Visit of the Honourable Noël A. Kinsella, Speaker of the Senate, and a Parliamentary Delegation, Federal Republic of Germany, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and State of Qatar

From February 17 to 24, 2012, the Speaker of the Senate, the Honourable Noël A. Kinsella, led a parliamentary delegation on a visit to the Federal Republic of Germany, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the State of Qatar. The delegation was composed of Mrs. Ann Kinsella, the Honourable Senators Gérald Comeau, P.C., and Claudette Tardif. Accompanying the delegation were Mr. Gary W. O’Brien, Clerk of the Senate and Clerk of the Parliaments, Ms. Janelle Feldstein, Chief of Staff of the Speaker of the Senate, and Mr. Gérald Lafrenière, Secretary to the Delegation and Deputy Principal Clerk, Parliamentary Exchanges.

While in Qatar, the delegation met with:

• His Highness Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, Emir of the State of Qatar;
• Her Highness Sheikha Mozah bint Nasser Al Missned, Chairperson of Qatar Foundation;
• Dr. Fathy Saoud, President of Qatar Foundation;
• His Excellency Mohamed Bin Mubarak Al-Kholaifi, Speaker of the Advisory Council (Majlis Al-Shura) and prominent members of the Council;
• Major General Hamad bin Ali Al-Attiyah, Chief of Staff of the Qatar Armed Forces;
• Mr. Akbar Al Baker, Chief Executive Officer, Qatar Airways;
• Dr. Sheikha Abdulla Al Misnad, President, Qatar University, as well as a number of Deans of Qatar University;
• Mr. Nasser Al Hajri, Chairman, and Dr. Hamad Saad Al Saad, Advisor to the Chairman, Hassad Food Company;
• Captain Ahmed Al Mass, Acting Chairman, Qatar Ports Management Company; and
• Mr. Ken Macleod, President, and Dr. Latifa Al Houty, Member of Board of the College of the North Atlantic Qatar.

While in the United Kingdom, Speaker Kinsella, jointly with the Honourable Andrew Scheer, Speaker of the House of Commons, had the highest honour of being granted an audience with Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. Speaker Kinsella and the delegation also met with:

• The Right Honourable Baroness Frances D’Souza, Speaker of the House of Lords;
• Mr. David Beamish, Clerk of the Parliaments;
• Sir Alan Haselhurst, MP, Chair of the UK Branch of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) and Chair of the CPA International Executive Committee; and
• Mr. Robert Rogers, Clerk of the House of Commons.

While in Germany, Speaker Kinsella met with Herrenmeister, Dr. Oskar Prinz von Preußen.

The purpose of the visit to the State of Qatar was to strengthen relations between Canada and Qatar; reinforce the shared interest of promoting stability in the region; increase economic ties by promoting trade and investment; promote research in the area of agriculture; discuss the importance of human rights; promote post-secondary education exchanges; encourage social development, particularly in education and healthcare; discuss military exchanges and cooperation; expand maritime transport and promote collaboration between container shipping ports; encourage ongoing parliamentary dialogue by further promoting parliamentary exchanges; as well as discuss foreign policies with respect to issues of international and mutual interest.

The objectives of the visit to the United Kingdom were to enhance relations between Canada and the United Kingdom; discuss a range of issues regarding the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association; examine recent procedural and administrative changes at the House of Lords and the House of Commons; and commemorate Her Majesty’s Diamond Jubilee.

The purpose of the visit to Germany was to enhance relations between Canada and Germany, as well as to discuss international aid effectiveness.

View report.