LS Speaker Om Birla meets Australian Speaker ahead of G20 Parliamentary Speakers’ Summit

New Delhi [India], October 12 (ANI): Ahead of the 9th G20 Parliamentary Speakers’ Summit (P-20), Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on Thursday met with Australian speaker Milton Dick and discussed the strong and old parliamentary relationship between India and Australia.

Taking to ‘X'( formerly Twitter), Birla wrote, “Glad to meet Speaker of @AboutTheHouse ,Mr. @MiltonDickMP ahead of #P20Summit in New Delhi. Expressed gratitude to Australia for supporting our collective global vision during #G20Summit2023 & for India’s initiative for inclusion of @_AfricanUnion in #G20”.

“Recent visits by PM of both countries have given a new dimension to bilateral relations between India and Australia. With their shared vision, mutual cooperation has further deepened with new energy. Urged that both Parliaments should widen the scope of parliamentary cooperation”, he added.

Australian Speaker Dick praised Lok Sabha speaker Birla’s “service-oriented” work.

They also held discussions over the interests of over 41 lakh Indian students studying in Australia.

Meanwhile, they noted that economic cooperation and trade agreements between the two countries will give a boost to the commercial-economic relations between the two countries.

Lok Sabha speaker Om Birla commeded Australian Speaker Milton Dick’s long “public-life”.

They also discussed Prime Minister’s “close relations” with Australia.

It is worth mentioning that he 9th G20 Parliamentary Speakers’ Summit (P-20) will be held from October 13-14 in the national capital.

The two-day summit will be held at the newly constructed India International Convention and Expo Center (IICC), Yashobhoomi, Dwarka, New Delhi.

Earlier today, the pre-summit of the 9th G20 Parliamentary Speakers’ Summit (P20) focussed on ‘Lifestyle for Environment’, bringing a parliamentary perspective to meet the challenges and solutions towards addressing the issue.

The pre-summit Parliamentary Forum on LiFE (Lifestyle for Environment) is also held to deliberate upon initiatives towards “a greener and sustainable future in harmony with nature.”

In his welcome remarks, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla said that climate change and environment is the common issues across the world and that is why the issue is part of the discussion in the pre-summit day of the P20 Summit.

“In present scenario, climate change and environment is such a subject that is connected to the common destiny of the entire world. That is why the subject is at the centre of the P-20 conference. We are also discussing this subject in the pre-summit today,” said Birla a day ahead of the formal inauguration of the P20 Summit.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the 9th G20 Parliamentary Speakers’ Summit (P20) on Friday.The summit is being hosted by the Parliament of India under the broader framework of India’s G20 Presidency.

In line with the theme of India’s G20 Presidency, the theme of the 9th P20 Summit is “Parliaments for One Earth, One Family, One Future.”

The event will be attended by Speakers of Parliaments of G20 members and invitee countries.

The Pan-African Parliament will take part in the P20 Summit for the first time after the African Union became a member of G20 at the New Delhi G20 Leaders’ Summit on September 9-10 this year.

The thematic sessions during this P20 Summit will focus on the following four subjects – Transformation in People’s Lives through Public Digital Platforms; Women-led development; Accelerating Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs); and Sustainable Energy Transition.

Amitabh Kant, Sherpa of India’s G20 Presidency, represented the introduction of the pre-summit Parliamentary Forum on LiFE (Lifestyle for Environment) while Leena Nandan, Secretary, Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, showcased the presentation on LiFE by followed by a short film.

Preceded by the Parliamentary Forum on LiFE (Lifestyle for Sustainable Development) on Thursday, the P20 Summit itself would have four high-level sessions.The four themes on which parliamentarians would deliberate are on Agenda 2030 for SDGs: Showcasing Achievements, Accelerating Progress; Sustainable Energy Transitions: Gateways to a Green Future; Mainstreaming Gender Equality: From Women’s Empowerment to Women-Led Development; and Transformation in Peoples’ Lives through Public Digital Platforms.

With the theme “Parliaments for One Earth, One Family, One Future,” the Summit will also provide opportunities for fostering international cooperation, cultural exchanges and strengthening diplomatic ties among nations.

The deliberations will culminate with the adoption of a Joint Statement, urging the G20 Governments to deliver solutions to major global challenges in ways that seek to ensure equity, inclusiveness, and peace.