Taipei: Taiwan's Legislative Speaker Han Kuo-yu announced upon his return to Taiwan that he had engaged in a historic meeting with U.K. House of Commons Speaker Lindsay Hoyle during his visit to Britain last week. This encounter marked the first meeting between a Taiwanese legislative speaker and the speaker of the House of Commons.
According to Focus Taiwan, Han, speaking to reporters at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, emphasized the success of his delegation's visit to France and the United Kingdom from May 9-17. The trip aimed at enhancing speaker-to-speaker dialogues, fostering lawmaker exchanges, and engaging with strategic think tanks, resulting in substantial diplomatic progress.
During the visit, the Taiwanese cross-party delegation met with senior parliamentary figures in both countries, including the president of the French Senate and Hoyle. Han noted that some discussions with sensitive figures were held privately, respecting the request of those involved.
Taiwan's Legislative Yuan is a unicameral legislature, while the British Parliament comprises the elected House of Commons and the appointed House of Lords. The significance of this meeting is further highlighted by the past visit of former Legislative Speaker Su Jia-chyuan, who met Hoyle as deputy speaker in 2018, alongside the speaker of the House of Lords.
Taiwan's representative to the U.K., Vincent Yao, highlighted the meeting's significance, occurring right after the State Opening of Parliament on May 13, a time when U.K. lawmakers were engaged in debates over the King's Speech.
In addition to the meetings with Hoyle and other British politicians, the Taiwanese delegation interacted with lawmakers from pro-Taiwan groups in both France and the U.K., many of whom committed to visiting Taiwan soon. The first group is anticipated as early as late May, Han confirmed.
A notable figure in the exchanges was Sarah Champion, co-chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Taiwan and chair of the House of Commons International Development Committee. At a banquet on May 14, Champion expressed her intent to lead a British delegation to Taiwan in autumn, emphasizing the need for democracies to unite amid current global challenges.
The delegation also engaged with strategic think tanks, discussing Taiwan's arms procurement and the potential implications for Taiwan and Northeast Asia from any future meetings between U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Consisting of 20 members, the delegation included lawmakers from Taiwan's ruling Democratic Progressive Party, the main opposition Kuomintang, and the Taiwan People's Party. They also met with Taiwanese businesspeople and expatriates in the U.K. and France and participated in the annual meeting of the European Taiwan Chambers of Commerce.