His Excellency Wang Zhaoguo and 24 members of a delegation from China arrived in T&T on Saturday to strengthen, promote and develop Parliament. Zhaoguo is a member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and vice-chairman of the Standing Committee of China's National People's Congress (NPC).
He was welcomed at the Piarco International Airport by Speaker Wade Mark and president of the Senate Timothy Hamel-Smith, who extended invitations to the Chinese delegation. Mark said the visit was a friendly "Parliament-to-Parliament exchange" between both countries. Zhaoguo said he was happy to be in T&T and hoped that both countries would grow closer.
During the delegation's two-day visit, both Mark and Hamel-Smith will discuss with Zhaoguo the strengthening and promotion of better bilateral relations at the parliamentary level between the NPC and T&T. Among the things to be discussed will be overhauling of the Standing Orders and the bringing to being of a parliamentary service commission.
"We are about to move to an electronic Parliament," Mark said. "We are also looking to make Parliament a full-time arrangement rather than meeting on Tuesdays in the Senate or Fridays in the House."