Visit of the Honourable Andrew Scheer, M.P., Speaker of the House of Commons, and a Parliamentary Delegation, Romania and Croatia

From May 19 to 26, 2012, the Speaker of the House of Commons, the Honourable Andrew Scheer, M.P., led a parliamentary delegation on a visit to Romania and Croatia. The delegation was composed of Mr. Chris Warkentin, M.P.; Ms. Judy Foote, M.P.; and Mr. Philip Toone, M.P. Accompanying the delegation were Ms. Kenzie Potter, Chief of Staff to the Speaker, and Mr. David Gagnon, Secretary to the delegation.

In Romania, the delegation met with:

• His Excellency Vasile Blaga, President of the Senate;
• Mr. Valeriu Ştefan Zgonea, Vice-President of the Chamber of Deputies;
• His Excellency Florin Georgescu, Vice-Prime Minister and Minister of Public Finance;
• Her Excellency Luminiţa Odobescu, State Secretary for European Affairs; and
• Mr. Vasile Bereş, M.P., member of the Canada-Romania Friendship Group.

While in Romania, the delegation also had the opportunity to attend a reception at the official residence of the Canadian Ambassador, Mr. Philippe Beaulne. The delegation also travelled to the Prahova Valley where they visited both the Peles Castle and Bran Castle.

In Croatia, the delegation met with:

• His Excellency Ivo Josipović, President of the Republic of Croatia;
• His Excellency Boris Šprem, Speaker of the Hrvatski sabor;
• Mr. Neven Mimica, Deputy Prime Minister of the Republic of Croatia;
• Her Excellency Vesna Pusić, Minister of Foreign and European Affairs of the Republic of Croatia;
• Ms. Marija Vučković Selimovic, Deputy County Mayor of Dubrovnik; and
• Members of the Canadian-Croatian Business Network.

While in Croatia, the delegation attended a reception at the official residence of the Canadian Ambassador, Mr. Edwin Loughlin. The delegation was given a guided tour of the Croatian Parliament, the city of Zagreb, as well as the city of Dubrovnik.

The purpose of the visit was to promote the establishment of a permanent parliamentary dialogue and future parliamentary exchanges. The delegation was particularly interested in matters revolving on trade, the economy and agriculture. It provided the opportunity to discuss foreign policy on issues of international and mutual interest, as well as subjects of common interest arising from our membership in multilateral organizations.

View report.