Moroccan Parliamentary Delegation to 147th IPU Assembly Holds Talks with British Parliamentary Delegation Led by MP Karen Bradley, Chair of the British Parliamentary Group at IPU

On the sidelines of its participation in the 147^th IPU Assembly hosted by the National Assembly of Angola in Luanda on October 23-27, 2023, the Moroccan parliamentary delegation, led by Rep. Mohammed Sabbari, First Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, held talks, on Thursday, October 26, 2023, with the British parliamentary delegation, led by MP Karen Bradley, Chair of the British Parliamentary Group at the IPU.

At the onset of the meeting, the British delegation extended its condolences to the Moroccan delegation following the devastating earthquake that struck Al Haouz province. In this respect, the British delegation expressed solidarity with the Kingdom of Morocco, commending the synergy and rapid reaction shown by all the components of the Moroccan State, its King, Government, and people in the rescue operations. Besides, they also lauded the donations submitted by the Moroccan Community in the UK to support the victims.

For his part, Rep. Mohammed Sabbari, the head of the Moroccan delegation, expressed his thanks and gratitude to the United Kingdom for its support to the Kingdom of Morocco in this tough juncture and for providing its technical assistance in the rescue and search operations. In this same respect, he recalled the distinguished and long-standing ties linking the two Kingdoms. Besides, he also gave an extensive presentation of the measures taken by the Kingdom to address the post-earthquake repercussions.

On the same occasion, Rep. Mohammed Sabbari shed light on several practical measures taken by the Kingdom of Morocco under the wise leadership of His Majesty King Mohammed VI, may Allah glorify and assist him. In this regard, he noted that His Majesty the King chaired, a few hours after the earthquake, important and key meetings with the Government to precisely determine the priorities to quickly rebuild the regions struck by the earthquake and provide shelter for victims. A week after the earthquake, the authorities guaranteed the resumption of studies for the pupils of primary schools by building model classrooms, and for the ones of middle and high schools by transferring them to institutions in the neighboring cities. He also added that the areas affected benefited from mobile health and administrative units that ensured the continuity of public service for their citizens. Moreover, the authorities established temporary shelters that include all the necessary services, in addition to the allocation of direct financial aid to the affected families in order to assist them in overcoming this disaster.

On another note, the two parties discussed several questions of mutual concern, including the worrying developments in Gaza, irregular migration and the means to address it and redress its repercussions, environmental questions, climate change, renewable energies, and energy transition.

During the same meeting, the two parties commended the strong bilateral relations uniting the two countries and stressed the imperative of reinforcing them and consolidating cooperation and exchanging experiences and expertise.

The meeting took place in the presence of Rep. Mustapha Reddad (Group of the National Rally of Independents), Rep. Omar Hejira (Istiqlali Group of Unity and Egalitarianism), and Rep. Khaddouj Slassi (Socialist Group – Ittihadi Opposition).

The meeting was attended from the British side by MP Tim Loughton (Conservative Party), MP Kate Osamor (Labor Party), and Lord Rennard (Liberal Democrats).