Visiting United Kingdom House of Commons speaker John Bercow had some wise words which the Indian government would do well to pay heed.

Asked about the ongoing anti-corruption protest across India, Bercow sounded cautious advice saying, " If public sentiment is overwhelmingly behind a cause, a parliament should address it sympathetically."

He, however, added, “Parliament must remain sovereign in decision making and what policy to frame.”

Bercow clarified that it would be “inappropriate” for him to speak on the protest as it is "internal matter".

“It is for the Indian politicians and parliament to deal with the issue,” he said.

Addressing a Delhi University lecture on 'parliamentary reforms', he said, “Parliament's challenge is to heed public sentiment and reflect public concerns and seek to reassure public by a mechanism that is credible and effective as far as electorate is concerned, if it does that it will win respect of people.”

The 48-year-old Conservative leader said that there remains huge level of distrust between citizens and the governments in many countries around the world.

“There is basic challenge to counter public criticism and disaffection to establish or re-establish trust of the electorates which is basic ethics and propriety of the government,” he said.

He narrated how Britain faced such problems and effectively solve it. Bercow started electronic petitions as a way of shaping the parliamentary agenda and increasing public engagement. “An e-petition with more than 100,000 signatories will be passed to the backbench business committee to decide if the issue warrants debate,” he noted. The system was introduced to make UK parliament more accessible and transparent.

The speaker however also praised India and its democracy and called it a robust. “India has a great future. By 2060, India will become a dominant country in the world. This century will be your century soon. My advice to young people is 'go east'."

He is on visit to India from August 16 to August 20.