The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt Hon Gerry Brownlee will lead a Parliamentary delegation at the end of this week to Sri Lanka, Singapore, and Malaysia.

“New Zealand shares a unique bond with Sri Lanka, Malaysia, and Singapore as fellow Commonwealth countries,” Rt Hon Gerry Brownlee says.

The delegation will arrive in Colombo on Sunday 7 July (SLST), accompanied by a cross party delegation of Dr Carlos Cheung MP (National), Andy Foster MP (New Zealand First), Cushla Tangaere-Manuel MP (Labour), and Dr Lawrence Xu-Nan MP (Green Party).

“The focus of the delegation is parliamentary diplomacy as well as business development and to build cultural understanding.”

During their time in the region, the delegation will meet with the Speaker’s counterparts, Hon Mahinda Yapa Abeywardana, Speaker of Sri Lankan Parliament, Hon Seah Kian Peng, Speaker of the Parliament of Singapore, and H.E. Tan Sri Dato (Dr.) Johari bin Abdul, Speaker of the Dewan Rakya (Parliament of Malaysia), as well as with various Leaders, Ministers, and Opposition Members in the three countries.

They will also visit the Fonterra factory in Malaysia, the Urban Redevelopment Authority exhibition in Singapore, and visit several culturally and religiously significant sites.

“We will lay a wreath at War Memorials in all three countries to honour the over 30,000 New Zealand and Commonwealth soldiers who served during the two world wars, “ says Rt Hon Gerry Brownlee.

The delegation concludes on Tuesday 16 July.

© Scoop Media