External Forces and Trends
House of Lords Member Lunch
Our annual lunch for PARC members will be at the House of Lords, a suitable venue for a mid-year review of political and economic events.
The 2020s are already shaping up to be a tumultuous decade. The past year has added the global pandemic to the list of potentially destabilising factors affecting the world economy. Others, such as trade wars, geopolitical instability, climate change and demographics, are still with us.
The opening months of 2021 underline the fact that we are now moving into a far less predictable and more politically volatile decade. The departure of Donald Trump was more dramatic than that of any previous US president. In Europe, many businesses found themselves unprepared for the changed trading arrangements of Brexit and the diverse impact of lockdowns affecting numerous countries. While vaccines may give us some hope of a return to stability, predicting the shape of the business environment for the rest of 2021, and indeed the years ahead, will be difficult.
Our member lunch is a welcome opportunity to visit the seat of government, network with fellow attendees, listen to some well-informed commentary and discuss the key issues affecting our businesses.
To stimulate our thoughts Gisela Stuart, Baroness Stuart of Edgbaston, will share with us her insights developed from her broad experience in politics and business law.
Speakers
Baroness Gisela Stuart of Edgbaston
Baroness Stuart of Edgbaston MP
Baroness Stuart of Edgbaston is Chair of Wilton Park, an Executive Agency of FCDO and lead NED on the Cabinet Office Board. In the House of Lords since Sept 2020 as a non-affiliated Peer. Labour MP for Birmingham Edgbaston from 1997 – 2017 and Health Minister in the first Blair administration. She was also Chair of Vote Leave in the 2016 EU referendum.
