J.2S Speaker's Delegation 2008 Poland, Czech Republic and …

J.2S

Report of the Parliamentary

Delegation led by the Speaker to Poland, the Czech Republic and Hungary

21 – 30 April 2008

Hon Margaret Wilson MP, Speaker Forty-eighth Parliament

Presented to the House of Representatives

J.2S SPEAKER’S DELEGATION

Contents

BACKGROUND...... 3 INTRODUCTION...... 3 OBJECTIVES...... 4 European Union...... 4 POLAND...... 5 New Zealand relationship...... 6 Institutional framework...... 7 Themes...... 8 Comment...... 9 CZECH REPUBLIC...... 9 New Zealand relationship...... 10 Institutional framework...... 11 Themes...... 11 Comment...... 12 HUNGARY...... 13 New Zealand relationship...... 13 Institutional framework...... 14 Themes...... 14 Várpalota...... 16 Comment...... 16 APPENDIX 1...... 18 APPENDIX 2...... 19 APPENDIX 3...... 26 APPENDIX 4...... 33

J.2S SPEAKER’S DELEGATION

Report of the Parliamentary Delegation led by the Speaker to Poland, the Czech Republic and Hungary

21 – 30 April 2008

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 New Zealand Parliament sends an annual delegation, led by the Speaker, to countries considered strategically important for political, economic, trade and cultural reasons. The membership of the 2008 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: Poland, the Czech Republic and Hungary. See Appendix 3, Press Releases.

Introductory briefings in Warsaw, Prague and Budapest on parliamentary and political systems were a welcome innovation in this year’s programme. The briefings by leading academic commentators painted an historical picture of centuries of upheaval and contextualised what we were to see and hear.

The programme was put together following close consultation with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade and the New Zealand Embassies in Poland and Berlin. I would like to acknowledge the advice and help in Warsaw and Krakow provided by: Ambassador Philip Griffiths, Consul-General and Trade Commissioner Jennifer Scoular, Second Secretary Loveday Kempthorne; in Prague and Budapest Ambassador Alan Cook, Jennifer Scoular, Second Secretary Zoe Coulson-Sinclair and Cornelia Loeser, adviser. Vera Egermayer and Rezső Sárdi, Honorary Consuls in Prague and Budapest, accompanied the delegation in the Czech Republic and Hungary and provided useful local knowledge.

Because this was a parliamentary delegation, we were given access at the highest level including meetings with the Presidents of Poland, the Czech Republic and Hungary. Their interests and concerns were remarkably similar including electoral systems, climate change, sustainable development and green initiatives.

Members of the delegation also met Speakers and Deputy Speakers from the three countries, the Czech Prime Minister and the Deputy Prime Minister of Poland,

3 SPEAKER’S DELEGATION J.2S

Hungary’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, select committees and parliamentary friendship groups. The programme is set out in Appendix 2.

OBJECTIVES

The primary purpose of these delegations is to maintain and promote relations with other parliaments. It is through these relationships that Members and officials gain knowledge of other electoral systems; promote New Zealand’s economic interests through for example trade agreements; develop opportunities for New Zealanders who wish to travel such as the increasing number of working holiday agreements; and promote cultural exchanges. Delegations often represent New Zealand at ceremonies such as those to commemorate ANZAC Day.

New Zealand has a good international image which is in part due to the numerous face-to-face contacts between Members of Parliament and their counterparts in other countries. This reputation has attracted many overseas parliaments to visit New Zealand to learn about our form of democratic government.

This year’s delegation had two specific objectives. The first was to engage with parliaments that are proportionally represented and which have coalition governments.

The second was to learn more about the new enlarged Europe and understand the role played by Poland, the Czech Republic and Hungary. The delegation’s visit was well- timed with the Czech Republic already planning for when it assumes the Presidency of the European Union in 2009. Hungary’s term is in 2011.

Poland is the largest of the new European Union member states and it is a significant regional player in European East-West security relations. There is no substitute for bilateral face-to-face relations and I believe New Zealand must deepen and broaden its relations with Poland and the other two states.

As a trading nation, New Zealand’s relationship with Europe is very important. New Zealand’s economic linkages lie in Europe and in particular the new market of Central-Eastern Europe. The relationships formed on these visits can only be enhanced by a better understanding of their culture, systems and economy.

European Union

2008 sees the European Union focus on three main priorities. The top priority is the ratification of the Lisbon Treaty agreed last year. It incorporates a substantial package of institutional reforms, including a revised voting system, a new position of President of the European Council, a new position combining the roles of High Representative of the Council and External Relations Commissioner and a reduced number of Commissioners.

Working through the implications of these changes will require complex political management between European Union institutions and member states.

4 J.2S SPEAKER’S DELEGATION

It was clearly preoccupying most of those leaders we met, who see the process of ratification as a key task for the Commission. It is expected that the majority of member states will ratify the treaty before the European summer of 2008, with Ireland the only state requiring a referendum.

The European Union’s second area of focus in 2008 will be climate change and energy. It set itself ambitious climate change targets last year. There is now a need to achieve formally binding decisions from member states on these targets.

The third priority is to develop capacity to react to financial turmoil. This is a new issue, forced on the European Union by the US sub-prime crisis and its ongoing effects. It has internal dimensions, in particular how to address the varied situations of 27 member states ranging from those with solid fiscal and monetary settings to those that are of significant concern in this regard.

The European Union is our second largest trading partner and a major source of investment and ideas. It plays a significant role in global politics.

For that reason, the last three Speaker’s delegations have shared one important objective - to further strengthen New Zealand’s economic and trading relationship with those countries from a New Zealand Inc point of view.

The 2006 Speaker’s Delegation to Belgium and Turkey focused on the European Parliament and the European Union.

The objectives for 2007 were to build relationships that promote understanding and goodwill between the New Zealand Parliament and the legislatures of Germany, The Netherlands and Norway; to have productive exchanges on current areas of similar concern; and to engage with members of Parliamentary Friendship Groups.

Poland, the Czech Republic and Hungary were the logical choice to follow in 2008.

POLAND

Our visit to Poland was confined to Warsaw and Krakow with a day trip to the former Nazi concentration camp at Auschwitz-Birkenau.

The visit was at the invitation of the Marshal of the Sejm (Lower House), Mr Bronislaw Komorowski, and was the first New Zealand Parliamentary visit since 1998. It reciprocated that led by the Marshal of the Polish Senate, Mr Bogdan Borusewicz, to New Zealand in March last year.

Our Embassy in Warsaw arranged an introductory briefing on the Polish parliamentary and political system by Professor Radoslaw Markowski, Director of the Polish National Election Study, Institute of Political Studies, Polish Academy of Sciences.

The official programme in Warsaw arranged by the Sejm comprised a wreath-laying ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, accompanied by a Polish Honour Guard; a guided tour of the Museum of the Warsaw Uprising; a visit to the Memorial of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising; calls on President Lech Kaczynski; Deputy Prime

5 SPEAKER’S DELEGATION J.2S

Minister and Minister of Interior, Grzegorz Schetyna; Deputy Chairman of the "Friendly State" (Deregulation) Select Committee, Marek Wikinski; Marshal of the Senate, Bogdan Borusewicz; Undersecretary of State for Foreign Affairs (bilateral), Ryszard Schnepf. Working meals were hosted by Marshal of the Sejm Bronislaw Komorowski, Chairman of the Poland-New Zealand Parliamentary Friendship Group Jakub Rutnicki and Chairman of the Parliamentary Foreign Affairs Select Committee Krzysztof Lisek.

The delegation stopped to pay their respects to New Zealand servicemen buried at the Rakowicki Cemetery, while I signed the memorial book. Cemetery staff had kindly identified the New Zealand graves for us by placing a daffodil on each.

In Krakow, the delegation was hosted by the Governor of Malopolska region, Jerzy Miller, and visited and laid flowers at Auschwitz-Birkenau. During the moving visit to the former Nazi concentration camp, I placed flowers at the Killing Wall and together with the delegation at the Monument of the Nation at Birkenau. The visit was appreciated by the Poles and served to pay New Zealand’s respects to the estimated 1.5 million victims who died at the camp.

New Zealand relationship

Relations between New Zealand and Poland are friendly. New Zealanders and Poles fought together in Europe during World War II. The descendants of Polish ex- servicemen and the 734 Polish orphans who arrived in Wellington in 1944 form a large part of New Zealand’s Polish community, together with a wave of immigrants in the early 1980s.

Poland opened an embassy in New Zealand in 1973. This was upgraded to full ambassador status in late 2004, at the same time as the first resident New Zealand Ambassador presented credentials in Warsaw. There is a Polish Honorary Consul in Auckland. The New Zealand Embassy in Warsaw opened its doors in January 2005 and was officially launched by the Prime Minister during her official visit to Poland in April 2005.

After the fall of Communism, New Zealand’s trade with Poland virtually collapsed due to a dramatic fall in demand for New Zealand wool as the Polish economy restructured. Merchandise exports to Poland, having climbed to NZ$23 million in 1988, fell to a low of NZ$2.42 million in 1993. New Zealand business activity in Poland has recovered slowly as the Polish economy strengthened.

Since 1 May 2004 Poland has not required New Zealanders to obtain a visa if they are visiting for less than 90 days. From 1 April 2005 Poles have been able to visit New Zealand visa-free for 90 days.

Poland and New Zealand are both involved in Afghanistan. Poland is planning to increase its 1200 troops there by a further 400 this year. It contributes to other international peacekeeping missions including Kosovo, Syria and Lebanon.

6 J.2S SPEAKER’S DELEGATION

Institutional framework

The Polish Parliament has two chambers: the Sejm and the Senate. The Sejm has 460 deputies, elected every four years. The number of women deputies is 94 or 20%.

The powers of the Sejm include exercising legislative power, exercising control over the activities of the Council of Ministers and deciding on a state of war and the conclusion of peace.

Prime Minister Donald Tusk leads a minority coalition Government of the Civic Platform party and the Polish Peasants Party.

The Senate has 100 members, and as with the Sejm the next election is due in 2011. It examines bills sent to it by the Sejm, but has no power of control over the executive.

The current Marshal is Bogdan Borusewicz, an independent. The Marshal convenes and presides over the Senate. In response to a question from our delegation, Mr Borusewicz said that the Senate’s smaller size and fewer day-to-day responsibilities made it more feasible to focus on larger-picture issues and to engage in more participatory debate.

The delegation was able to explore the scope of a debate over changing Poland’s electoral system. As Professor Markowski characterised it to the delegation during their briefing at the Embassy, essentially an MP has to become first and foremost “an apparatchik of the party”. Civic and political engagement in Poland is low: voter turnout in Polish national elections is among the lowest in Europe, at around 40%- 50%. Party membership is dropping. On the other hand, voter turnout for the President – who is elected directly – is consistently higher, at around 60%.

The ruling Civic Platform party would like to see voter participation increase, and in their view the answer is to move from a proportional representational system in the Sejm to first-past-the-post. This viewpoint was raised several times, and we were able to engage on a number of aspects of New Zealand’s electoral experience, including in particular to what extent the two systems in New Zealand have produced an outcome most closely in line with the popular vote.

Stability of resulting coalitions was also discussed, as well as political party funding. Polish parliamentary counterparts looking to increase participation and stability in Poland were very interested in the New Zealand experience (which has gone counter to what Poland is proposing), and we were able to point to the neighbouring German system as being the influence for MMP.

Deputy Prime Minister Grzegorz Schetyna was particularly interested in New Zealand’s experience of a mixed-member proportional electoral system as compared with first-past-the-post.

In calls with non-Government MPs, such as Senate Speaker Borusewicz and MP Marek Wiknicki, we heard some of their reservations around moving to a first-past- the-post system, including a concern that it would lead to a stark bipolarisation within

7 SPEAKER’S DELEGATION J.2S

Parliament, with less room for the representation and accommodation of the “broad spectrum” of Polish views.

Deputy Prime Minister Schetyna described New Zealand as a “symbol of liberty in the new world”, and said that based on my comments he could now see the advantage of a mixed-member system in that it allows people to vote for both an individual and a party.

Themes

Poland appears fixated with electoral reform and electoral issues. Considering its history, it is perhaps understandable.

President Lech Kaczynski’s relationship with the Prime Minister and the Government is tense. Mr Tusk is on record saying that he would like to amend the constitution to achieve greater clarity regarding the division of responsibilities between the President and the Government. He calls Poland the most over-regulated state of the European Union and aims to liquidate or amend faulty or unnecessary regulations.

This is in keeping with the “Friendly State” parliamentary select committee set up under the current Parliament to address Poland’s over-regulated system. Hugely popular with the public, the committee receives 20 to 30 emails a day from Poles suggesting specific instances of public regulation that should be changed because they are wholly inconsistent with another regulation or verge on the absurd.

The main concern with these regulations is that they make it difficult to do business, the risks of being found guilty of an infringement are high and Poles still spend long periods of time waiting in queues outside successive offices to complete various bureaucratic obligations.

The space for potential corruption is enlarged as a consequence and it is this drive towards transparency that is motivating the committee and maintaining their high levels of public support and interest.

New Zealand’s Free Trade Agreement with China was the subject of much interest. President Kaczynski sought my view on New Zealand’s relations with China and Mr Borusewicz asked about Tibet. In response to a question from the Under-Secretary for Foreign Affairs (bilateral) Ryszard Schnepf, I outlined in some detail how New Zealand had gone about developing its bilateral relations over the past 20 years. I commented that New Zealand Prime Ministers did not attend Olympic opening ceremonies, so that issue had not arisen. (Prime Minister Tusk was the first in Europe to announce that he would not attend the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympics.)

Mr Schnepf observed that there had been a substantial change in Polish-New Zealand bilateral relations since the opening of the Embassy in Warsaw. He thanked the Embassy for its efforts to strengthen dialogue and noted that New Zealand was now firmly on the map in Warsaw.

Mr Schnepf pointed out that, if Poland wished to enter the first rank of countries in Europe, it needed to develop substantive bilateral relations outside Europe. He noted

8 J.2S SPEAKER’S DELEGATION that New Zealand was Poland’s 82nd trading partner thus leaving room for improvement.

Other topics included changes to labour law and worker safety in Poland post-1989. Some changes were welcomed such as a 40-hour week; others had not been advantageous, such as maternity leave dropping from 3 years’ leave to 8 months’.

The delegation also discussed possible variants on tax reform, GST and VAT equivalents and how and in what economic climate they had been introduced in New Zealand.

Comment

New Zealand’s links with Poland are warm, with a solid foundation of historical and people-to-people links.

Poland is an influential European Union member state, and we are strengthening our policy dialogue. There are proposals for the Polish Foreign Minister and President to visit New Zealand next year. In addition I invited the Deputy Prime Minister and a return delegation to visit. I have undertaken to follow up the possibility of some form of cultural exchange.

We are close to finalising a working holiday scheme similar to that which operates in the Czech Republic and there is scope to expand science, research and educational linkages.

CZECH REPUBLIC

The delegation’s visit to the Czech Republic, at the invitation of the Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies, Mr Miloslav Vlček, was confined to Prague. The most recent parliamentary contact between New Zealand and the Czech Republic was during the Czech Senate Committee on Constitutional and Legal Affairs’ visit to New Zealand in May 2006.

Our Embassy in Prague arranged a briefing on the Czech political and legal system by Dr Ivo Šlosarčík from the Department of European Studies at Charles University.

The official programme arranged by the Czechs included a courtesy call on the President of the Czech Republic, Václav Klaus, a meeting with Prime Minister Mirek Topolánek and the Deputy Mayor of Prague, Markéta Reedová.

The delegation was hosted by the parliamentary group, Friends of Australia and New Zealand and the heads of both chambers of parliament – Chairperson of the Chamber of Deputies (lower house), Miloslav Vlček, and the President of the Senate, Přemysl Sobotka. The delegation was formally welcomed by the lower house of Parliament.

Given that the visit fell on ANZAC Day, the Embassy arranged an ANZAC ceremony at the Commonwealth War cemetery followed by a function hosted by the Speaker. There are 14 New Zealand war graves at the Commonwealth War Cemetery in Prague. It is believed to be the first time there has been an ANZAC Day service in the city.

9 SPEAKER’S DELEGATION J.2S

Forty members of the Australian and New Zealand expatriate communities and the diplomatic community, including the Turkish Ambassador and the Czech military attended along with Wing Commander Brett Marshal from London on behalf of the New Zealand Defence Force. My speech is included in Appendix 4 and the ANZAC Day Press Release is included in Appendix 3.

The parliamentary visit was well timed, as New Zealand seeks to engage with the Czechs more substantively across a range of issues in anticipation of their European presidency. The status accorded a parliamentary delegation led by the Speaker gave accompanying embassy staff access to the very top of the Czech political echelon.

New Zealand relationship

There is a small Czech community in New Zealand. Bohemians, Moravians and Slovaks first began to come to New Zealand through Australia and Tahiti in the 1860s. The main flow of migration in recent years followed the suppression of “The Prague Spring” in 1968. There is also a small community of New Zealanders in the Czech Republic.

The new Czech Ambassador to New Zealand based in Canberra, Mr Juraj Chmiel, presented his credentials in April. The New Zealand Ambassador in Berlin is accredited to the Czech Republic.

The bilateral trade relationship with the Czech Republic is modest. New Zealand official statistics indicate that there was around NZ$9 million of exports from New Zealand in the year to June 2007, around two-thirds of which was wool. The Czech Republic exported around $30 million to New Zealand in the same period, the most significant item (13%) being cars and other vehicles.

Although the figures have dropped over recent years, Czechoslovakia was traditionally one of New Zealand’s larger export markets in Central Europe before the country split into two republics in 1993. This suggests that there is potential for further growth in the trading relationship.

Of ongoing significance in the bilateral relationship are the common perspectives the two countries bring – as small countries reliant on multilateralism – to international issues beyond our respective borders. Both countries have committed defence personnel to Provincial Reconstruction Teams in Afghanistan and Iraq. The Czech Republic has a keen awareness, given its history, of the need for collective responses to aggression and of the importance of multilateral responses to people smuggling, asylum seekers, and non-proliferation, money-laundering and environmental stewardship. We are generally like-minded on human rights issues.

Three Czech representatives attended the February 2008 meeting on cluster munitions hosted by New Zealand. The Czech Republic was elected as a member of the UN Economic and Social Council for a three-year term beginning on 1 January 2006.

10 J.2S SPEAKER’S DELEGATION

Institutional framework

The Czech Parliament has two chambers: the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate. The Chamber of Deputies has 200 deputies, elected every four years. The number of women deputies is 31 or 15.5%. The next election is due in 2010.

The powers of the Chamber of Deputies include legislating, electing the President at a joint session with the Senate and supervising government activities. The President of the Chamber of Deputies, Miloslav Vlček, chairs sessions in the Chamber.

The coalition led by the Civic Democratic Party and the Czech Social Democratic Party each gained 100 seats in the new Parliament in the June 2006 elections. It took till January 2007 for the Civic Democratic Party to form a government that had the support of Parliament. The Prime Minister is Mirek Topolánek.

The Senate has 81 members. There are 12 women senators, equivalent to 15%. Senators are elected for six years, with the next election due in 2008. The Senate considers bills referred to it by the Chamber. It is jointly responsible with the Chamber for electing the President and for decisions relating to war and foreign operations of the armed forces. The current President of the Senate is Přemysl Sobotka.

The focus of the visit was to study the parliamentary and electoral processes of a relatively new accession country of the European Union. It was well-timed and gave Prime Minister Mirek Topolánek the opportunity to share some frank insights into the problems associated with the Czech electoral system, which resulted in a six-month stalemate following elections in 2006.

During our meetings with both houses of Parliament, discussion ranged over a number of topics, including parliamentary procedures, different electoral systems, the role of parliament and MPs, increasing parliament’s effectiveness and efficiency without impinging on democracy, lawmaking, communicating the role of parliament to the public, brain drain, economic cooperation, agricultural support and the role of women in politics.

Themes

The Czech political hierarchy was focused on preparation for their upcoming presidency of the European Union. Our discussions were particularly interesting, highlighting areas where the Czechs expect to disagree with their powerful presidential forerunner, France. Specifically this is in terms of agricultural and trade liberalisation with a lot of interest in the fact that New Zealand’s agriculture industry is not subsidised. We were told subsidies from the European Union “make us farm in a non-productive way” and there was an acknowledgement that the issue would have to be tackled. Farming is no longer a lifestyle choice, it is a business.

Academic commentator Dr Ivo Šlosarčík confirmed that the Czechs still have some way to go in preparing for their presidency during a period of significant change as a result of the Lisbon Treaty.

11 SPEAKER’S DELEGATION J.2S

In anticipation of its European Union presidency, Prime Minister Topolánek noted that as an open, export-oriented country, the Czech Republic would focus on liberalising the internal market, by bringing down trade barriers and supporting the World Trade Organisation. He noted that New Zealand was an “ally” on changing the Common Agricultural Policy; which followed on from his comment that there were a number of areas where the Czechs did not agree with the French.

Other issues on the European Union agenda included implementing the Lisbon Treaty, MEP elections, the US summit, Western Balkans, reviewing the Lisbon agenda and implementing the climate change package.

We consider that this was a particularly useful opportunity to confirm New Zealand’s interest in the newer and smaller members of the European Union.

The visit has created a number of opportunities New Zealand can capitalise on in future. Prime Minister Topolánek stressed both in formal discussions with the delegation and in a subsequent conversation with the Ambassador that the Czech Republic is interested in expanding trade with New Zealand. This is also consistent with the signals in Wellington during the visits of the Czech Ambassador and Commercial Consul.

The parliamentary visit came at a particularly opportune time, just as our Embassy was seeking to engage with the Czechs more substantively across a range of issues in anticipation of their European Union Presidency. The visit was immediately followed by senior officials’ level meetings during the visit of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade’s European Director to Prague. New Zealand’s Special Agricultural Trade Envoy visited the Czech Republic in November 2007 providing a useful opportunity to discuss agricultural reform in New Zealand and learn from Czech experiences.

The combination of visits will have concentrated Czech attention on New Zealand’s views on international policy and relations with the European Union, giving us a good basis for contacts during the Czech Presidency.

The Working Holiday Scheme has been successful, although largely one-way. Recent changes allowing applicants to apply in London, Berlin or Paris may help balance this. Suggestions of increased promotion of the scheme should be followed up.

Comment

New Zealand values its relationship with the Czech Republic, as a bilateral partner in its own right, and as a European Union member state. The Czech Republic will take over the European Union presidency in the first half of 2009. There is value in building up a dialogue with them on European Union issues so that we are well positioned by that stage to influence the debate.

Our discussions over three days underscored the values and interests that New Zealand shares with the Czech Republic. We share common perspectives on a range of international and multilateral issues.

12 J.2S SPEAKER’S DELEGATION

The President and the Prime Minister have both expressed the wish to visit which would be the highest-level visit for many years and would give further impetus to the bilateral relationship.

HUNGARY

The delegation had just three working days in Hungary: two very full days in Budapest and a day trip to Varpalota to visit the site of a recent investment by New Zealand companies AHI Roofing and its parent company Fletcher Building.

Our visit was the highest level visit from New Zealand to Hungary for several years and this led to substantive meetings with key figures in the Hungarian system.

Our Embassy in Berlin organised a briefing on the first morning by political academic Associate Professor Miklos Lojko, who guided us through several centuries of Hungarian history and politics.

In two days in Budapest we met the President, Laszlo Solyom, the Speaker of the Hungarian National Assembly, Dr Katalin Szili, the Deputy Speaker, László Mandur, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ms Kinga Göncz, select committees and leaders of the governing Socialist Party and the leading opposition party FIDESZ. See Press Release, Appendix 3.

The Ambassador hosted a reception in Budapest which members of the delegation attended. About 60 members of the New Zealand community, key government contacts, trade representatives and some academic and cultural contacts attended. Ambassador Alan Cook and Trade Commissioner Jennifer Scoular welcomed the opportunity to get together a range of people with an interest in New Zealand. See Speech, Appendix 4.

New Zealand relationship

New Zealand’s relationship with Hungary is friendly and based on strong people-to- people links. New Zealand has a small community of Hungarians (around 1400) many of whom arrived as refugees following the 1956 revolution.

Bilateral relations with Hungary continue to develop positively, with a number of substantive projects under way, including cooperation in education, science, environment, cultural development, investment, and ongoing discussions regarding a working holiday scheme. There is also scope for closer cooperation on international issues, including Afghanistan, where New Zealand and Hungary both maintain Provincial Reconstruction Teams.

Following the visit of then Hungarian President Göncz to New Zealand in 1999, New Zealand established a reciprocal visitor visa waiver arrangement with Hungary, effective from March 2000.

The New Zealand Ambassador in Berlin is accredited to Hungary and New Zealand has an Honorary Consul in Budapest. The Hungarian Ambassador in Canberra is accredited to New Zealand and Hungary has an Honorary Consul in Wellington.

13 SPEAKER’S DELEGATION J.2S

Institutional framework

The Hungarian National Assembly has 386 members, elected for a term of four years; 10% or 40 are women. The next election is due in 2010. Voters have two votes: constituency member and party list.

The National Assembly passes legislation, exercises control over the Government, deciding on a state of war, use of the armed forces and questions of concluding peace, electing the President of the Republic and ratifying international treaties.

Dr Katalin Szili is Speaker and her duties include convening and chairing sittings, representing the National Assembly and directing the Office of the National Assembly.

The delegation’s visit came at a time of political uncertainty in Hungary. As expected, the junior coalition partner (the Liberals) withdrew, leaving Hungary with its first experience of a minority government. There was accordingly much interest in New Zealand’s experience with a minority Government and in New Zealand First’s arrangements for providing confidence and supply. In discussion with the main opposition party, FIDESZ representatives claimed that the government only has around 10% public support, and that it was trying to implement a programme different from the platform on which it was elected. The opposition was seeking to hinder the Government by using "all democratic and constitutional means" including mass demonstrations.

Themes

The visit to Hungary was memorable for its warmth and for the enthusiasm of our hosts to learn from us.

Meetings at Parliament continued on the day the Hungarian Government lost its majority and became, for the first time, a minority government.

Hungary, like New Zealand, does not have an upper house. There was much interest and discussion about how New Zealand operates with a minority government.

I noted that various New Zealand Governments had successfully pursued their legislative programme for the last nine years with minority governments.

President Laszlo Solymon spoke of the excellent relations between New Zealand and Hungary. He had before him what he described as the “wonderful letter he had received from Prime Minister Helen Clark” indicating New Zealand’s interest in participating in his Green Presidents’ initiative. He would send a formal response shortly. I indicated that I had discussed this proposal with the Prime Minister before leaving on this trip.

Mr Sólymon was impressed with New Zealand’s environmental achievements, commenting that we are well ahead in our quest to become carbon neutral. Renewable energy was important and for its part Europe needed to get away from its dependence on Russian gas. Hungary is geographically a giant basin and would suffer particularly from climate change – the impacts are already beginning to be felt in agriculture. This

14 J.2S SPEAKER’S DELEGATION was not understood domestically and Hungary needed to see examples from what other countries were doing about climate change.

The President mentioned the biennial meeting of the Academy of Sciences as an eminent world science forum. He would be happy if someone from NZ could participate.

The President appreciated New Zealand’s role in combating terrorism, and our contribution in Afghanistan. He commented that we share similar values and it was important for the European Union to maintain close relations with distant countries like New Zealand.

On the bilateral side, President Sólymon said that he supported the idea of a Working Holiday Scheme. He commented that his own generation had not been permitted to travel abroad, and it was important to give young Hungarians the chance to do so. He would very much like to visit New Zealand himself and hoped that there would be a suitable opportunity to do so next year.

Although political relations were excellent, economic relations were less intense because of distance. Nonetheless, there might be scope for cooperation in services such as biotechnology, nanotechnology and IT, where Hungary had developed a good base. He also saw scope for greater academic exchanges – for example, Hungary offers good quality degrees with English tuition in areas such as medicine and engineering. He mentioned that St Stephen’s University already has good links with New Zealand on agriculture.

The Hungarian Speaker, Dr Szili, a former State Secretary for the Environment, noted she had launched a new environmental process in the Hungarian Parliament to provide a long-term strategy for dealing with challenges like climate change. She said Hungary could learn from the ecological traditions of island states like New Zealand.

The delegation had meetings with members of the Committee on Employment and Labour and the Constitutional, Judicial and Standing Orders Committee. On employment, the delegation was informed that in the period after the fall of communism 1.5 million jobs had been lost, although the situation had now stabilised at around 8% unemployed (although with significant regional and minority variations).

Foreign Minister Kinga Göncz noted that the agreement on social security was unresolved and while she was personally supportive of the Working Holiday Scheme the problem was how to reconcile it with European Union obligations in terms of community preference.

I asked the Speaker about Hungary’s expectations for the Lisbon Treaty. She said that she hoped it would be ratified and indeed the signs were positive. That said, a European Union of 27 members was undoubtedly more complicated and questions like the future role of the presidency were still a matter of debate.

I also asked about Russia, noting that it was simultaneously a European and a Pacific country. The Minister said that Russia was not an easy partner, and it was stronger

15 SPEAKER’S DELEGATION J.2S now that its economy was based on energy. It was growing in self confidence and ambitious to be seen again as a major player. The European Union had no choice but to engage in a dialogue with Russia, but it was not sure what to expect. She pointed out that the European Union’s dependence on Russia for energy worked both ways – Russia was increasingly dependent on selling to the European Union.

The Minister noted that Hungary would be running for a non-permanent seat on the UN Security Council immediately after their turn as European Union President in 2011. I agreed to take that back for consideration.

Várpalota

The industrial park at Várpalota, about two hours drive west of Budapest, has been selected by AHI Roofing as the site of a major factory producing roofing tiles for the European market – the largest New Zealand investment in Hungary and one of the largest in Europe.

The delegation was present for the laying of the foundation stone, and I made a speech underlining the significance of the occasion. The speech is included in Appendix 4 and the Press Release is included Appendix 3.

After some ceremonies in Várpalota itself – where this was undoubtedly the highest level foreign visit ever – the delegation was hosted to a lunch by the Mayor Árpád Németh, a young and rising politician. Tony O’Brien, Director of the European Region for AHI, told us afterwards that the Speaker’s attendance had helped support AHI’s mana and had impressed the Hungarian hosts with the seriousness of their commitment to the venture. This is particularly important at the local government level, where a good understanding between AHI, its parent Fletcher Building and the Várpalota city authorities will be essential for the success of the project.

Two points emerged from this visit that may require following up:

• I suggested that a sister city relationship between Várpalota and a town in New Zealand might be an appropriate way of developing the relationship, an idea which appealed to the Mayor. • Tony O’Brien raised with the Ambassador the need for some bilateral agreements to help secure appropriate working conditions for New Zealand staff assigned to the project. Embassy staff noted that negotiations on a social security agreement are already underway, but they will explore further what other agreements Mr O’Brien may have in mind.

Comment

The Hungarians pulled out all the stops to ensure that the visit was successful. The fact that the delegation had substantive meetings with key figures in the Hungarian system recognised the fact that this was the highest level visit from New Zealand to Hungary for several years. In all discussions Hungarian contacts made a point of thanking New Zealand for its assistance in taking Hungarian refugees after the 1956 uprising, a point which clearly still resonates and created a foundation for the success of the visit.

16 J.2S SPEAKER’S DELEGATION

The fact that the delegation fielded considerable experience in parliamentary and political issues meant that the discussions were wide-ranging and substantive.

In terms of follow-up, the Prime Minister’s letter has been very positively received and we can expect a substantive response, which should give us opportunities to explore further cooperation with Hungary on environmental issues.

The Embassy and the Hamburg Trade and Enterprise office will work together to follow up on possible trade opportunities, including the FOODFRENZ conference in Budapest in September.

They will work to advance the Working Holiday Scheme where I hope the political influence brought to bear by the delegation has been helpful.

New Zealand would welcome high level visits from Hungary. Invitations have been issued to President Solyom, Prime Minister Gyurcsany and Foreign Minister Göncz. We look forward to welcoming them in New Zealand.

Hon Margaret Wilson Speaker

17 SPEAKER’S DELEGATION J.2S

APPENDIX 1

Members of the Delegation

Hon Margaret Wilson MP, Speaker and Leader of the Delegation

Hon Marian Hobbs MP, Labour

Katherine Rich MP, National

Brian Connell MP, National

Peter Brown MP, NZ First

Rafael Gonzalez-Montero, Secretary to the Delegation

Rose Hart, Communications Adviser to the Speaker

18 J.2S SPEAKER’S DELEGATION

APPENDIX 2

Programme

WARSAW

Sunday 20 April 2008

18:00 Informal delegation dinner at New Zealand Ambassador’s residence

Monday 21 April 2008

09:15 General briefing at New Zealand Embassy

10:00 Briefing on the Polish electoral system by Professor Radoslaw Markowski, Director of the Polish National Election Study, Institute of Political Studies, Polish Academy of Sciences

11:15 Wreath-laying ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier by Hon Margaret Wilson, Speaker of the New Zealand House of Representatives and accompanying delegation Mr Andrzej Smirnow, MP, Member of National Defence Parliamentary Committee in attendance

Honour Guard at Tomb to accompany Hon Margaret Wilson to lay wreath, with Ambassador Griffiths and the Army Command representative

Brief informative talk about the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier by Army Command representative

Signing of the Remembrance Book

12:00 Visit to the Museum of the Warsaw Uprising

13:30 Luncheon in honour of the Speaker of the House of Representatives of New Zealand, Hon Margaret Wilson, and accompanying delegation hosted by Mr Jakub Rutnicki, MP, Chairman of Poland-New Zealand Parliamentary Group

Attending Polish MPs § Mr Stanislaw Rakoczy, Deputy Chairman of Poland/New Zealand Parliamentary Group (PSL party) § Mr Witold Sitarz (PO party) § Mr Stanislaw Zajac (PIS party)

19 SPEAKER’S DELEGATION J.2S

15:00 Call on the Deputy Prime Minister, Interior and Administration Minister of the Republic of Poland, Mr Grzegorz Schetyna

Attending from the Polish side

Representatives from the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Administration and representatives of the Chancellery of the Sejm

17:25 Arrival at the main entrance to the Sejm of the Republic of Poland

Welcome by § Mrs Wanda Fidelus-Ninkiewicz, Minister of the Chancellery of the Sejm

§ Mr Rafal Karpinski, Director of the office of Foreign Affairs, Chancellery of the Sejm

19:30 Dinner in honour of the Speaker of the House of Representatives of New Zealand Hon Margaret Wilson and accompanying delegation hosted by the Marshal of the Sejm of the Republic of Poland, Mr. Bronisław Komorowski

Attending from Polish side

§ Mr Bogdan Borusewicz, Marshal of the Senate § Mr Stefan Niesiołowski, Deputy Marshal of the Sejm § Mr Jakub Rutnicki, Chairman of the Poland/New Zealand Parliamentary Group § Representatives of other political parties in the Sejm § Mr Rafal Karpinski, Director of the office of Foreign Affairs, Chancellery of the Sejm

§ Mr Jaromir Sokołowski, General Director of the Sejm Chancellery § Mrs Joanna Urban, General Director of the Chancellery of the Senate § Mrs Karolina Glowacka, Mrs Karolina Glowacka of Chancellery of the Sejm, Secretary of the Poland/New Zealand Parliamentary Group § Mrs Anna Walicka, Interpreter

20 J.2S SPEAKER’S DELEGATION

Tuesday 22 April 2008

09:00 Meeting with Chairman of the “Friendly State” Select Committee*, Mr. Janusz Palikot, MP and members of the Committee

* The “Friendly State” Select Committee is in charge of deregulation

10:00 Call on the Marshal of the Senate of the Republic of Poland, Mr. Bogdan Borusewicz

Attending from Polish side

Representatives of the Chancellery of the Senate

Followed by

Signing of the Guestbook by Madam Speaker

11:15 Call on the Under-Secretary of the State in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mr Ryszard Schnepf

12:30 Call on the President of the Republic of Poland, Mr Lech Kaczynski

13:30 Luncheon in honour of Hon Margaret Wilson MP, Speaker of the New Zealand House of Representatives, and accompanying delegation hosted by the Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Sejm of the Republic of Poland, Mr Krzysztof Lisek MP

Attending from Polish side

Members of the Sejm Presidium and Representatives of the Chancellery of the Sejm in attendance

KRAKOW

Tuesday 22 April 2008

19:30 Dinner in honour of Hon Margaret Wilson MP, Speaker of the New Zealand House of Representatives, and accompanying delegation hosted by the Governor of Malopolska, Mr Jerzy Miller

Wednesday 23 April 2008

10:00 Visit to the former Nazi Concentration Camp at Auschwitz-Birkenau

21 SPEAKER’S DELEGATION J.2S

PRAGUE

Wednesday 23 April 2008

17:30 Delegation briefing with Dr Ivo Šlosarčík, Jean Monnet Chair in European Union Law, Dept. of European Studies, Charles University on legal and political system in the Czech Republic

Thursday 24 April 2008

10:00 Meeting with Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies Mr Miloslav Vlček

11:20 Visit to and introduction to Chamber of Deputies Plenary Session.

12:00 Lunch in honour of Hon Margaret Wilson MP, Speaker of the New Zealand House of Representatives and accompanying delegation hosted by Mr Přemysl Sobotka, Speaker of the Senate of the Czech Republic

16:00 Call on Mr Mirek Topolánek, Prime Minister of the Czech Republic

19:00 Dinner in Honour of Hon Margaret Wilson MP, Speaker of the New Zealand House of Representatives, and accompanying delegation, hosted by Mr Miloslav Vlček, Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies

Friday 25 April 2008

10:00 Courtesy call on Mrs Markéta Reedová, Deputy Mayor of Prague Tour of City Hall

11.00 Meeting with President of the Czech Republic, Václav Klaus

12:30 Lunch in honour of Hon Margaret Wilson MP, Speaker of the New Zealand House of Representatives and accompanying delegation hosted by the Parliamentary Friendship Group

22 J.2S SPEAKER’S DELEGATION

15:30 ANZAC Ceremony at Prague War Cemetery including:

§ Wreath-laying § Short speech by Madam Speaker

Members of the New Zealand and Australian communities invited

Also attending

• Czech military representatives • Turkish Ambassador • NZ Defence Force representative

Followed by informal function, hosted by Madam Speaker, with ANZAC ceremony participants

BUDAPEST

Monday 28 April 2008

08:45 Briefing with Associate Professor Miklos Lojko, Senior Lecturer, School of English and American Studies

10:00 Delegation welcomed by Mr László Sólyom, President of the Republic of Hungary

Followed by private courtesy call by Madam Speaker, accompanied by Ambassador Cook and Rose Hart, on Mr Sólyom, President of the Republic of Hungary

Attending from Hungarian side

• Sandor Tari, Chief of Cabinet • Andras Gulya, Chief Adviser • Vince Szalay, Adviser • Maria Mesterhazy, interpreter

23 SPEAKER’S DELEGATION J.2S

11:00 Meeting with Dr Katalin Szili, Speaker of the Hungarian National Assembly

Attending from Hungarian side

§ Dr Péter Sárdi, Head of the Office for Foreign Relations § Éva Sőregi, Head of Department of the Speaker’s Cabinet § Vince Szalay-Bobrovniczky, advisor to the Office for Foreign Relations § Representative of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Hungary § Magda Józan, press officer § Mária Mesterházy, interpreter

12:00 Ceremonial recording into the Guest Book

12:30 Lunch in honour of Hon Margaret Wilson MP, Speaker of the New Zealand House of Representatives, and accompanying delegation hosted by Mr László Mandur, Deputy Speaker of the Hungarian National Assembly

18:00 Function in honour of Hon Margaret Wilson MP, Speaker of the New Zealand House of Representatives, and accompanying delegation hosted by H.E. Mr Alan Cook, New Zealand Ambassador to Hungary, in the Music Room of the Academy Club of the Academy of Sciences

Tuesday 29 April 2008

Day-long trip to lay the foundation stone for the new Fletcher Building/AHI Roofing Factory at Várpalota’s industrial centre, about two-hour drive from Budapest. Followed by visit to the industrial centre and a short ceremonial reception at Thuri Castle

13:00 Lunch in honour of Hon Margaret Wilson MP, and accompanying delegation hosted by Mr Árpád Németh, Mayor of Várpalota

In attendance from Hungarian side

• Arpad Nemeth, Mayor • Csaba Katona, Deputy Mayor • Dr Anita Ignacz, Town Clerk • Karoly Pal, Chief of Cabinet • Dr Lajos Tolnay, MAL Retired General Director

24 J.2S SPEAKER’S DELEGATION

Wednesday 30 April 2008

08:30 Meeting with Ms Kinga Göncz, Minister of Foreign Affairs

Participants from Hungarian side

• Vince Szalay • Maria Mesterhacy

09:15 Meeting with Mr Pál Filó, Deputy Chairman of the Committee on Employment and Labour

10:15 Meeting with the leaders of the FIDESZ (opposition) Party

11:00 Meeting with Mr Dezső Avarkeszi, Chairman of the Constitutional, Judicial and Standing Orders Committee

14:00 Meeting with Party leaders for the governing Socialist Party

25 SPEAKER’S DELEGATION J.2S

APPENDIX 3

Press Releases

Media Release

18 April 2008

SPEAKER’S TOUR

The Speaker, Hon Margaret Wilson, will lead a cross-party delegation of parliamentarians to Poland, the Czech Republic and Hungary during the April parliamentary recess.

The purpose of the delegation is to build on Parliamentary relationships by extending understanding of other Parliaments’ electoral systems, Ms Wilson said.

The delegation also plans to increase knowledge about New Zealand in the host countries while exploring opportunities for economic and cultural exchanges.

Ms Wilson said cultural links already exist as a result of migrants and refugees from Poland, the Czech Republic and Hungary choosing to come to New Zealand.

New Zealand has a working holiday scheme with the Czech Republic and Ms Wilson said the delegation would lend its support to working holiday bilateral agreements with Poland and Hungary.

While in Hungary, the delegation will visit Varpalota to support a New Zealand company at a ground breaking ceremony for a new plant.

The investment by Fletcher Building Ltd through its subsidiary AHI Roofing is the largest New Zealand investment of its kind in Hungary and is also New Zealand’s largest investment in a manufacturing facility in Europe for many years.

26 J.2S SPEAKER’S DELEGATION

‘It is a welcome extension of trade links between New Zealand and Hungary,’ Ms Wilson said.

In Warsaw, the delegation will visit the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and lay a wreath. The Speaker will also lay a wreath and speak at an ANZAC Day commemoration at the Prague War Cemetery.

Meetings have been confirmed with the President of Poland and President of Hungary and the Prime Minister of the Czech Republic and the Deputy Prime Minister of Poland. The delegation will meet with the Speakers of the Parliaments of Poland, the Czech Republic and Hungary as well as select committees including those dealing with foreign affairs, constitutional and judicial matters and employment and labour issues.

Contact will also be made with parliamentary friendship groups in Poland and the Czech Republic and the delegation will explore establishing such a group in the Hungarian Parliament.

Meetings have been scheduled with the Mayor and Governor of Varpalota and Prague’s Deputy Mayor.

The delegation will travel to Krakow to visit the former Nazi Concentration Camp at Auschwitz-Birkenau.

The delegation leaves on Saturday 19 April and returns on Friday 2 May, 2008. Members are Katherine Rich and Brian Connell, National Party; Peter Brown, NZ First; Hon Marian Hobbs, Labour Party.

For further information:

Rose Hart Ph: 04 4719494 Communications Adviser to the Speaker Fax: 04 4722055 Office of the Speaker Cell: 021 918306 Parliament House Wellington Email: [email protected]

27 SPEAKER’S DELEGATION J.2S

Press Release

25 April 2008

ANZAC Day commemorated in Prague

Representatives of the Czech Republic joined New Zealanders, Turks, Americans and British to commemorate ANZAC Day in Prague this afternoon.

It is believed to be the first time there has been an ANZAC Day service in Prague to remember those who gave their lives in service of their country.

The Speaker of the New Zealand House of Representatives, Hon Margaret Wilson, in Prague with members of the Speaker’s delegation, led the service and relayed greetings from the Governor-General, Hon Anand Satyanand, and Prime Minister Helen Clark.

There are 14 New Zealand war graves at the Commonwealth War Cemetery in Prague. Each is engraved with the distinctive silver fern and each had been decorated with poppies for the day.

Ms Wilson paid tribute to all those who had travelled for the service and she thanked the Turkish Ambassador for his country’s friendship and generosity to the thousands of New Zealanders who visit Gallipoli each year.

About 60 people gathered in light mist to pay their respects and then queued to sign the memorial book.

For further information

Rose Hart Mobile 021 918306

28 J.2S SPEAKER’S DELEGATION

Media Release

28 April 2008

MPS MEET HUNGARIAN PRESIDENT

Members of the Speaker’s delegation today met László Sólyom, President of the Republic of Hungary.

The Speaker, Hon Margaret Wilson, said the delegation was honoured that today’s meetings at Parliament in Budapest went according to schedule as the Hungarian Government today became a minority government.

‘Hungary, like New Zealand, does not have an Upper House,’ she said. ‘There was much interest and discussion about how New Zealand operates with a minority government and I noted that various New Zealand governments had successfully pursued their legislative programme for the last nine years with minority governments.’

President Sólyom said New Zealand and Hungary shared many of the same values and interests in sustainable development, climate change and green initiatives.

These themes were raised again when the delegation met the Speaker, Dr Katalin Szili, and the Deputy Speaker, László Mandur.

‘As one of the few other women to hold the position of Speaker, Dr Szili was also keen to discuss the position of women in parliament, as well as different electoral systems.’

Earlier in the day, the delegation was briefed on Hungary’s history and political developments over the last 900 years by Associate Professor Miklos Lojko.

In the evening the delegation attended a reception hosted by New Zealand’s Ambassador to Hungary, HE Alan Cook. About 60 members of the diplomatic community, the business sector and local New Zealanders attended.

29 SPEAKER’S DELEGATION J.2S

Tuesday 29 April

Members of the delegation will travel to Várpalota; an industrial town about two hours drive from Budapest for a ground breaking ceremony for a new roofing plant to be built by New Zealand companies AHI Roofing and its parent company Fletcher Building.

The investment by Fletcher Building through its subsidiary AHI Roofing is the largest New Zealand investment of its kind in Hungary and is also New Zealand’s largest investment in a manufacturing facility in Europe for many years.

Ms Wilson said the plant will initially provide 100 jobs. The companies will use the skills and innovation of the Hungarian workforce to further develop their product range. They will also work with the municipality to develop further workforce skills.

‘When looking for a plant site, Hungary stood out as the favoured location based on the technical knowledge and skills of the local workforce and Várpalota’s excellent infrastructure and links to the rest of Europe,’ she said.

‘This is just the sort of project to take advantage of the growing relationship between New Zealand and Hungary.’

After the ceremony, members of the delegation will meet with the Mayor of Várpalota and local officials to discuss further opportunities for investment in the region.

Wednesday 30 April 2008

Members of the delegation will meet: • Mrs Kinga Göncz, Minister of Foreign Affairs • Mr Pál Filló, Deputy Chairman of the Committee on Employment and Labour • Fraction leaders for the leading opposition party, FIDESZ • Mr Dezsõ Avarkeszi, Chairman of the Constitutional, Judicial and Standing Orders Committee • Fraction leaders for the governing Socialist Party Wednesday evening depart for New Zealand.

For further information:

Rose Hart Ph: 04 4719494 Communications Adviser to the Speaker Fax: 04 4722055 Office of the Speaker Cell: 021 918306 Parliament House Wellington Email: [email protected]

30 J.2S SPEAKER’S DELEGATION

Press Release

Friday 2 May 2008

Speaker’s delegation

The Speaker’s delegation, which arrived home this morning after 11 days in Europe, observed first-hand a change to a minority government in Hungary.

The Speaker, Hon Margaret Wilson, said there was much interest and discussion about New Zealand’s minority governments and electoral systems in general.

The delegation was keen to learn more about the new enlarged Europe and understand the role of Poland, the Czech Republic and Hungary in it. The Czech Republic assumes the presidency of the EU next year and Hungary follows in 2011.

As a trading nation, New Zealand’s relationship with Europe was very important, Ms Wilson said. The relationships formed on these visits could be very rewarding.

‘Because we were a parliamentary delegation, we were given access at the highest level including meetings with the Presidents of Poland, the Czech Republic and Hungary. Their interests and concerns were remarkably similar including electoral systems, climate change, sustainable development and green initiatives.

Members of the delegation also met Speakers and Deputy Speakers from the three countries, the Czech Prime Minister and the Deputy Prime Minister of Poland, select committees and parliamentary friendship groups. When appropriate they were accompanied by New Zealand Ambassadors Philip Griffiths in Poland and Alan Cook in the Czech Republic and Hungary, NZ Trade Commissioner and Consul-General Jennifer Scoular in Poland and Hungary and Honorary Consul Vera Egermayer in the Czech Republic.

Ms Wilson said she saw the cross-party delegation’s role to open doors, help establish relationships and work together in the interests of New Zealand – leaving it to the professionals to advance economic relationships. A good example was a New Zealand project at Várpalota, an industrial town about

31 SPEAKER’S DELEGATION J.2S two hours drive from Budapest where delegation members took part in a ceremony to lay a foundation stone for a new roofing plant.

The investment by Fletcher Building through its subsidiary AHI Roofing was the largest New Zealand investment of its kind in Hungary and was also New Zealand’s largest investment in a manufacturing facility in Europe for many years.

‘This is just the sort of project to take advantage of the growing relationship between New Zealand and Hungary.’

After the ceremony, members of the delegation met with the Mayor of Várpalota and local officials to discuss further opportunities for investment in the region.

In Poland, the delegation visited the former concentration camp Auschwitz- Birkenau and the Warsaw Uprising Museum. Ms Wilson laid a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Warsaw and visited New Zealand war graves at a military war cemetery at Cmentarz Rakowicki.

On Anzac Day, in what is believed to be a first, representatives of the Czech Republic joined New Zealanders, Turks, Americans and British at a ceremony in Prague to remember those who gave their lives in service of their country.

Ms Wilson led the service and relayed greetings from the Governor-General, Hon Anand Satyanand, and Prime Minister Helen Clark. About 60 people gathered in light mist to pay their respects and then queued to sign the memorial book.

The working holiday scheme between the Czech Republic and New Zealand, which enabled young people from each country to travel and work in the other, has been welcomed. Ms Wilson said she would like it to be extended to Poland and Hungary.

Overall, the high level of the meetings demonstrated the value of cross-party Speaker’s delegations, she said.

For further information:

Rose Hart Ph: 04 4719494 Communications Adviser to the Speaker Fax: 04 4722055 Office of the Speaker Cell: 021 918306 Parliament House Wellington Email: [email protected]

32 J.2S SPEAKER’S DELEGATION

APPENDIX 4

Speeches

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

Speech to follow wreath laying at Prague ANZAC Day ceremony

3pm, Friday 25 April 2008

Tena koutou, tena koutou, tena koutou katoa Greetings, greetings, greetings – I bring warm thoughts and greetings from the Governor General of New Zealand Hon Anand Satyanand and the Rt Hon Helen Clark, Prime Minister. They, like thousands of New Zealanders, young and old, will today be taking part in ceremonies and reflecting on the sacrifices of those who fought for our country. Our armed services continue to work in unpredictable and dangerous environments overseas. New Zealand and the Czech Republic both have an involvement in Afghanistan. We are proud of the role they play in maintaining peace; their work enables others to live their daily lives in greater security. We honour the work they are doing, and wish them safe return. Throughout New Zealand, and indeed wherever New Zealanders are in the world today, they will gather to remember their war dead and to honour the service of those who survived. Despite the passage of time, this desire to remember is heartfelt. Every year, more and more New Zealanders choose to attend ANZAC Day ceremonies and services. For members of the Speaker’s delegation here in Prague, it is a pleasure to join members of the New Zealand community on ANZAC Day. There are 14 New Zealand war graves at the Commonwealth War Cemetery in Prague. Each is engraved with the distinctive silver fern. Detailed information is sparse, but it is believed that these Kiwi soldiers died in prisoner of war camps in Czechoslovakia.

Casualty figures remind us of the extent of their sacrifice. Of the approximately 102,000 New Zealanders who served in the First World War (approximately 10% of the population), 16,300 were killed in active service in the war.

The first ANZACs were mostly civilians, representing all classes and occupations in New Zealand society. The social impact of the casualties was

33 SPEAKER’S DELEGATION J.2S devastating. Every family, every street, every community was affected by the loss or maiming of so many of our young men.

The carnage at Gallipoli and the Western Front dashed the aspirations of families and cut young lives short. These young men lost their chance to live out their lives as we do, to explore individual potential, to build a career, to contribute to a community and to be part of a family.

Although fewer New Zealanders were killed in the Second World War (11,625) these casualties represented a further blow to families and communities around the country.

It is always difficult being away from home and family on days like this. Your thoughts, like ours, will turn to the ANZAC Day ritual in towns and cities throughout New Zealand. There will be Dawn Parades, current and former servicemen will march in the early morning darkness, members of the wider community will join them, there will be a short service, prayers, hymns and a dedication concluding with the final verse of Laurence Binyon’s poem For the Fallen. The Last Post will be played, followed by a minute’s silence. Participants will disperse, in silence, with the words of that dedication still suspended in the early morning air.

Although Anzac Day does not mark a military triumph, it does remind us of a very important episode in New Zealand's history. Great suffering was caused to a small country by the loss of so many of its young men. But the Gallipoli campaign showcased attitudes and attributes - bravery, tenacity, practicality, ingenuity and loyalty - that helped New Zealand define itself as a nation, even as it fought unquestioningly on the other side of the world in the name of the British Empire.

After Gallipoli, New Zealand had a greater confidence in its distinct identity, and a greater pride in the international contribution it could make.

I thank you all for making the effort to be here today. It is a pleasure to be part of your community on this day as we honour those who were asked to do extraordinary things for their country, and did so willingly and at considerable personal cost.

34 J.2S SPEAKER’S DELEGATION

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

Speech to function hosted by New Zealand’s Ambassador to Hungary Academy of Sciences Budapest

6pm, Monday 28 April, 2008

Ambassador Cook, distinguished guests, members of the New Zealand community in Hungary and members of the delegation.

It is an honour to be here in Hungary where the warmth of your welcome signalled that we are indeed among friends.

Our two countries may be geographically far apart, but we still have much in common. Even though we have just been here three days, it is clear one of those similarities is a parliamentary democracy with a history of lively, coalition politics!

Both countries understand the importance of good relations with their immediate region; and both work hard towards global solutions to global issues.

Our relationship is built upon a strong base of people to people links. A number of Hungarian refugees came to New Zealand after the uprising in 1956 and built a strong, active and vibrant community that has grown to around 1,400 people today. The New Zealand community here in Hungary is smaller, but is still very active and it is great to see so many of you here this evening.

Hungary is represented in New Zealand by the very active honorary consul Klára Szentirmay in Wellington, the Ambassador in Canberra and a consulate in Auckland. In fact we are both very well-served by our Honorary Consuls; Reszo Sardi does a fantastic job waving the flag for us here in Budapest. As a result he is receiving a growing number of business, immigration and tourism enquiries, reflecting further growth potential in the bilateral relationship.

Interesting projects between us span a range of sectors, including education, science, investment, environment and cultural development. Trade links are developing and tomorrow I will visit New Zealand’s largest investment in Hungary. Fletcher Building and AHI Roofing will set up a new factory 100 kilometres from here, in Várpalota - their first roofing tiles plant in Central Europe, providing more than 100 jobs for Hungarian workers.

This first significant project by a New Zealand company will strengthen the commercial relationship between the two countries and add another

35 SPEAKER’S DELEGATION J.2S dimension to the growing relationship while contributing to the region's rapid development.

One area where I would like to see the relationship grow further would be through a working holiday scheme. They give young people from either country the opportunity to spend up to a year in the other country working and holidaying, deepening our already strong people-to-people links.

New Zealand has similar agreements with many countries around the world, and these have resulted in thousands of young people visiting each other’s countries; familiarising themselves with the culture, the language and of course the people.

In our interconnected world this is useful for increasing our understanding of each other and contributing to a more harmonious co-existence.

We are also looking forward to the resumption of negotiations on a bilateral social security agreement.

Scientific links between New Zealand and Hungary are also contributing and a network of New Zealand food researchers will hold a conference in Budapest in September, bringing together New Zealand and EU food researchers to establish collaboration in the sector.

As smaller countries in the global community we play a similar role in the multilateral sphere. Both countries contribute to global security through our troops in Afghanistan and to global environmental protection through a number of multilateral fora.

We were very interested in President Sólyom’s “Green Presidents Initiative”. As a country focussed on sustainability, we see cooperation among environmentally-concerned countries as very important.

Our former Governor-General Dame Silvia Cartwright invited President Sólyom to visit New Zealand during her visit to Hungary in 2004. When we discussed this with him this morning, President Sólyom noted how much he would enjoy such a visit, to continue our discussions on how small countries can contribute to global solutions to protect our environment.

Small countries with similar interests working together to similar ends.

Ka kite ano

36 J.2S SPEAKER’S DELEGATION

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

Speech to mark ground breaking ceremony Fletcher Building/AHI Roofing plant Várpalota, Hungary

11.15 am, Tuesday 29 April, 2008

Mr Mayor, Arpad Nemeth, Tony O’Brien, distinguished guests, members of the touring delegation …. It gives me enormous pleasure to be here today for this ground-breaking ceremony.

It is very appropriate and I must say a welcome courtesy that AHI Roofing and its parent company Fletcher Building have chosen to involve the local community in a ceremony such as this today.

No matter how big, how innovative and how exciting the project is, and how much it means to those involved, we are guests in your country Mr Nemeth. The investment, the skills of the workforce, the technical knowledge and the location are all important. But the ultimate success of the project often rests on the relationship between the investor and the workforce and the local municipality. From what I’ve seen this morning, a lot of effort has gone into that aspect and we’ll all reap the benefit.

The investment by Fletcher Building through its subsidiary AHI Roofing is the largest New Zealand investment of its kind in Hungary and we welcome this extension of trade links between our two countries. It is also New Zealand’s largest investment in a manufacturing facility in Europe for many years.

When looking for a plant site, Hungary stood out as the favoured location based on the technical knowledge and skills of the local workforce and Várpalota’s excellent infrastructure and links to the rest of Europe.

The plant will initially provide 100 jobs. The companies will use the skills and innovation of the Hungarian workforce to further develop their product range. They will also work with the municipality to develop further workforce skills.

AHI Roofing was the innovator of the metal steel roof tile which we in New Zealand know by the Gerard brand name. Gerard roofs have been sold in Hungary by a distributor Holimex for many years.

Thanks to Holimex, the Hungarian market for these roof tiles has grown significantly and Fletchers and AHI look forward to even higher levels of growth in future years in partnership with Holimex. AHI Roofing celebrated its 50th birthday last year. It is known for a loyal workforce; many of its workers in Auckland have been with the company more

37 SPEAKER’S DELEGATION J.2S than 30 years and it enjoys a similar relationship with its workforce where it has built plants abroad such as this one in Várpalota.

Thank you for the opportunity to be part of your celebrations today. It is an honour for me personally and as the leader of the delegation.

Good luck, best wishes and we will watch the progress here in Várpalota with interest.

Ka kite ano

38 J.2S