Parliament Speaker Dr. Rewas Faiq welcomes UK’s new Consul General Mr. James Thornton

Kurdistan Parliament’s Speaker Dr. Rewas Faiq on 22 August welcomed the UK’s new Consul General in Erbil, Mr. James Thornton. They discussed Kurdistan-UK relations, reorganising the Peshmerga forces, the reform agenda and the latest political developments.

Speaker Faiq and Mr. Thornton discussed the agreement that the Iraqi government will give the Kurdistan Region its share of the national budget, in return for the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) giving 250,000 barrels of oil per month. Dr. Faiq said that as Speaker of Parliament, she supports the agreement, but only on condition that Baghdad fulfills its responsibility to pay the international oil companies for their oil production. Currently the Iraqi government refuses to pay oil companies in Kurdistan. The KRG operates its oil sector under the framework and articles of the Iraqi Constitution, she said.

Speaker Faiq said that she supports the KRG in its current talks with the Iraqi government to resolve outstanding issues.  

Mr. Thornton congratulated Dr. Faiq on her election in July to the Speakership, and said that the UK wants to strengthen commercial and other ties with Kurdistan Region.

The Speaker briefed Mr. Thornton on the latest legislative and political developments. She stressed that the Kurdistan Parliament will coordinate its legislative work with the KRG, to bring about reform in many areas and to ensure fairness in the taxation system.