By Simon Hughes, Vice Chair BVEP

The merry band of fans that await these blogs with bated breath can breathe easy. I’m at it again, as requested by the webmeisters that control the ebb and flow of the essential information, best practice and regular updates supplied by the BVEP. This time around it’s to support the work we’ve been doing to get our partners focussed on the recent Green Paper on Industrial Strategy. If you’ve not spotted it there is a consultation in process that is inviting industries and sectors to respond to the opportunity of establishing sector deals to support the new global trading position UK plc finds itself forging, as the clock ticks down to our exit from the European Union.

By Simon Hughes, Vice Chair BVEP

God had to admit it – he was tired out. 2016 had been a really busy year and quite frankly he’d just about had enough.

By Simon Hughes, Vice Chair BVEP

The good news that Google are planning to go ahead with an estimated £1bn in extra investment in the UK – including a new headquarters and 3,000 new jobs – has been widely and warmly welcomed. Sundar Pichai, Google’s Chief Executive, was at pains to point out that despite the outcome of the Brexit vote they still view the UK as an attractive place to do business because it was open and connected and had a healthy marketplace in scientists.

Post by Nick de Bois - posted on ConferenceNews on July 7th, 2016 - http://www.conference-news.co.uk/2016/07/time-for-the-uk-events-industry-to-step-onto-the-stage/

I was recently asked why I had wanted to become a Member of Parliament before the 2010 election. Put simply, I felt it was time for me to move on from being just a cross between a commentator and an armchair critic of government (of any persuasion), and instead try to shape and influence outcomes that mattered. Since leaving parliament in 2015, I don’t take any different view now, which is one of the reasons I was happy to assume the role of chair for the new UK Events Industry Board.

By Simon Hughes, Vice Chair BVEP

On polling day for the EU Referendum I sent a text message to my eldest son in which I wrote that I was feeling sick with worry about the outcome. So I wasn’t surprised to hear one commentator describing the subsequent developments in our political world as having become visceral. The heart versus the head. The leavers versus the remainers. The old versus the young. 1.3 million votes the difference that left me staring in disbelief at the TV screen as the numbers rolled in from across the nation. The people have spoken. So did the markets. Cue strong emotions all round.