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I have received an invitation to make a presentation on codes of conduct to a conference in Belgrade. The conference has been organised by the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe for selected committees of the National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia. Members have some of the background papers. This invitation follows on from the one that the committee received from Bosnia, where I did a similar exercise. Are members content that I do it again?
The fact that you received the invite suggests that you did quite a good job in Bosnia. I have no problems with your accepting the invite and representing the committee.
I learned a significant lesson: do not try to tell jokes in English to people who do not understand it. I tried to make some jokes at my expense, on my well-known hatred of onions, and they went down like a lead balloon. I was advised in advance that Bosnians like onions so perhaps that is why. I referred to the previous profession of our standards commissioner, and the need to have that kind of professional involvement with members of a Parliament, but that also went down like a lead balloon. Incidentally, Dr Dyer was a psychiatrist.
Given that, convener, why have you received another invitation? It seems extraordinary.
The rest of my visit went quite well.
I think that you should go, but without the jokes.
I have learned that lesson.
I agree that you should go but I note that the invitation is also for an official. I assume that the committee agrees—if we are being asked to agree—that that should happen. It is important that we have contacts at official and civil service level because not only do we hope that they will learn from us but equally we hope that we will learn something from them.
On the previous occasion I was not the only parliamentarian there. In fact, there was a gentleman from the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, which had been going through the same kind of exercise and it was interesting to hear what it was doing. The committee clerk at the time engaged with various organisations that were there. The OSCE is doing a good job trying to share experiences from different Parliaments in order to build democracy in the Balkans. I went in fear and trepidation last time; I hope that I will not have to do that this time.
Meeting continued in private until 11:29.