Coalition Hosts Global Britain Tent at the Big Tent Ideas Festival 2019

Author: Alex Zur-Clark

The Coalition were thrilled to return to the Big Tent Ideas Festival last month with speakers including former Secretary of State for Defence Penny Mordaunt MP, Chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee Tom Tugendhat MP and former Defence Minister Tobias Ellwood MP joining us for a day debating how Britain can be a force for good in the world in the Global Britain Tent.

Thousands of guests descended upon Mudchute Farm in the Isle of Dogs to watch leaders from across politics and civil society tackle thorny topics in the sun. International trade, the role of tech and climate change were all up for grabs.

Brexit provided the backdrop for debate on Britain’s future role in the world, with speakers debating what the UK’s development, diplomacy and defence priorities should be. Competition and collaboration with rising powers such as China loomed large in discussions, with Tobias Ellwood calling for the UK to do more to respond to China’s Belt & Road initiative. There was much discussion of how the UK could leverage its historic prestige with the Commonwealth to drive prosperity for our allies overseas and make a reality of Global Britain. 

During our panel discussion on how Britain can build trade post-Brexit, Trade Minister Mark Garnier highlighted the vital soft-power of the Department for International Development (DFID) in building trusting partnerships with emerging economies overseas, saying “We need to work together quite collaboratively. DFID needs to be working to ensure we are building the important institutions that support trade in developing countries, as well as the international rules-based order."

Other speakers highlighted the important intersection between trade and aid, pointing out that the UK’s aid recipients of today will become Britain’s trade partners of tomorrow. Tim Morris, former British Ambassador to South Sudan, said “By 2050, one person in four will be an African. So we need to align our development and diplomacy decisions with that… How aid helps trade and investment is a crucial part of that."

At the close of the day, Penny Mordaunt MP joined journalist Dan Hodges in conversation to reflect fondly on her time as Secretary of State, first for International Development and then for Defence. Speaking at the event, Mordaunt drew attention to how the UK’s leadership in development captures more than just British leadership in humanitarian crises - “It’s not just our aid, it’s also with our technical expertise that the UK helps other countries around the world.”