Senior figures from politics, local government and the business events sector will meet at Celtic Manor Resort to discuss how business events can support Wales’ economic growth, innovation and trade.
Hosted by The Celtic Collection and ICC Wales, in partnership with Newport City Council, the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for Events and The Business of Events, the roundtable on 30 October will bring together decision makers from across government and industry to identify opportunities to strengthen Wales’ position as a business events destination.
The discussion will be jointly chaired by Martin Rhodes MP, Chair of the APPG for Events, and Councillor Dimitri Batrouni, Leader of Newport City Council and Vice-Chair of Cardiff Capital Region. They will be joined by Julie Hammond, Chief Executive of The Celtic Collection; Craig Bingham, Managing Director of ICC Wales; and Robert Wright, Managing Director of The Business of Events.
Confirmed attendees include Beverly Owen, Chief Executive of Newport City Council; Brigadier Robert Aitken, Lord-Lieutenant of Gwent; Jon Bridge, Chief Executive of Cardiff Airport; Rachel Parker, Chief Executive of the Association of Event Venues; and Andrew Evans, Director at KLA.
Other confirmed participants include David Tremmil, Chair of beam; Kerrin MacPhie and Kay Dawes, representing the ICC Wales Board; Councillor James Clarke, Cabinet Member for Regeneration and Business Growth at Newport City Council; Jan Chaudhry, Strategic Projects Director at Transport for Wales; Anna Golden of the Event Industry Alliance; Tracy Halliwell, Special Advisor at Davies Tanner; James Latham of The Iceberg; Julie Shorrock of Hotel and Travel Solutions (HTS); Paul Black of The Business of Events and Jack Marczewski of Northstar Travel Media.
The discussion will focus on Wales’ competitiveness against other UK and European destinations, attracting higher-value national and international events, infrastructure priorities and opportunities for closer collaboration across government, destinations, venues and industry.
As well as generating visitor spend, business events support knowledge exchange, innovation and international trade. The roundtable will explore how Wales can build on these benefits and identify practical ways to support the sector’s future growth.
