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Report of the Parliamentary Delegation led by the Speaker to Germany, The and Norway 25 September – 5 October 2007

Hon Margaret Wilson MP, Speaker Forty-eighth Parliament

Presented to the House of Representatives

SPEAKER’S DELEGATION TO GERMANY, THE NETHERLANDS AND NORWAY 2007 J.2M

Contents BACKGROUND...... 5 INTRODUCTION...... 5 OBJECTIVES...... 5 GERMANY...... 6 New Zealand relationship...... 7 Institutional framework...... 7 Themes...... 9 Comment...... 9 THE NETHERLANDS...... 9 New Zealand relationship...... 10 Institutional framework...... 10 Themes...... 11 Comment...... 12 NORWAY...... 12 New Zealand relationship...... 13 Institutional framework...... 13 Themes...... 14 Comment...... 14 APPENDIX 1...... 16 Members of the Delegation...... 16 APPENDIX 2...... 17 Programme...... 17 APPENDIX 3...... 25 Speech at reception hosted by Ambassador, Consul-General and New Zealand Trade and Enterprise...... 25

SPEAKER’S DELEGATION TO GERMANY, THE NETHERLANDS AND NORWAY 2007 J.2M Report of the Parliamentary Delegation led by the Speaker to Germany, The Netherlands and Norway 25 September – 5 October 2007

BACKGROUND The annual Speaker’s delegation adds a further dimension to building New Zealand’s bilateral relationships with other countries by developing relations between parliamentarians. Each year Parliament hosts about 50 delegations from other countries. In turn the sends an annual delegation, led by the Speaker, to countries considered strategically important for political, economic, trade and cultural reasons. The membership of the 2007 Speaker’s delegation is set out in Appendix 1.

INTRODUCTION This year’s visit involved travel to three countries with which New Zealand has longstanding and diverse relationships: the Federal Republic of Germany, Kingdom of The Netherlands and Kingdom of Norway.

The prime purpose of the tour was to enable members of the delegation to study other Parliaments’ constitutional arrangements. While all three countries have their own particular relevance, Germany is the system on which New Zealand’s electoral system is modelled. I thought it would be particularly useful for the delegation, who as new Members have known no other electoral system, to see other electoral systems at work.

In addition, there were opportunities in each country for Members to arrange meetings to pursue their own policy interests.

The visit programme was put together following close consultation with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade and the New Zealand Embassies in Berlin and The Hague. I would like to acknowledge the advice and help provided by our embassy staff in Hamburg and Berlin: Ambassador Alan Cook, Consul-General and Trade Commissioner Jennifer Scoular, Second Secretary Shannon Ward; in The Hague and Amsterdam: Ambassador Rachel Fry and Research Assistant Peter Stephens; in Oslo, Ambassador Rachel Fry.

The programme is set out in Appendix 2.

OBJECTIVES New Zealand enjoys a unique relationship with the three countries visited. Our electoral system is arguably more European than Australasian, which meant there was much to

5 J.2M SPEAKER’S DELEGATION TO GERMANY, THE NETHERLANDS AND NORWAY 2007 observe. I was particularly pleased to have the opportunity to meet and discuss constitutional and electoral issues with leading academics as well as parliamentarians. The objectives established for the visit sought to provide an opportunity for individual members of the delegation to advance their personal interests as well as support New Zealand’s wider foreign policy and trade objectives in the countries to be visited.

In many ways the trip built on and complemented the 2006 Speaker’s Tour to Belgium and Turkey which focused on the and the European Union (EU).

The European Union is our second largest trading partner and a major source of investment and ideas. Along with Brussels and Ankara, it increasingly plays a significant role in global politics.

The objectives of the 2007 tour were to: • build relationships that promote understanding and goodwill between the New Zealand Parliament and the legislatures of Germany, The Netherlands and Norway • have productive exchanges on current areas of similar concern with an emphasis on electoral and constitutional issues, justice, integration, employment and industrial relations, health, ethical investment, women in politics, indigenous people’s issues, European Union, trade, agriculture, education, social policy and environmental issues • engage with members of Parliamentary Friendship Groups.

GERMANY Our visit to Germany was confined to Hamburg and Berlin. The visit was well-timed as Hamburg is experimenting with some modifications to its electoral system. The official programme began in Hamburg which demonstrated our support for the strategic alliance between the cities of Auckland and Hamburg. Our visit emphasised the political, trade and economic links between Hamburg and New Zealand.

Hamburg, one of the Federal Republic of Germany’s two city-states, is a vibrant port city and the second largest city in Germany. In terms of New Zealand’s trade and economic interests it is the most important German city.

New Zealand has had a Consulate General in Hamburg for almost 20 years. New Zealand Trade and Enterprise has recently established its expanded regional office for Europe, Africa and the Middle East in Hamburg. It is a main port for exports and imports to and from New Zealand.

The strategic alliance between Auckland and Hamburg is the result of dialogue and careful identification of particular areas where the two cities might benefit from collaboration. The Memorandum of Understanding focuses on expanding cooperation between the two cities on city development, sustainability, economic development, international relations life sciences and biotechnology and the integration of migrants.

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In Berlin, the focus was on the strong bilateral relationship founded on extensive linkages across many sectors. Our visit underscored the importance attached to developing and expanding that relationship with Germany.

New Zealand’s relationship with Germany is good. A range of activities has encouraged Germany to see New Zealand as a natural partner in a globalising world. They are: • a working holiday scheme • a film co-production agreement • a 2007 review of the 1978 Science and Technology Cooperation agreement; and • the strategic alliance between Auckland and Hamburg.

New Zealand relationship The delegation was briefed by the New Zealand Embassy on the New Zealand-German relationship. We were accompanied by the Ambassador, Alan Cook, and Shannon Ward, Second Secretary, at all times.

In Hamburg we were met and accompanied by Jennifer Scoular, New Zealand Consul- General and Trade Commissioner.

A reception at the wharenui at the Hamburg Museum of Ethnology, jointly organised by the New Zealand Embassy and the Consulate General, was a very appropriate beginning to our visit to Germany and provided the ‘wow factor’ for many of our guests. The occasion furthered Hamburg business and consular contacts and provided an opportunity for the delegation to meet our hosts, including the Parliamentary President Berndt Röder. A highlight was the greeting in Maori by MP and his wife Erana Hond-Flavell to the wharenui. The wharenui, purchased by the museum in 1908, came from Mr Flavell’s rohe.

A lunch hosted by Nina Hauer, Chair of the German-Australian-New Zealand Parliamentary Friendship Group offered the opportunity to cement contacts made during the German Parliamentary delegation’s visit to New Zealand in 2007. Johannes Pflug (SPD), Dr Dietmar Staffelt (SPD) and Sevim Dagdelen (Left Party) were also present.

Institutional framework The German Parliament has two chambers: the Bundestag and the Bundesrat. The Bundestag has 614 members and the next election is due in 2009. The number of women members is 194 or 32%. The powers include enacting legislation, scrutinising the federal government and adopting the budget, electing the Federal Chancellor and deciding on the deployment of the armed forces outside Germany.

299 members are directly elected from constituency seats and 299 members are elected from the parties’ state lists. These 598 seats are distributed proportionately, using the Hare/Niemeyer method.

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Following the 2005 election, neither of the two leading parties was in a position to form a ruling coalition. After seven weeks of negotiations the centre-right grand coalition of Christian Democrats/Bavarian Christian Socialists (CDU/CSU) and Social Democrats (SPD) was formed. The Grand Coalition has a two-thirds majority. One downside is that it leaves the main opposition role to minority parties, who are accordingly able to gain credibility and popular support.

In Berlin, our delegation was briefed by Dr Helmut Winkelman, Head of Parliamentary Services at the Federal German parliament. Germany has been using proportional representation considerably longer than New Zealand and Dr Winkelman said the political scene had become much more complicated post-reunification with the emergence of smaller parties. It was very difficult for either of the major parties to get a majority even in coalition with a smaller party.

Bundestag Vice President Petra Pau (Left Party) told us that the grand coalition had not made the Parliamentary President’s role easier, since its large majority meant that care was needed to ensure opposition parties had opportunities to get their views across.

We were able to contrast the views of representatives of the two major political parties on electoral reform and the grand coalition. Dr Kajo Wasserhövel (SDP) said grand coalition meetings had to be meticulously prepared to avoid inter-party conflict reaching the public domain, both at official and party level. Dr Friedburt Pflüger, CDU leader, said the greater the number of political parties, the harder it was to form a stable coalition government. Coalition negotiations risked splintering the major parties since concessions offended the conservative members of the party.

Klaus Wowereit, a leading figure in the SPD and Mayor of Berlin, said grand coalitions were always a ‘lame compromise’ and should not continue past one legislative period.

The Hamburg Parliament or Bürgerschaft has 121 members and the next election is due in February 2008. The number of women members is 42 or 35%. The Bürgerschaft fulfils the roles of both state parliament and, in part, city council. Its functions include legislating, electing the Lord Mayor, confirming Senators appointed by the Lord Mayor, monitoring the Senate and budgetary power.

At a meeting with President Röder (CDU – conservatives), Rolf-Dieter Kloob (SPD – Social Democrats) and Dr Till Steffen (GAL – Green Party) Mr Kloob said the Hamburg Parliament had recently approved the holding of a referendum and the first result had been to change Hamburg’s MMP electoral system. The result, as modified, will provide voters with one party vote and five electorate votes. There are concerns that the new electoral system will be too complex and not well understood among the electorate.

The centre-right Christian Democratic Union won the 2004 election and was able to form a government in its own right. The new electoral law will come into effect for next year’s election. Seventy-one seats will be allocated proportionately among 17 multi-constituencies and 50 seats will be allocated from a party list vote to parties gaining at least 5% of that vote. There is provision for overhang.

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At the time of our visit, Hamburg was preparing for a referendum to change the state constitution to make the outcomes of future referenda binding and to lower the voter turnout required for the outcome to be valid. The referendum failed due to low voter turnout.

Themes A meeting with four Constitutional Court members and visit to the Hamburg Constitutional Court extended our debate on electoral reform and referenda.

I was privileged to take part in a discussion on ‘women in leadership positions in justice’ which confirmed that others share our difficulties in this area.

Justice featured strongly in our programme, and we visited the central Hamburg remand prison where we discussed race and ethnicity issues in German prisons. This topic arose again at the Office of the Commissioner for Integration and Migration in Berlin. Unemployment, lower educational attainment and lower representation in the public service are particular issues for the migrant community that the Office aims to address.

These issues were also raised when we met members of the Confederation of German Trade Unions in Berlin.

Comment This was the first Speaker’s delegation visit to Germany after more than seven years. The timing of the visit coming shortly after the visit of a parliamentary delegation to New Zealand has given a significant boost to parliamentary contacts between the two countries.

In Hamburg, President Berndt Röder honoured us by welcoming and receiving the delegation in the Bürgerschaft.

Overall the discussions with a range of political figures confirmed that the grand coalition government is coping with the inbuilt tensions between the two major parties, even though such an arrangement is clearly not the preferred option for either side. Many commentators expressed longer-term worries about the role of minority parties. While there is no real move to re-examine the federal German MMP system, there is recognition that the political scene has become more complex with an increased number of parties. The outcome of the elections next year in four key states (Hamburg, Lower Saxony, Hesse and Bavaria) will give some idea of the evolving political mood in Germany.

THE NETHERLANDS New Zealand and The Netherlands share many family linkages, boosted by a strong Dutch interest in our culture and scenery. We also share many viewpoints on international issues which leads to close cooperation in multilateral forums.

Trade between New Zealand and The Netherlands is moderate, but The Netherlands is the second largest European investor into New Zealand, reflecting its strong agricultural traditions and the presence of some important multinationals. Its strategic location

9 J.2M SPEAKER’S DELEGATION TO GERMANY, THE NETHERLANDS AND NORWAY 2007 within Europe, a population with strong language and entrepreneurial skills, quality infrastructure and an open and outward looking economy combine to make it an attractive gateway to Europe for New Zealand companies.

New Zealand relationship The delegation was briefed by the New Zealand Embassy on the New Zealand-Dutch relationship. We were accompanied by the Ambassador, Rachel Fry, and Research Assistant, Peter Stephens, at all times.

A buffet reception at the New Zealand residence in honour of the delegation was hosted by Ambassador Fry and gave us the opportunity to meet a cross-section of Embassy contacts. These included New Zealanders working for international organisations and in the private sector, judges, political figures, and Dutch people with official, business and cultural connections to New Zealand.

It was an honour for members of the delegation to be received and acknowledged in both the First and Second Chambers of the Staten-Generaal.

Institutional framework The Dutch Parliament (Staten-Generaal) is bicameral. The Second Chamber is the lower House, and the First Chamber is the upper House.

The powers of the second Chamber, with 150 members of whom 58 or 39% are women, include enacting and amending legislation, oversight of the government, approving the Budget, initiating inquiries and approving treaties. Members are directly elected from 19 multi-member constituencies. Seats are distributed among party lists on a national basis, each party gaining the number of seats equal to its total vote, divided by the national quota. Ministers cannot be members. The next election is due in 2010.

Neither the left nor the right won a clear majority in the last election. The stalemate ended when the centre-right Christian Democratic Appeal, the left-wing Labour Party and the centre-right Christian Union signed a coalition agreement and formed a government. A detailed 54-page agreement now forms the government programme for the next four years.

The First Chamber or Senate has 75 members. The next election is due in 2011. The main function of the First Chamber is to scrutinise bills. It also has a role in scrutinising the actions of the government, and has the power to instigate investigations.

Members are elected from party lists by the members of the 12 provincial councils. Seats are allocated using the same process as for the Second Chamber.

We explored the Dutch experience of a proportional representation (PR) electoral system and the impact on coalition building from a constitutional, electoral and political perspective. Professor Rudy Andeweg, Professor of Political Science, Leiden University, gave a useful introduction to the Dutch system. The delegation also met with Professor Henk Kummerling, Chair of the Electoral Council of the Netherlands and Professor of Dutch Constitutional Law and Comparative Constitutional Law at

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Utrecht University, to discuss the PR system and Dutch electoral processes. The political perspective was canvassed at a meeting with Mr (CDA), the second longest serving member of the Second Chamber. From these meetings, it emerged that while there is not total satisfaction with the Dutch system, no reform is on the immediate horizon.

Themes While the prime purpose of this year’s Speaker’s Tour was to learn about other countries constitutional and electoral systems, the visit reinforced and extended the range of political contacts within The Netherlands. It also provided some interesting insights on the functioning of proportional representation systems, and offered the opportunity for engagement on a variety of other issues ranging from integration to diversity in The Hague and Amsterdam.

A particular highlight in The Hague was the opportunity to familiarise ourselves with key international legal organisations. At the International Criminal Court (ICC) we met the President, Judge Philippe Kirsch, and the Prosecutor, Luis Moreno-Ocampo. Both expressed their gratitude to New Zealand for its active commitment and ongoing support for the work of the court. They also urged New Zealand Members to use their contacts with other parliaments to promote the ICC, to adopt relevant legislation and to publicise the role of the ICC more widely.

At the International Court of Justice, we were met by Sir Kenneth Keith, who talked about the history and role of the court. He also described New Zealand’s involvement, including specific cases such as those against France on nuclear testing.

While the visit to the Netherlands was not officially hosted by the Dutch Parliament, the President of the Second Chamber, (Labour), took a strong personal interest in the visit. The delegation also met the President of the First Chamber, Yvonne Timmermann-Buck (CDA – Christian Democrat) and was officially received and acknowledged in both the First and Second Chambers in session. The First Deputy Speaker, Jan ten Hoopen (CDA), hosted a working lunch for the delegation.

A series of one-on-one meetings was set up involving delegation members and Dutch Members to discuss matters of mutual Interest. There was positive feedback from both sides about these bilateral discussions, which widened New Zealand's political voice across the mainstream Dutch political spectrum on a range of subjects including justice, women in politics, health care, employment and industrial relations, agriculture and education.

A meeting with members of the Foreign Affairs, Social Affairs and Employment and Justice Committees of the Second Chamber provided an opportunity for an exchange of experiences on parliamentary process and the functioning of select committees. This meeting was chaired by Mr (VVD – Liberal) and attended by Mr Coskun Coruz (CDA), Mr (CDA) and Ms (SP – Socialist Party).

While in The Hague, the delegation met with the Social and Economic Council of The Netherlands (SER) to discuss employment and industrial relations. The SER is

11 J.2M SPEAKER’S DELEGATION TO GERMANY, THE NETHERLANDS AND NORWAY 2007 distinctive Dutch body which advises the government on a broad range of social and economic policy issues. It consists of representatives of employers and employees alongside independent appointees. The delegation met with the Chair, Alexander Rinnooy Kan, Director-General Veronique Timmerhuis and other senior staff. Mr Rinnooy Kan described the SER's ability to be 'uniquely effective' in the many situations where it succeeds in offering unanimous advice to government backed by business and labour organisations.

The Netherlands programme concluded with a visit to Amsterdam to see how the city handles the challenge of diversity. A briefing from the city's policy adviser on radicalisation of (Muslim) youth was followed by a brief address from Alderwoman Henna Buyne who emphasised the importance of engendering two-way respect and described the efforts the Amsterdam City Council is making to create an Amsterdam identity shared by all communities in the city. The delegation visited two projects under the auspices of the Foundation for Intercultural Participation and Integration. The first trains Turkish and Moroccan women who are fluent in Dutch to teach the language to women from their own communities. The second project 'Czaar Bazaar' assists young migrant women to set up their own business or become self employed at home.

Comment I chose The Netherlands for this Speaker’s tour because I felt we would learn a lot from the Dutch approach to electoral and constitutional issues. An innovative programme which included politicians and academic commentators from across the political spectrum ensured we were not disappointed.

It is clear that we need to increase the number of high level visits to New Zealand from the Netherlands. While it was an honour to host the Crown Prince and Princess in New Zealand last year, there has been a dearth of Dutch Parliamentary visits to New Zealand recently. The traffic in the other direction is only marginally better.

NORWAY New Zealand and Norway share a commonality of perspectives and positions on many international issues. As a European country that is closely associated with the European Union (EU) but not actively seeking membership, Norway has a different perspective on European affairs from its neighbours and is a valued interlocutor for New Zealand.

Norway is similar in size and population to New Zealand and has played a positive role in the UN on questions of international security.

The conclusion of a working holiday agreement in 2005 has added to the range of people-to-people contacts. There is potential to develop the education and tourism fields further but only limited scope for increased trade while Norway’s agriculture sector remains highly protected.

The economy is buoyant due to high oil prices and sensible economic management but social welfare reform still needs to be addressed.

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New Zealand relationship New Zealand accredited its Ambassador in The Hague to Norway in 1973 while Norway accredited its Ambassador, resident in Canberra, to New Zealand in 1970. New Zealand’s current ambassador, Rachel Fry, briefed the delegation and accompanied us during our time in Oslo.

New Zealand supported Norway in its election to the UN Security Council in 2000. Both New Zealand and Norway are parties to the Antarctic Treaty and cooperate in scientific research on that continent. The two countries concluded an Antarctic Cooperation Statement in 1997.

Human rights, international security, disarmament, Antarctic issues, oceans issues and climate change are all areas where engagement with Norway has proved particularly useful.

One international issue on which we disagree is whaling. New Zealand strongly opposes both commercial and scientific whaling. In 1993 Norway resumed whaling operations, despite an International Whaling Commission moratorium. Norway has consistently opposed the establishment of a South Pacific whale sanctuary.

Institutional framework The Norwegian Parliament or Storting is unicameral, but divides into two chambers, the Odelsting and the Lagting, for the consideration of bills. There are 169 members in the Storting; 127 in the Odelsting and 42 in the Lagting. The number of women members is 61 or 36%. The next election is due in 2009.

The Storting enacts and repeals laws, appropriates money for government expenditure, supervises the country’s monetary affairs, appoints auditors to examine the state accounts and holds conventions and treaties that have been concluded with foreign powers.

155 seats are allocated among the 19 multi-seat constituencies on the basis of population. Voting is by party lists, with seats distributed proportionately according to the modified St Laguë method. Parties must have received at least 4% of the national vote to be eligible for an additional seat.

The Red-Green alliance of the Labour Party, the agrarian Centre Party and the Socialist Left Party gained an absolute majority in the 2005 election. The Soiria Moria Declaration, which sets out the coalition’s political platform, was then negotiated and a separate document, Working Guidelines, was also drawn up.

A highlight of our programme in Norway was an informal briefing on electoral issues by two Oslo University academics, Professor Aanund Hylland and Professor Hanne Marthe Narud over lunch.

The delegation was particularly interested in Norway’s experience of minority governments. It emerged that voter concern about lack of predictability and accountability with minority governments has prompted greater efforts to form majority

13 J.2M SPEAKER’S DELEGATION TO GERMANY, THE NETHERLANDS AND NORWAY 2007 governments, with coalitions not previously possible now being contemplated. The current three-party coalition majority government is the first majority government in 20 years. It was elected on the basis of a pre-election alliance.

Speaker Jagland described the biggest challenge to the Norwegian Parliament being the fact that so many decisions were made outside Parliament, either in the EU or the WTO. Norway gained much from its membership of these bodies and he did not personally regret this, but he felt there was a low level of public understanding of the extent to which power had been exported to international bodies.

Themes The delegation’s visit to Norway was at the invitation of the Speaker of the Storting, Thorbjorn Jagland (Labour), and fully hosted by the Norwegian Parliament. This resulted in meetings with a wide range of Members; altogether we met 24 Members from all seven parties in the Storting and had contact with three standing committees (foreign affairs, justice and labour, social affairs).

I had a private audience with King Harald and the delegation as a whole met with Government, Family and Equality Minister Karita Bekkemellem. The Minister explained Norway’s law mandating gender equity on boards of large private companies, SOEs and municipal companies. Measures introduced over the last 50 years had led to a high participation rate but a 15% gender pay gap persisted and the government was working to move women out of unwanted part-time work in order to fill labour market gaps.

The Chair of the Council on Ethics, Professor Gro Nystuen, briefed the delegation on the ethical guidelines applied to investments by Norway’s US$300 billion pension fund derived from oil and gas revenues. The Council’s mandate is to rule out investment in companies which do not comply with the guidelines rather than to select ethical companies in which to invest.

A briefing from Stein Reegård, Chief Economist with the Norwegian Labour Organisation, highlighted Norway’s high labour market participation rate, high productivity and low margin between average and high salaries.

A planned meeting with a representative of the Saami Parliament (Sametinget) did not happen due to a recent change in leadership of the Sametinget. However, the delegation was briefed by Speaker Jagland, Storting Secretary-General Hans Brattestâ and Bjorn Olav Megard, Deputy Director for Saami and Minority Affairs in the Ministry of Labour and Social Inclusion.

Comment This visit met our objectives of obtaining insights into the functioning of a parliament elected by proportional representation and operating under that system for longer than New Zealand.

The warmth of our welcome was heartening, particularly in a country where few parliamentarians had visited our country. Many referred to a strong sense of affinity

14 SPEAKER’S DELEGATION TO GERMANY, THE NETHERLANDS AND NORWAY 2007 J.2M with New Zealand and shared values. We were told that the round of applause that followed Speaker Jagland’s presentation of the delegation to the Storting was the first ever.

I understand that our Embassy believes the visit provided a welcome boost to the relationship, greatly extended the level of personal contact between the parliaments and built up knowledge and awareness of New Zealand. At the same time, delegation members had opportunities to pursue their own specific policy interests.

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APPENDIX 1

Members of the Delegation

Hon Margaret Wilson, MP, Speaker and Leader of the Delegation

Maryan Street MP, Labour

Jo Goodhew MP, National

Kate Wilkinson MP, National

Te Ururoa Flavell MP, Maori Party

Rafael Gonzalez-Montero, Secretary to the Delegation

Rose Hart, Communications Adviser to the Speaker

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APPENDIX 2

Programme Hamburg

Tuesday 25 September 2007

18.30 Reception at Hamburg Museum of Ethnology hosted by Jennifer Scoular – NZ Trade Commissioner/Consul General in Hamburg for the business and consular contacts. Also present, Dr Koepke, Director of Museum of Ethnology. Speaker’s speech Appendix 3

Wednesday 26 September 2007

09.15 Met and exchanged gifts with Mr Berndt Röder, President of the Hamburg Parliament

Followed by discussion with - Ms Viviane Spethmann, CDU Spokesperson for Justice and Law of the Hamburg Parliament - Mr Rolf-Dieter Klooß, SPD Spokesperson for Justice and Law of the Hamburg Parliament - Dr Till Steffen, GAL Spokesperson for Justice and Law of the Hamburg Parliament

10.15 Visit to Prisoner Remand Centre Discussion with members of the management team

- Ms Claudia Dreyer, Director of the Prisoner Remand Centre - Mr Michael Völkel, Deputy Director of the Prisoner Remand Centre - Ms Renate Fey, Head of Division at the Department of Justice

12.00 Lunch at Parliament, with cross-section of Members, hosted by President Röder

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14.00 Delegation members tour Town Hall

14.15 Speaker meets leading female jurists for discussion on ‘Women in Leadership Positions in Justice’ with:

Erika Andress, President of the Hamburg Supreme Court Marianne Schulze, President of the Social Court Angela Uhlig-van Buren, Hamburg State General-Counsel

14.50 Visit to Hamburg Parliament Plenary Session, including introduction to the House seating arrangements, key personalities, the treatment of visitors and press representatives, introduction to the day’s agenda and debate

15.00 Delegation welcomed by President Roder to the debating chamber

15.45 Visit Hamburg Constitutional Court. Round-table discussion on justice, legal cases, electoral reforms and referenda with: - Mr Gerd Harder, President of the Hamburg Constitutional Court and The Chief Justice of the Higher Regional Court - Ms Hannelore Wirth-Vonbrunn, Member of the Hamburg Constitutional Court and Judge at the Finance Court - Dr Stephanie Borchardt, Member of the Hamburg Constitutional Court and Judge at the Administrative Court - Ms Sabine Annette Westphalen, Spokeswoman of the Hamburg Constitutional Court and Judge at the Higher Regional Court

18 SPEAKER’S DELEGATION TO GERMANY, THE NETHERLANDS AND NORWAY 2007 J.2M Berlin

Thursday 27 September

11.00-12.15 German Bundestag – discussion with Dr Winkelmann, Head of the Parliamentary Services on the Electoral System and Voting 12.30-14.00 Lunch hosted by Nina Hauer, Chair of the German-Australian- New Zealand Parliamentary Friendship Group. Other guests included: - Mr Johannes Pflug (SPD) - Dr. Dietmar Staffelt (SPD) - Ms Sevim Dagdelen (DIE LINKE)

15.35 Met with Mrs Petra Pau (PDS/Linke), Deputy Speaker of the German Bundestag to discuss women in Parliament and the impact of reunification

18.00 Met with Dr. Friedbert Pflüger, Chair of CDU-Fraction in Berlin Parliament

Friday 28 September

09.40 Federal Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs Met with State Secretary Dr. Kajo Wasserhövel SPD)

11.45 Met with Berlin Mayor Klaus Wowereit

15.00 Met with Andreas Germershausen, Commissioner of the Berlin Senate for Integration and Migration 16.15 Met with members of The Confederation of German Trade Unions (DGB) - Annelie Buntenbach, Member of the Board of DGB - Wolfgang Lutterbach, Head of the DGB’s International Department

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The Hague

Monday 1 October 2007

10.30 International Criminal Court Met with HE Judge Philippe Kirsch QC, President

11.00 Met with Mr Luis Moreno-Ocampo, Prosecutor

12.00 Working lunch at New Zealand Embassy with Prof Rudy Andeweg, Professor of Empirical Political Science, Leiden University, on the Dutch Political System.

14.00 International Court of Justice

Met with Sir Kenneth Keith who briefed the delegation about the Court and New Zealand's experience before it

14.50 Informal discussion with Mr Philippe Couvreur, Registrar of International Court of Justice and Sir Kenneth Keith

16.00 Binnenhof (Dutch Parliament) The delegation welcomed by Mr Jan ten Hoopen, 1st Deputy Speaker of the Second Chamber of the States General and Ms Jacqueline Biesheuvel-Vermeijden, Secretary General of the Second Chamber

16.10 Individual meetings with Dutch Members

- The Speaker: Ms Cisca Joldersma (CDA) – Justice & Women in Politics

- Ms : Ms Janneke Schermers (CDA) – Health Care

- Ms Maryan Street: Mr (VVD) – Employment, Industrial Relations

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- Ms Kate Wilkinson: Mr (CDA) - Agriculture

- Mr Te Ururoa Flavell: Ms Margot Kraneveldt-van der Veen (PvdA) – Education

17.30 Official welcome by Ms Gerdi A. Verbeet, President of the Second Chamber and joint meeting with Ms Yvonne Timmerman-Buck, President of the First Chamber.

19.00 Dinner hosted by the President of the Second Chamber, Ms Gerdi Verbeet. Other guests: The President of the First Chamber, Mrs Yvonne Timmermann- Buck and Members from the Second Chamber who are participating in the programme.

Tuesday 2 October 2007

09.00 Binnenhof (Dutch Parliament) Meeting with Mr Wim van de Camp MP (CDA) for a political perspective on the Dutch Proportional Representation Electoral System

11.00 Met with Social and Economic Council (SER) including:

- Mr Alexander Rinnooy Kan, Chairman - Ms Véronique Timmerhuis, Secretary General - Mr Hans van der Meer, Social Affairs Policy Officer - Mr Hans Prakke, Head of the Public Information Office

2.15 Working lunch hosted by: the 1st Deputy Speaker of the Second Chamber, Mr Jan ten Hoopen, in the Stadhouderskamer, on the Dutch electoral system. Attended by: - Mr Henk Kummeling, Chairman of the Electoral Council of The Netherlands and Professor of Dutch Constitutional Law and Comparative Constitutional Law, Utrecht University

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- Ms Jacqueline Biesheuvel-Vermeiden, Secretary-General of the Second Chamber

13.00 Delegation members tour Parliamentary buildings

13.30 Speaker interviewed by Ms Daphne van Dijk, De Telegraaf.

14.00 Official welcome by the President of the Second Chamber, Ms Gerdi Verbeet

15.00 Official welcome in the First Chamber by Ms Yvonne Timmermann-Buck, President

Met with Members of the First Chamber in the First Chamber Committee Room

16.00 Met with Members of the following committees: Foreign Affairs; Housing, Communities and Integration; Social Affairs and Employment; Justice. Chaired by Mr Hans van Baalen (VVD)

18.30 Reception hosted by Ms Rachel Fry, NZ Ambassador, at the New Zealand Residence, Wassenaar, attended by cross section of Embassy contacts and people with official, business and cultural connections

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Wednesday 3 October 2007

09.30 Briefing by Mr Colin Nellis, Policy Adviser on Radicalisation to the City of Amsterdam

10.30 Met with Alderwoman Henna Buyne, Alderwoman, City of Amsterdam with portfolio responsibility for Work and Income, Education, Youth, Diversity and Large Cities Policy

11.15 Accompanied by Ms Cynthia Hendriks, visited the Foundation for Intercultural Participation and Integration, City of Amsterdam

Met with Ms Esma Salama, Project Chairperson

12.05 Visit to the ‘Czaar Bazaar’ project for young women which assists them to set up their own businesses as part of the anti- radicalisation project

Oslo

Wednesday 3 October 2007

20.00 Official dinner hosted by Mr Thorbjørn Jagland, President of Storting

Thursday 4 October 2007

09.45 Storting – Met by President. Welcomed in the Guest Gallery

10.15 Briefing on constitutional and administrative matters by Mr Hans Brattestå, Secretary General of the Storting

11.15 Working lunch with Members of the Standing Committee on Justice hosted by Ms Anne Marit Bjørnflaten, Chairperson

23 J.2M SPEAKER’S DELEGATION TO GERMANY, THE NETHERLANDS AND NORWAY 2007

13.00 Speaker’s audience with His Majesty the King of Norway

13.30 Briefing from Mr Thorbjørn Jagland, President

14.30 Met with members of the Council on Ethics for the Norwegian Government Pension Fund – Global. Chaired by Dr Gro Nystuen, Chairperson

15.30 Met with members of Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs

20.00 Dinner hosted by Mr Carl I Hagen, Vice President of the Storting

Friday 5 October 2007

09.00 Met with Ministry of Children and Equality. Chaired by Ms Karita Bekkemellem, Minister of Family and Equality – Ministry of Children and Equality

09.50 Briefed on Norwegian policy regarding Sami issues by Mr Bjørn Olav Megard, Deputy Director General, Ministry of Labour and Social Inclusion.

10.45 Briefed on Norwegian Labour Organisation by Mr Stein Reegård, Chief Economist, Department of Social and Economic Affairs

12.00 Lunch Hosted by Ms Marit Nybakk, Second Deputy Chair of the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs with University of Oslo Professor Hanne Marthe Narnd and Professor Aanund Hylland and parliamentarians to discuss constitutional and electoral issues

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APPENDIX 3

Hon Margaret Wilson MP Speaker of the New Zealand House of Representatives

Speech at reception hosted by Ambassador, Consul-General and New Zealand Trade and Enterprise

Museum of Ethnology Hamburg

6.00pm, Tuesday 25 September 2007

Your Excellency, Ambassador Alan Cook, Consul-General Jennifer Scoular, distinguished guests, members of the New Zealand delegation and staff – on behalf of members of the Speaker’s Tour, I’d like to say how much we appreciate the warm welcome we have received in the very short time we have been here in Hamburg.

We are here in Germany to learn. This Speaker’s tour is primarily to study other Parliaments’ constitutional arrangements although there will be opportunities for Members to look at policy issues of particular interest to them.

New Zealand’s electoral system was closely modelled on the German system, so we have a very direct interest in your Parliamentary system.

I’d also like to welcome the importers present tonight. You are a valuable part of New Zealand’s export success in this part of the world, and I trust you see New Zealand in a similar light.

I also thank the board and management of this magnificent museum which has been provided free of charge for our use tonight. New Zealanders, far from home, regard this as a special place.

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The wharenui has an impressive whakapapa. I understand Te Rauru from Whakarewarewa is one of only three maintained outside New Zealand. The main carvings have been identified as well-known legendary and mythical personalities, chosen mainly so as to provide convenient illustrations for the famous Rotorua legends.

The wharenui was sold in 1904 and obtained by the museum in 1908. The same carvers were immediately employed to complete a new meeting house. Maori were and still are good traders and the Ngati Tarawhai carvers soon developed a small model meeting house that satisfied European customers. I encourage you to take the time to look inside and please, do observe protocol.

It is a great pleasure to be here in Hamburg, to continue the momentum that has built up over the past year around strengthening links between Hamburg and New Zealand, and more specifically, with our major city and commercial centre, Auckland.

New Zealand attaches great importance to developing and expanding our bilateral relationship with Germany. Clearly, a dynamic, strategic alliance between two of our key cities is an important strand in that relationship.

The Memorandum of Understanding that Auckland and Hamburg entered into earlier this year provides tangible support for New Zealand's economic transformation by developing links with one of our key markets. The areas that have been identified for initial focus include sharing best practice in urban development, economic development, and life sciences - all extremely pertinent areas for attention in this period of globalisation.

I am aware of a number of potential initiatives that are being discussed in the context of developing the relationship further. I hope we can use the opportunity of coming together tonight to progress some of those initiatives further.

We live in a world which has become increasingly interdependent. There is no doubt that, as we seek to operate more actively in each other’s regions, there are great benefits to be gained from special associations at the city level.

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We see Hamburg as a useful port of entry, both physically and metaphorically, into Germany and the rest of Europe. We can provide a similar role into Asia Pacific.

Hamburg continues to be the gateway for significant European imports from New Zealand. It is the regional office for the NZ Government’s trade agency where it promotes trade and investment opportunities into 19 different countries.

The German speaking countries, the Nordics, Central and Eastern Europe down to Turkey focus on ICT, biotechnology and specialised manufacturing such as marine and aviation. An active Education Trade Development Executive promotes the benefits of education in NZ.

Our confidence in the prospects for stronger links is reflected in New Zealand Trade and Enterprise’s recent decision to significantly upgrade its Hamburg operation, to become its regional office for Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

Alan, Jennifer and staff – thank you for organising this reception. It is always a pleasure to mix with our friends and trading partners and functions like tonight serve a very useful purpose. … as well as being very enjoyable.

Ka kite ano.

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