The Slovenian Presidency of the Council of the European Union has come to an end. However, the Slovenian Parliament will hold a further two high-level events as part of the parliamentary dimension of the Presidency early this year. Yesterday, the National Assembly hosted the Meeting of the Secretaries General of the European Union Parliaments via videoconference. It was chaired by the Secretary General of the National Assembly, Uršula Zore Tavčar.

In her opening address, National Assembly Vice-President Tina Heferle welcomed the idea of establishing a joint and standardised videoconferencing platform at the EU level that would facilitate parliamentary work and cooperation. She also emphasised the importance of initiatives that encourage young people to become actively involved in politics and assume a greater role in shaping European and national policy. In his opening remarks, National Council President Alojz Kovšca talked about the National Council’s pivotal role in working together with various civil society stakeholders in finding solutions to current challenges within legislative processes, emphasising the role of young people.

Participants attending the Meeting of the Secretaries General discussed preparations for the Conference of Speakers of the European Union Parliaments, which will be held on 28 and 29 March at Brdo pri Kranju, and current topics related to parliamentary activity. When talking about the draft agenda for the Conference of Speakers, National Assembly Secretary General Uršula Zore Tavčar presented the two conference topics: The Role of Parliaments in Emergency Politics – Building

Resilience for Democratic Governance, which will be discussed during the first day of the conference, and The European Union as the Guarantor of Stability, Security and

Prosperity in the Region (and Beyond), the topic planned for the following day.

As part of Session II of yesterday’s Meeting of the Secretaries General, the Secretary General of the German

Bundestag, Dr Lorenz Müller, who – together with the German Bundesrat – also presides IPEX, presented the IPEX Annual Report. This platform is intended for the interparliamentary exchange of EU-related information and has been available since 2006, during which time it has undergone a number of technological and content-related improvements. Dr Müller highlighted the advantages of the IPEX website, which was revamped last year, saying it is a one-stop-shop and a well-functioning network for providing up-to-date information on the EU.

During Session III, The Legacy of COVID-19: Future Prospects and Opportunities for (Inter)parliamentary Work and Cooperation, Bojan Verbič, the Head of the ICT Department at the National Assembly, presented the work flow at the National Assembly during crisis situations.

He presented session and voting proceedings at the National Assembly and its working bodies during crisis situations, as well as the conditions necessary to set up meetings and implement remote voting for MPs during sessions outside the National Assembly.

When discussing the joint European videoconferencing platform for interparliamentary work and cooperation, the Secretary General of the German Bundestag, Dr Lorenz Müller, proposed establishing an expert group, which would be coordinated by the European Parliament. The Secretary General of the European Parliament, Klaus Welle, presented the European Parliament’s goals aimed at tackling the pandemic. He emphasised all stakeholders must act to ensure safety, the uninterrupted work of parliaments in crisis situations, and practical solidarity in terms of parliamentary infrastructure and services, which were offered to vulnerable groups during the pandemic. Mr Welle pointed to the existing and useful Interacio system when planning the joint European videoconferencing platform for interparliamentary work and cooperation, as it not only uses EU servers, but also offers the opportunity of using the national parliaments’ own interpreters.

During the discussion, participants highlighted the importance of in-person meetings for quality parliamentary work and cooperation, drawing attention to the issue of cybersecurity and personal data protection when pushing for the digitalisation of parliamentary work.

As part of the next topic, Secretary General Uršula Zore Tavčar presented a number of National Assembly activities aimed at educating, encouraging participation, and raising awareness among children and young people, which were developed during the past 30 years. She mentioned a new National Assembly educational programme called Active Citizenship. Using a video clip, the National Council presented The Toothless Tiger – a picture book for children that uses an animal story to portray the work and role of the National Council when representing various interest groups.

The Secretary General of the Austrian Parliament, Dr. Harald Dossi, presented the Austrian Parliament’s activities aimed educating young people on democratic processes. He likewise highlighted the organisation of these kinds of workshops in Western Balkan countries as a tool for raising awareness among young people as part of the Conference on the Future of Europe.

During the discussion, the secretaries general presented parliamentary activities aimed at educating young people. In addition to in-person visits, these also included online workshops and training on virtual democracy.

At the end of the conference, the Secretary General of the French Senate, Éric Tavernier, gave a detailed presentation of the contents and programme of the parliamentary dimension of the French Presidency of the Council of the EU. He congratulated his Slovenian colleagues on a successful Presidency and thanked the Slovenian and Czech parliaments for their cooperation and coordination, which are necessary to ensure the continuity of EU work.

The secretaries general supported the proposal of the German and Austrian parliaments to take part in honouring Holocaust Remembrance Day. On 27 January, the National Assembly will honour the victims of the holocaust by symbolically turning on all its lights and illuminating the façade of the parliamentary building. The National Assembly will further participate in the #WeRemember campaign by publishing a photograph of MPs with the “We remember” slogan.

PHOTOGRAPHS AND VIDEO RECORDINGS
You can find free full-sized photographs of the conference on the official website of the parliamentary dimension of the Presidency www.parleu2021.si under the Photo and Video section. When using the materials, please cite the National Assembly / photographer’s name as the source of the photograph. Video recordings of the conference will be available on the official website of the parliamentary dimension of the Slovenian Presidency www.parleu2021.si; when using the recordings, please cite the National Assembly as the author of the audio-visual material.

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