Liberation Front Party (FSLN)
Wilredo Navarro
Member of Parliament
Liberal Constitutionalist Party (PLC)
Juan Ramon Jiminez
Member of Parliament
Sandinista Renovation Movement (MRS)
Enrique Parrales
Director of International Relations, Nicaraguan National
Assembly
The delegation led by Mr René Nuñez Téllez, Speaker of the Nicaraguan National Assembly, arrived at Heathrow on Sunday 11 May and was met on arrival by Mr Kenneth Courtenay, General Secretary of the British Group IPU and Ms Alicia Sandino Teran, 1st Secretary at the Nicaragua Embassy.
The official programme started on Monday morning with a tour of the British Museum. The delegation was met on arrival by Andrew Burnett, Deputy Director of the Museum, and the tour was led in part by Colin McEwan, Curator of the Department for Africa, Oceania and the Americas.
The delegation then moved on to Parliament for a presentation on Parliamentary Procedures by Liam Laurence Smyth, Clerk of the Overseas Office.The delegation asked specific questions on the role of the House of Lords, the role of the Speaker in the House of Commons, the Northern Ireland Assembly and the human fertilisation and embryology bill.
Lunch that day was at the Atrium restaurant and was hosted by Viscount Montgomery of Alamein. The theme of this lunch was the Nicaraguan Caribbean coast and the delegation and invited guests from Parliament and other organisations such as Oxfam and World Wildlife Fund enjoyed a very lively discussion over lunch.
After lunch, the delegation visited Westminster Abbey and was greeted on arrival by Canon Jane Hedges. The tour was led by Ben Sheward.
The delegation then returned to Parliament and was invited to observe proceedings in the House of Lords before meeting with Baroness Hayman, the Lord Speaker.
Monday’s programme ended with the official welcoming dinner at the Marriott County Hall Hotel hosted by Christine Russell MP, Vice-Chair of the BGIPU.
Tuesday morning began with a tour of the Palace of Westminster led by Tim Loughton MP. The delegation then moved on to a meeting with Michael Connarty MP, Chairman of the European Scrutiny Committee, and his colleague Kelvin Hopkins MP. The delegation were keen to discuss the prospect of a Central American Trade Agreement with the EU and sought advice on how to ensure that any agreement with EU was on terms favourable to all parties.
Lunch that day was at Lancaster House and was hosted by Wayne David MP, Assistant Government Whip.
After lunch, the delegation met with Mike Gapes MP, Chair of the Foreign Affairs Select 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. When the Chairman was called away to the Chamber of the House of Commons, Mr Imran Shafi, Committee Specialist was able to answer the delegations’ specific questions on how the committee handled its research, whether they faced any restrictions when conducting investigations abroad and whether private companies ever contributed to the Committee’s investigations.
The last meeting of the day was with Meg Munn MP, Parliamentary under Secretary of State in the Foreign Office who briefly explained that current UK policy with Central America was concentrated in the areas of Climate Change and building transparent governance and good judicial services. The delegation was also able to discuss a variety of topics including their interest in the Commonwealth and current constitutional reforms in Nicaragua to encourage more interaction between the legislative and the executive.
The delegation then returned to Parliament and enjoyed a reception hosted by the Speaker in his State Rooms.
Dinner that evening was an informal event in Covent Garden with Veronica Scott, Director General of Canning House and members of the British Group IPU Secretariat.
Wednesday morning began with a two-hour round-table discussion with members of the British Group IPU chaired at the last minute by the Rt Hon Lord Anderson of Swansea DL. The topics covered at the meeting ranged from constitutional reforms to allow the re-election of the President to Nicaragua’s relations with the EU and negotiations for an Association Agreement between Central America and the EU. The discussions also touched on Nicaragua’s relations with its neighbours and article 165 of Nicaragua’s Penal Code on Therapeutic Abortions.
After the discussions, the delegation had a quick photo call with Meg Munn MP and then went on to observe Prime Minister’s Question Time. The final event in Parliament was a lunch in Peers’ Dining Room hosted by Baroness Gibson of Market Rasen OBE.
Following lunch, the delegation headed straight to Heathrow Airport for a flight to Belfast.
After checking in to the hotel the delegation enjoyed an informal dinner with guest speakers on the theme of conflict resolution.
Thursday morning began early with a briefing on political developments that led to the Northern Ireland Peace Process by Mary Madden, Deputy Director of the Political Directorate in the Northern Ireland Office. The second presentation of the morning was on devolution by Deirdre Griffith from the office of the First and deputy First Minister. The delegation then had a tour of North and West Belfast and even had the opportunity to sign one of the peace walls.
The delegation then returned to Parliament where they were met by and attended a lunch with Mr John Dallat MLA, Deputy Speaker. After lunch, they enjoyed a tour of parliament buildings before leaving Stormont for Claredon Docks. There the delegation had the chance to discuss the economic development of Belfast with Councillor Jim Rodgers OBE, Lord Mayor of Belfast.
The final meeting of the day was with Chief Superintendent Nigel Grimshaw of the Police Service of Northern Ireland at the Antrim Road Station, who gave a presentation on Policing in a Divided Society.
The delegation returned to London that evening and the visit programme officially ended on Friday morning.
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