On Friday 3 February over 150 Norfolk businesses arrived at Holiday Inn Norwich North for an afternoon of debate and discussion with five of Norfolk’s MPs.
Sponsored by Norse, Greater Anglia and Holiday Inn, the event returned for its seventh year with MPs Sir Henry Bellingham – MP for South West Norfolk, Richard Bacon – MP for South Norfolk, George Freeman – MP for Mid Norfolk, Keith Simpson – MP for Broadland and Norman Lamb – MP for North Norfolk. This year’s event host was Carole Walker, BBC Political Correspondent and ‘Norfolk gal’.
The afternoon was split into two sections, covering a range of key topics affecting Norfolk’s business community. The first section saw Norman Lamb, Richard Bacon, George Freeman and Keith Simpson covering revolution in technology. The discussion saw cyber-crime, broadband, mobile and of course Brexit covered by a mixture of interview style with audience questions.
Following this, our agenda lead to a tea break for delegates and MPs to get refreshed and enjoy platters of afternoon tea provided by the venue.
As the event resumed, members had the chance to hear from Brandon Lewis – MP for Great Yarmouth, in a pre-recorded video message. Brandon highlighted key growth in his constituency with the Great Yarmouth River Crossing development, and spoke of how Brexit must now become an opportunity for the UK.
Both Richard Bacon and George Freeman returned to the stage along with Sir Henry Bellingham and Jamie Burles, Managing Director of Greater Anglia for part two of the event. Infrastructure was the main topic of questions as we heard about the A47, rail, air travel and once again the implications of Brexit.
Norfolk Chamber’s Chief Executive, Caroline Williams said: “Recently, Norfolk has become more visible to Westminster. The Norfolk Chamber has been influential in securing audiences with key politicians, at national level, and giving the region the opportunity to have its business voice heard. This was a great opportunity to hear from and be heard by some of Norfolk’s most influential people.”
The afternoon provided both members and MPs with plenty of thought.
Photographs from the event are available to view here – Photos by Paul Harrison Photography.
