This past weekend saw the Prime Minister announce that Cornwall will be the venue for the G7 Summit that the UK is hosting later this year.
The G7 (or Group of Seven) is an organisation made up of the
world's seven largest so-called advanced economies: Canada, France, Germany,
Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States.
Attendees of the summit include the G7 nations' heads of
government plus the president of the European Commission and the president of
the European Council. The Leaders of Australia, South Korea and India will also
be invited to this year’s G7.
In past years the G7 has taken action to strengthen the
global economy, save 27 million lives from Aids, Tuberculosis and Malaria and
supported the education of millions of children in the poorest countries. In
2016 its members led the way in helping secure the historic Paris Climate
Agreement to limit global emissions.
As well as the annual gathering of leaders, G7 ministers
meet to discuss shared challenges in areas such as global economics, health,
technology foreign policy and national security.
As the presidency holder, the UK will direct 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.
The Presidency is a unique opportunity for the UK to lead
the international recovery effort from the COVID-19 crisis. We will create an
agenda for the Presidency that tackles the biggest issues facing the world,
building a global coalition that delivers economic opportunities and growth,
while also protecting our planet.
Bringing such an important international event to Cornwall
is an incredible opportunity for our Duchy. This is something that Prime
Minister first discussed with us as local MPs back in April 2020, so there has
been a huge degree of planning and preparation gone into it already to ensure
it goes as well as it can possibly go.
This is likely to be the first global in-person event of
this kind since the pandemic and I am very grateful to the Prime Minister for
choosing to host this event in our Duchy, which shows we are very much at the
heart of the government’s levelling up agenda.
It will really put Cornwall front and centre at a pivotal
moment in the world’s history and will be an incredible opportunity to showcase
all Cornwall has to offer the world, not only our stunning natural beauty, but
also our unique heritage and culture, our world class food and drink and our
world leading creativity and innovation.
For a start, Visit Cornwall estimates that the Summit will
bring over £50m of economic growth to Cornwall - £24m during the event itself,
and over £26m of future growth in the international tourist market over the
next five years. A real opportunity and a big boost for our economy at the time
we need it most.
I look forward to doing all I can to ensure that Cornwall
shines at this historic event and that the heads of state who visit return to
their countries at its conclusion having seen what a wonderful place Cornwall
is to live, work and grow up in.
