Newspaper column 10 June 2021 - Final preparations for G7

 

This week sees the culmination of months of planning as Cornwall hosts the G7 Leaders’ Summit from the 11-13 June.

The G7 or Group of 7 is made up of the UK, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the US and the EU. Australia, India and South Korea have been invited as guest countries for this year’s event.

The G7 is one of the highest profile summits in the international calendar, bringing some of the world’s most powerful leaders together. 2021’s G7 is particularly important as this will be the first international event as the world looks to emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic that has blighted our lives over the past year.

As the presidency holder, the UK is directing the agenda for the G7 in 2021, choosing to focus on issues that matter and will help the UK and the world build back better from coronavirus. Having the Presidency of the G7 for 2021 is a unique opportunity for the UK to lead the international recovery effort from the COVID-19 crisis.

I am pleased to see the Prime Minister putting Cornwall at the heart of the Government’s levelling up agenda by choosing our county to host this global event. Over the past few months I have been working with the Government to look at G7 Legacy projects so that the G7 will have a lasting impact on our County, and hope to be able to share news on these shortly.

Aside from the obvious attractions that we have in Cornwall, our scenic vistas, beautiful maritime environments, unique culture and unmatched food and drink offer, there is also so much more to highlight to the visiting heads of state. In particular I want to see our emerging high tech industries have a spotlight shone upon them, as well as the burgeoning potential of our sustainable and renewable energy sector, with good news coming out every day on everything from geothermal energy from deep under the ground, to the launching of satellites into space, not to mention the return of our mining pre-eminence with new announcements on lithium made just this week.

While there have been some, who as ever, are quick to jump to highlight any negatives on offer, particularly in certain toxic echo chambers on social media, my own view, as is shared by so many local people and businesses, is that the very short term inconveniences created by needing the appropriate security for such an event will be more than made up by the long term benefits both to Cornwall by hosting the event with the legacy projects, but also to the world if each of the leaders takes away with them a little slice of what makes our home so special.

My thanks go to everyone who has been involved with the organisation and running of this momentous event, our emergency services, Cornwall Council and numerous local businesses – you have all done your bit to ensure Cornwall will sparkle on the world’s stage.

As ever, if you need my assistance with anything then my team and I are here to help. Please get in touch with me by email at Cherilyn.mackrory.mp@parliament.uk , or by telephone on 01872 229698.