Alþingi set: President quotes Norwegian proverb
Halla Tómasdóttir, President of Iceland, at the opening of the parliament. mbl.is/Eggert Jóhannesson
“There is no shame in turning back,” said Halla Tómasdóttir, President of Iceland, when she addressed the members of parliament at the opening of the parliament yesterday.
The President used a Norwegian proverb that is used in Norwegian mountaineering, „Det er ingen skam å snu.“
“Turn back rather than get into trouble through stubbornness and single-mindedness,” the President also said when she explained the proverb and urged the members of parliament that there is no shame in changing their minds as long as it is done after careful consideration.
Halla Tómasdóttir, President of Iceland, before the inauguration of the Althingi. Next to her is Guðrún Karls Helgudóttir, Bishop of Iceland. mbl.is/Eggert Jóhannesson
She asked the members of parliament not to lose sight of the fact that they are first and foremost members of parliament with the common goal of working for the benefit of the nation.
“Good ideas do not only come from those who sit in the majority. It is imperative to be alert to necessary proposals and to give them a path forward, no matter who presents them.”
“The beginning of a new journey”
Halla Tómasdóttir, President of Iceland, today opened the 156th Legislative Assembly of Iceland.
Members of parliament had to dust the snow off their shoes as they marched into the parliament building after a service in the cathedral.
Reverend Guðrún Karls Helgudóttir, Bishop of Iceland, officiated at the altar, along with Elínborg Sturludóttir, the cathedral’s chaplain. Reverend Óskar Hafsteinn Óskarsson, pastor of Hrun and provost of the South Provost’s Diocese, preached.
Tómasdóttir began her address by wishing the new government and members of parliament well in their work and thanking those who are now leaving parliament.
“Every session of parliament is the beginning of a new journey,” she said. “New MPs bring new perspectives and renew the foundation of ideas on which the Parliament operates. At the same time, we must not underestimate the skills and experience of those already in Parliament.”
Parliamentarianism is a balancing act
She then said that MPs need to be creative and forward-looking, to sense the pulse of society and see where developments are headed. However, this can be difficult. Parliamentarianism is a balancing act that requires both creativity and formality, as well as the courage to rethink the way things work.
“It is indeed a difficult task to legislate on issues that perhaps did not exist a few years ago. Where it is even necessary to create new words to understand the phenomena and learn to think in a new way to approach this new reality.”
After the address, the President asked Foreign Minister Þorgerður Katrína Gunnardóttir to take the chair and preside over parliamentary sessions until the Speaker of the Althingi has been elected.
Gunnarsdóttir is the MP with the longest continuous parliamentary term.