Pink Shoe LiberTea

To our delight we had the chance to hold a LiberTea in commemoration of the 800th anniversary of the Magna Carta on Monday the 15th of June- the only LiberTea celebration that was held in Westminster on the anniversary of this momentous event. 

We all wrote what we were thankful for or inspired by and created our own Pink Shoe thought board! 

We heard from Parliamentary Archivist Kirsty Fife on the century long battle for female suffrage in the UK. We learnt that by the time the ‘Representation of the People Act’ was passed in 1918 parliament had received no fewer than 1600 petitions on this subject containing the signatures of some 3 million women. We were also intrigued to find out that 4 of the 63 clauses of the Magna Carta written on the 15th of June 1215 are still in fact law today.

We also had the pleasure of hearing from Parliamentary Curator Melanie Unwin on the stages involved in designing a wonderful piece of artwork to commemorate the fight of our grandmothers and great-grandmother’s for female suffrage in the UK. 

The artwork will be revealed in early 2016 and will sit in Westminster itself. We are very much looking forward to seeing this at the big unveiling! (See the sneak preview to the right)

Hong Tan concluded the addresses with a short discussion on the ‘Likeness of Justice’ art exhibition which will focus on contemporary issues of justice. The project aims to develop images for individuals, institutions and bodies concerned about the justice system.

Then we all enjoyed tea and scones hosted by Baroness Jenkin of Kennington in the Peers' Dining Room. Pink Shoe would like to thank Lady Jenkin and each of our wonderful speakers, as well as everyone involved for making the day such a great success.

#ScaleUpEurope

We were delighted to support a stunning event at the House of Lords, when Alex Mitchell of the Young Brits Network brought together The European Confederation of Young Entrepreneurs, StartUp Europe and The European Youth Forum with the support of the IoD and his own company Causarma.

Graciously hosted by The Earl of Erroll, the debate focused on the key issue of youth entrepreneurship and was organised in collaboration with The All-Party Parliamentary Group for Entrepreneurship.

Lord Erroll and Shadow Business Secretary Chuka Umunna played leading roles, speaking passionately about the importance of entrepreneurship and how to design a financial eco-system that would enable businesses to thrive. Their speeches captured everyone’s attention- so much so by the time the event started it was standing room only!

Successful young entrepreneurs came from the UK, the EU and much further afield. Guests shared their stories and business strategies. We even had flags to represent the many diverse countries represented by the young entrepreneurs.

At the end everyone enjoyed a question and answer session, before sharing nibbles and wine along with plenty of international networking.

Huge thanks to everyone involved for organising such a successful event. 

State Opening of Parliament

Its become a tradition for Pink Shoe Ambassadors to attend the State Opening of Parliament and 2015 was another memorable event. Resplendent in gorgeous hats and summer finery members gathered to watch the arrival of HM The Queen and the royal procession.

After the Queen's speech and procession back to the Palace we adjourned to the House of Commons dining room for the special State Opening luncheon. 

We were then able to hear opening debate on the Queen's speech in the House of Commons chamber from both the Prime Minister and the Leader of HM Opposition.