Exactly one week on from
an extraordinary General Election we held a high level roundtable to discuss
and assess the results, especially in relation to entrepreneurship and women in
business.
After introductions from Helene Martin Gee we received a warm welcome from Lord Taylor. John commented on the progress being made in Parliament where we now have 30% women MPs. As Lord Taylor said, great progress but we still have a way to go.
We then gained first hand experience of what it means to fight an Election as we heard from the truly inspirational Mina Rahman. Mina was PPC in Barking - her first time fighting an Election and thus in an unwinnable seat for the Tories. Mina however fought a good campaign with much support and is determined to stand again in five years time.
Jill Pay then shared with us what happens behind-the-scenes when new MPs enter Westminster for the first time.
She unveiled some of the historic customs and how these are relayed to the new intake. There is a lot to digest along with getting to grips with the new role.
For the second part of the event we focused on the economy and the impact on business.
First hearing from Sarah Fink, head of research for the Centre for Entrepreneurs on how women are seeking Government policy that specifically addresses some of the issues they face when running their own business.
This was followed by an excellent presentation from Shaun Richards, leading economist and blogger (notayesmaneconomics.wordpress.com).
After the roundtable we enjoyed refreshments and networking.