G-20 Speakers' Consultation - Presiding Officers of the Upper and Unicameral Houses of the G-20, Ottawa, Canada

In the wake of the G-20 meetings held in Canada during 2010, the Honourable Noël A. Kinsella, Speaker of the Senate of Canada, hosted a Speakers' Consultation among the presiding officers of the upper and unicameral houses of the G-20 from September 2 to 5, 2010 in Ottawa. This initiative was the first of its kind.

Netherlands, Spain, Vietnam, Ethiopia, and Malawi were also invited as they were invited by the Government of Canada to the G-20 meeting in Toronto in June 2010. Speakers unable to attend were invited to send a representative, deputy speaker or parliamentarian. Local heads of mission were also invited to participate.

The general objective of the business sessions for the G-20 Speakers' Consultation was a forward-looking dialogue on the dynamics of current global economics and collaborative strategies in support of world food production, security and distribution. Particular focus was given to three sub-themes:

• Global collaborative strategies to meet the need for food production and distribution;
• New paradigms for peace and food security;
• Global financial and economic models for advancing global economic stability in support of world food production, security and distribution.

All business sessions were held in the Senate Chamber.

The heads of delegation included:

• His Excellency Arturo Guillermo Bothamley, Ambassador of the Argentine Republic;
• Mr. Michael Googan, Second Secretary of the Australian High Commission to Canada;
• The Honourable Eduardo Suplicy, Senator of the Federative Republic of Brazil;
• His Excellency Jiang Shusheng, Vice-Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress of the People's Republic of China;
• His Excellency Jean-Léonce Dupont, Vice-President of the Senate of the French Republic;
• Mr. Dirk Brouër, Secretary General of the Federal Council of the Federal Republic of Germany;
• His Excellency K. Rahman Khan, Deputy Chairman of Rajya Sabha of the Republic of India;
• Dr. Muhammad Hidayat Nur Wahid, Member of Parliament of the House of Representatives of the Republic of Indonesia;
• His Excellency Vannino Chiti, Vice-President of the Senate of the Italian Republic;
• His Excellency Otsuji Hidehisa, Vice-President of the House of Councillors of Japan;
• His Excellency Park Hee Tae, Speaker of the National Assembly of the Republic of Korea;
• Her Excellency Juliana Mphande, Second Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly of the Republic of Malawi;
• His Excellency Francisco Arroyo Vieyra, Vice-President of the Senate of the United Mexican States;
• His Excellency Wilhelmus Julius Petrus Geerts, Ambassador of the Netherlands for His Excellency René van der Linden, President of the Senate of the Kingdom of the Netherlands;
• His Excellency Alexander Torshin, First Vice-Chairman of the Council of the Federation of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation;
• His Excellency Dr. Abdullah Alsheikh, Speaker of the Consultative (Shura) Council of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia;
• The Honourable Mninwa Johannes Mahlangu, Chairperson of the National Council of Provinces of the Republic of South Africa;
• His Excellency Javier Rojo, Speaker of the Senate of the Kingdom of Spain;
• His Excellency Mehmet Ali Şahin, Speaker of the Grand National Assembly of the Republic of Turkey;
• Lord Meghnad Desai, House of Lords of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland;
• His Excellency David Cary Jacobson, Ambassador of the United States of America to Canada;
• His Excellency Nguyen Phu Trong, President of the National Assembly of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam; and
• His Excellency Stavros Lambrinidis, Vice-President of the European Parliament.

For full transcripts of the discussions held during the business sessions, photos, videos and more information on the event, please visit Speaker Kinsella's website at http://www.sen.parl.gc.ca/nkinsella/English/G20sep10-e.htm .

Judging that this first Speakers' Consultation was a great success that contributed to the promotion of parliamentary leadership and cooperation and helped strengthen a sense of solidarity and friendship among the key leaders of the G-20 parliaments, Speaker Park Hee Tae of the National Assembly of the Republic of Korea, proposed to continue the G-20 Speakers' Consultation on a regular basis so that the valuable ideas and thoughts discussed among the parliamentary leaders will produce actual outcomes and make a positive change to the world. Seoul will therefore host the Second G-20 Speakers' Consultation in May 2011.