On the afternoon of April 3, President Han met a seven-member parliamentary delegation from the UK Labor Party. In attendance were Vice President Dr. Johnny C. Chian, Legislator Chang Chia-chun, who is also the chairperson of the ROC-UK Inter-Parliamentary Amity Association, Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Chen Kuan-ting, Taiwan People’s Party Legislator Lin Kuo-chen, International Affairs Department Director Kevin C.F. Lin and Deputy Foreign Minister Kelly Wu-chiao Hsieh.

 President Han invited attending legislators and delegation members for group phots and showed his warm welcome to the delegation. He stated that the UK Parliament and the Legislative Yuan enjoy close interactions over the years. Vice President Chiang was the chairman of Taiwan-UK Inter-parliamentary Amity Association in the 10th Legislative Yuan and led a delegation to the UK. He passed the torch to Legislator Chang Chia-chun and hoped this association will further deepen exchanges and cooperation between the two parliaments to establish a closer partnership and to make efforts for economic development, global peace and people wellbeing. President Han continued to state that Taiwan and the UK has had close interactions. The UK marks the fourth largest destination for Taiwanese students, next to the US, Australia and Japan. He thanked the UK Parliament for its staunch support to Taiwan in recent years, especially its international participation. Taiwan hopes to have meaningful participation in international organizations such as World Health Organization and regional economic integration mechanisms such as Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP). President Han noted that legislators from the three political party caucuses were present to welcome the delegation. He further commented that legislators may have different views and disagreement on various issues, yet the same spirit of welcoming foreign dignitaries was shared among them. He hoped that the delegation would return home with fond memories in Taiwan. He hoped that the UK Parliament will continue to support Taiwan’s meaningful participation in international organizations to make more contributions to the international community.

In his remarks, on behalf of the delegation, Lord Leong first thanked President Han for finding time to welcome the delegation. He joked that this visit was warmly welcomed by various government agencies and had tasted a lot of Taiwanese cuisines. He probably needed to walk back to the UK to consume extra calories. He continued to state that compared with the UK Parliament, the Republic of China Legislative Yuan is relatively young and was founded based on the R.O.C. Constitution. He took pride in himself as the first member with the East Asian background in the Labor Party and the fourth in the UK history when he was appointed by the Chair of the Labor Party 18 months ago to serve as a member of the House of Lords. He expounded that the major task of the member of House of Lords is to debate about policy and to provide district services just like the members of the House of Commons. He has long devoted himself to promote rights and interests of small and medium enterprises. He continued to share that parliamentary democracy may not be perfect, but still need to be safeguarded, because democratic core values face severe threats such as current independent legal system, division of power, fair and open elections. Populism and authoritarian regime use cutting-edged technology to reduce public trust in the government. Trust is the core value of democratic system. Therefore, we need to be cautious to face and handle new threats and challenges to protect democracy, freedom and rule of law. We should not let populism to divide a democratic society. He quoted the five essential questions about democracy posed by former Prime Minister Tony Blair for further thoughts:“What power have you got? Where did you get it from? In whose interests do you use it? To whom are you accountable? How do we get rid of you?” He concluded by reminding all that people is the master of a country and can get rid of the power of members of parliament.  

President Han invited all distinguished guests for group photos and exchange of gifts followed by the welcome luncheon for further dialogue and exchanges in the banquet hall. Both sides had in-depth discussion about current Taiwan-UK relations, comparison of the parliament system between Taiwan and the UK, the presidential and vice-presidential inauguration ceremony, the date and the way the sessions conducted in the Legislative Yuan, Taiwan’s disaster prevention and rescue mechanism, major sports events, Taiwan’s religious events and other issues. Before the luncheon was concluded, Vice President Chiang and attending legislators prepared birthday cake and Shoutao (longevity peach bun) to wish the two delegation members a happy birthday and good health. After the luncheon, the delegation toured the chamber guided by the staff of the Department of International Affairs. The meeting, luncheon and tour lasted for about two hours and concluded in a warm and pleasant vibe.

Delegation List:

1. The Lord Leong
2. The Lord Grantchester
3. Sharon Hodgson MP
4. The Rt Hon Dame Diana Johnson MP
5. The Lord McNicol
6. Navendu Mishra MP
7. Andrew Western MP