REPORT: CONFERENCING & EVENTS
56 INSIDER March 2020 http://www.insider.co.uk
have as many of the senior corporate
leaders coming to town who will
never have visited Glasgow. It is an
opportunity to engage with them.
What could that mean for future
investment and growth in the city.”
As part of the preparations, a
Sustainable Glasgow Summit was
held in the city in late February.
Susan Aitken, leader of Glasgow
City Council said in the run-up to
the event: “It is clear to me that the
world needs its cities to take the
lead in delivering a transition to a
sustainable future. I am committed
to Glasgow playing its part in
providing leadership for that agenda
and ensuring that our people and
businesses are resilient in the face of
change and are supported to harness
the many opportunities which it will
bring.
“That is why we declared a climate
emergency last year and have been
working to develop a response to it.”
But while everyone is looking
forward to the potential business,
economic and reputational boosts
that COP26 could provide, at time
of writing the future of the event is
not assured.
The longer-term build-up to the
event has clearly not been plain
sailing. The UK Government
signalled a new approach to the
COP26 conference at the end of
January with the removal of Claire
Perry, the former energy minister as
COP 26 president.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson
appointed Alok Sharma as Business
Secretary and president of COP26
in February with a brief to get the
preparations back on track. Sharma
has a good reputation for the work
he did as Secretary of State for
International Development and he
was welcomed by several sources as
someone who could kickstart the
work of international diplomacy
needed to make COP26 a success.
Sharma has said: “2020 is a crucial
year for our planet and delivering
international climate action.”
But the change of person at the top
has not been the only issue dogging
the preparations for the event.
There have also been arguments
behind the scenes between the
Scottish Government and the UK
Government over the hire of facilities
and of the former’s role or lack of it
in the event. Hopefully these issues
can be sorted out and the threat of
moving the event away from Glasgow
and Scotland will not be realised.
Assuming COP26 does go ahead
it will provide challenges for business
people and those concerned with
economic development and policy.
Patrick, whose previous roles include
that of chief executive of the former
Scottish Enterprise Glasgow, the
economic development agency for
the city region points out the scale of
the issues that need to be confronted.
“It is also a hugely challenging issue
for those of us who have been in
economic development during our
careers. Some of the fundamental
assumptions about economic
development, about growth are being
challenged by many of those who
think the whole model has to change.
We are going to have debates about
the role of free trade, exporting,
importing, the role of tourism,
international travel and so forth. It
will be the first time I would have
said in its history that the Chamber
of Commerce will be getting
challenged on the core principle that
trade and travel is a good thing.”
And he highlights issues for the
wider business community. “The
business community as a whole is
thinking because it’s here what can
we do? What’s the role that we should
be playing? Which companies have
a role in solving problems, like sayIN FOCUS: Surgeons set up travel firm
A Scottish events and conference business has launched a travel
agency to arrange global travel for conference delegates.
Surgeons Quarter, the events wing of the The Royal College
of Surgeons of Edinburgh, launched Surgeons Quarter Travel in
February. It will organise flights, accommodation and transport for
surgeons carrying out examinational work on behalf of the Royal
College. The 48,000 delegates who attend the 2,000 events held
annually across Surgeons Quarter’s four venues can also arrange
travel with the agency.
Scott Mitchell, managing director of Surgeons Quarter, said:
“Many of our surgeons travel frequently for exams and educational
purposes. It makes sense to coordinate all of their travel and
accommodation in a more streamlined way.
“We also have tens of thousands of delegates visiting our venues
each year, so we can now provide a unique all-round service that
will include transport to Edinburgh accommodation and venues.”
Justin MacKenzie, who was guest services manager at the
Surgeons Quarter Hill Place Hotel, has transferred across to
manage Surgeons Quarter Travel. Caroline Massie and Lawrie King,
formerly of Key Travel, Edinburgh, have joined him.From left, Justin MacKenzie, Scott Mitchell, Mark McKenzie, Jackie HudsonCOP26 will be key to progressing
plans for a £200m development of
the Scottish Events Campus