Conservative Party Conference 2023

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Bright Blue is delighted to announce our fringe event programme at the 2023 Conservative Party Conference. We are running 18 events with over 100 speakers.

You can join us in person in Manchester, or watch virtually. A Conservative Party Conference pass will be needed to access our events, in-person or digitally, inside the secure zone, which you can register for here. 

Livestreams of all of our events inside the secure zone will be available to watch via the Conservative Party Conference virtual platform. Recordings of all our events will be available on our YouTube channel after the conference.

If you would like more information about our events at Conservative Party Conference 2023, please get in touch with our Event and Operations Manager, Liam Bruce.

Daylight robbery? Tackling economic crime in the UK

Sunday 1st October 2023, 15:00 – 16:00
Central Room 6, MCCC, Manchester
Inside the secure zone

You can watch the recording here.

  • The Rt Hon Tom Tugendhat MP, Minister for Security
  • John Penrose MP, Former UK PM’s Anti-Corruption Champion
  • Lucy Nash, Bureau of Investigative Journalism
  • Daniel Bruce, Chief Executive, Transparency International
  • Diane Banks, Non-Executive Director, Bright Blue (Chair)

Lift off: accelerating levelling up in the 2020s

Sunday 1st October 2023, 17:00 – 18:00
Central Room 6, MCCC, Manchester
Inside the secure zone

You can watch the recording here.

  • Dehenna Davison MP, Former Minister for Levelling Up
  • Jo Gideon MP, Vice-Chair, APPG for ‘Left Behind’ Neighbourhoods
  • Chris Smyth, Whitehall Editor, The Times
  • Cllr James Jamieson, Leader of the LGA Conservative Group
  • Tom Pope, Deputy Chief Economist, Institute for Government
  • Ailbhe McNabola, Director of Policy and Communications, Power to Change
  • Zoe Billingham, Director, IPPR North
  • Alexandra Jezeph, Non-Executive Director, Bright Blue (Chair)

Reaching out, levelling up? How Conservatives can foster social cohesion

Sunday 1st October 2023, 19:00 – 20:00
Central Room 6, MCCC, Manchester
Inside the secure zone

You can watch the recording here.

  • Stuart Andrew MP, Minister for Civil Society (invited)
  • Samuel Kasumu, Former Special Adviser to No.10 for Local Communities
  • Tim Montgomerie, Founder, ConservativeHome
  • David Goodhart, Author, The Road to Somewhere
  • Luke Tryl, Director, More in Common UK
  • Jon Knight, Chief Executive, Together Coalition
  • Max Anderson, Associate Fellow, Bright Blue (Chair)

Drink Tank: The future of the UK in Europe

Sunday 1st October 2023, 20:30 – 22:30
Stanley Suite, Midland
Inside the secure zone

  • Andy Street, Mayor of the West Midlands
  • The Rt Hon David Gauke, Former Secretary of State for Justice
  • Anand Menon, Director, UK in a Changing Europe
  • Ryan Shorthouse, Executive Chair, Bright Blue (Chair)

Criminally deprived? How the cost of living is affecting youth crime 

Monday 2nd October 2023, 10:00 – 11:00
Central Room 6, MCCC, Manchester
Inside the secure zone

  • James Daly MP, Member, House of Commons Justice Committee,
  • Susan Hall AM, Conservative Mayoral Candidate for London
  • Jon Yates, Chief Executive, Youth Endowment Fund
  • Pavan Dhaliwal, Chief Executive, Revolving Doors
  • Diane Banks, Non-Executive Director, Bright Blue (Chair)

Restoring trust and confidence between businesses and consumers in essential markets

Monday 2nd October 2023, 12:00 – 13:00
Central Room 6, MCCC, Manchester
Inside the secure zone

You can watch the recording here.

  • Dr Luke Evans MP, PPS to the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero
  • Melissa Lawford, Economics Correspondent, The Times
  • Laura Sandys OBE, Former Chair, UK Government’s Energy Digitalisation Taskforce
  • Daisy Powell-Chandler, Head of Energy and Environment Practice, Public First
  • Guy Newey, Chief Executive, Energy Systems Catapult
  • Ed Dodman, Chief Ombudsman, Energy Ombudsman
  • Ryan Shorthouse, Executive Chair, Bright Blue (Chair)

Innovation and inclusivity? The changing world of work

Monday 2nd October 2023, 13:30 – 15:00
By invitation only. If you would like to attend, please email liam@brightblue.org.uk

  • George Freeman MP, Minister for Science, Research and Innovation (invited)
  • The Rt Hon Chloe Smith MP, Former Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology
  • Anna Thomas, Chief Executive, Institue for the Future of Work
  • Anna Bradley, Chair, SRA
  • Ryan Shorthouse, Executive Chair, Bright Blue (Chair)

Energy secured? The UK’s energy market on the road to net zero

Monday 2nd October 2023, 14:00 – 15:00
Central Room 6, MCCC, Manchester
Inside the secure zone

You can watch the recording here.

  • Andrew Bowie MP, Minister for Nuclear and Networks
  • Sam Richards, Director, Britain Remade
  • Emma Pinchbeck, Chief Executive, Energy UK
  • Nick Molho, Head of Climate Policy, Aviva Investors
  • Patrick English, Associate Director, YouGov
  • Simon Virley, Head of Energy and Natural Resources, KPMG
  • Alexandra Jezeph, Non-Executive Director, Bright Blue (Chair)

Going private: reforming England’s rental market

Monday 2nd October 2023, 16:00 – 17:00
Central Room 6, MCCC, Manchester
Inside the secure zone

You can watch the recording here.

  • Rachel Maclean MP, Minister for Housing
  • David Simmonds CBE MP, Chair, APPG on Housing and Planning
  • Liam Halligan, Economics and Business Editor, GB News
  • Zoe Grunewald, Policy and Politics reporter, New Statesman
  • Ben Beadle, Chief Executive, NRLA
  • Alexandra Jezeph, Non-Executive Director, Bright Blue (Chair)

Flexibility first? Boosting labour market participation

Monday 2nd October 2023, 18:00 – 19:00
Central Room 6, MCCC, Manchester
Inside the secure zone

You can watch the recording here.

  • Matt Warman MP, Chair, Future of Work APPG
  • Helen Bradbury, Chief People Officer, E.ON
  • Neil Carberry, Chief Executive, Recruitment and Employment Confederation
  • Claire McCartney, Senior Policy Adviser, The Charted Institute of Personal and Development
  • Ryan Shorthouse, Executive Chair, Bright Blue (Chair)

The rural road to net-zero: decarbonising rural homes and businesses

Monday 2nd October 2023, 21:00 – 23:00
By invitation only. If you would like to attend, please email liam@brightblue.org.uk

  • Rebecca Pow MP, Minister for Environmental Quality and Resilience
  • Roger Mortlock, CEO, CPRE
  • Mark Tufnell, President, CLA
  • Ryan Shorthouse, Executive Chair, Bright Blue (Chair)

Building, maintaining and restoring consumer trust in the energy market

Tuesday 3rd October 2023, 08:00 – 09:00
By invitation only. If you would like to attend, please email liam@brightblue.org.uk

  • The Rt Hon Vicky Ford MP, Member, Energy Security and Net Zero Select Committee
  • The Rt Hon Charles Hendry, Former Minister for Energy
  • Matt Vickers, Chief Executive, Trust Alliance Group
  • Ryan Shorthouse, Executive Chair, Bright Blue (Chair)

Shifting gears? The future of automated vehicles

Tuesday 3rd October 2023, 10:00 – 11:00
Exchange 2 – 3, MCCC, Manchester
Inside the secure zone

You can watch the recording here.

  • Rt Hon Chris Grayling MP, Former Secretary of State of Transport
  • Ben Everitt MP, Member, Levelling Up, Housing and Communities Select Committee
  • Nicholas Hellen, Transport Editor, Sunday Times
  • Laura Shoaf CBE, Chief Executive, West Midlands Combined Authority
  • Professor John McDermid, Professor of Software Engineering, University of York
  • Alexandra Hammond-Chambers-Borgnis, Director of Underwriting for Retail, Allianz Personal
  • Will Prescott, Researcher, Bright Blue (Chair)

Safer Surfing: Reducing cyber crime

Tuesday 3rd October 2023, 10:30 – 11:30
Churchill Theatre, Midland Hotel
Inside the secure zone

  • The Rt Hon Lord Vaizey, Former Minister for Culture and the Digital Economy
  • Damian Collins MP, Former Minister for Tech and the Digital Economy
  • Markos Zachariadis, Chair of Financial Technology, University of Manchester
  • Julia Linehan, CEO, Digital Voice
  • Alistair Law, Policy Director, Sky
  • Ian Moss, Partner, Draft Council
  • Ryan Shorthouse, Executive Chair, Bright Blue (Chair)

Building up? How housing can bolster British prosperity

Tuesday 3rd October 2023, 12:00 – 13:00
Exchange 2 – 3, MCCC, Manchester
Inside the secure zone

You can watch the recording here.

  • Ben Everitt MP, Chair, Housing Market and Housing Delivery APPG
  • Cllr Jane MacBean, Advisory Board Member, Conservative Environment Network
  • Nicholas Boys Smith, Founding Director, Create Streets
  • Bartek Staniszewski, Senior Researcher, Bright Blue
  • Geeta Nanda OBE, Chief Executive, Metropolitan Thames Valley Housing
  • Paul Fiddaman, Chief Executive, Karbon Homes
  • Kate Henderson, Chief Executive, National Housing Federation
  • Vicky Spratt, Housing Editor, i Paper (Chair)

Spending, saving, surviving: A conservative plan to support under-pressure households

Tuesday 3rd October 2023, 14:00 – 15:00
Exchange 2 – 3, MCCC, Manchester
Inside the secure zone

You can watch the recording here.

  • The Rt Hon John Glen MP, Chief Secretary to the Treasury
  • Deven Ghelani, Director, Policy in Practice
  • Sacha Romanovitch, CEO, Fair4AllFinance
  • Richard Lane, Director of External Affairs, StepChange
  • Ryan Shorthouse, Executive Chair, Bright Blue (Chair)

Can fossil fuel companies play a role in the energy transition?

Tuesday 3rd October 2023, 16:00 – 17:00
Exchange 2 – 3, MCCC, Manchester
Inside the secure zone

You can watch the recording here.

  • Jerome Mayhew MP, Vice-Chair, APPG for Environment
  • Peter Aldous MP, Chair, APPG for British Offshore Oil and Gas Industry
  • Sam Hall, Director, Conservative Environment Network
  • Andrew Kulpecz, General Manager of UK Upstream, Chevron Britain Ltd
  • Ryan Shorthouse, Executive Chair, Bright Blue (Chair)

Family-friendly Britain? Removing barriers to help families get on

Tuesday 3rd October 2023, 18:00 – 19:00
Exchange 2 – 3, MCCC, Manchester
Inside the secure zone

You can watch the recording here.

  • Laura Farris MP, Chair, Access to Justice APPG
  • Ryan Shorthouse, Executive Chair, Bright Blue
  • Luke Robert Black, Chairman, LGBT+ Conservatives
  • Phoebe Arslanagic-Wakefield, Co-Founder and Director, BOOM
  • Dan Paskins, Director of UK Impact, Save the Children UK
  • Victoria Benson, CEO, Gingerbread
  • Kiran Stacey, Political Correspondent, The Guardian (Chair)

Labour Party Conference 2023

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Bright Blue is delighted to announce our fringe event programme at the 2023 Labour Party Conference.

You can join us in-person in Liverpool. No RSVP is required and all our events will be taking place outside the secure zone. Therefore, you will not need a conference pass to attend.

If you would like more information about our events at Labour Party Conference 2023, please contact our Events and Operations Manager Liam Bruce.

Can fossil fuel companies play a role in the energy transition?

Monday 9th October, 10:30am – 11:30am
Rooms 1&2, Premier Inn Liverpool Albert Dock
(Outside the secure zone)

  • The Rt Hon Ed Miliband MP, Shadow Secretary of State for Climate Change and Net Zero (invited)
  • Andy Prendergast, National Secretary, GMB Union
  • Steph Spyro, Environment Editor and Political Correspondent, The Daily Express
  • David Whitehouse, CEO, Offshore Energies UK
  • Andrew Kulpecz, General Manager of UK Upstream, Chevron Corporation
  • Ryan Shorthouse, Executive Chair, Bright Blue (Chair)

Rebooting levelling up for the next general election

Tuesday 10th October, 10:00am – 11:30am
IPPR Fringe Zone, Education Area 3, Museum of Liverpool
(Outside the secure zone)

  • Paula Barker MP, Shadow Minister for Devolution and the English Regions
  • Steve Rotherham, Metro Mayor of the Liverpool City Region
  • Jen Williams, Northern Correspondent, Finacial Times
  • Ryan Shorthouse, Executive Chair, Bright Blue
  • Ailbhe McNabola, Director of Policy and Communications, Power to Change
  • Zoë Billingham, Director, IPPR North (Chair)

Liberal Democrat Party Conference 2023

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Bright Blue is delighted to announce our fringe event programme at the 2023 Liberal Democrat Party Conference.

You can join us in-person in Bournemouth. As all our events will be held outside the secure zone, you won’t need a conference pass to attend. No need to RSVP; all are welcome to just turn up!

If you would like more information about our events at the Liberal Democrat Party Conference 2023, please contact our Events and Operations Manager Liam Bruce.

Can fossil fuel companies play a role in the energy transition?

Monday 25th September, 18:15pm – 19:15pm
Sandbanks Room, Highcliff Marriot Hotel
(Outside the secure zone)

  • Lord Teverson, Liberal Democrats Spokesperson on Climate Change
  • Duncan Brack, Former Special Adviser to the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change
  • Jenny Stanning, External Relations Director, Offshore Energies UK
  • Emily Gosden, Energy Editor, The Times (invited)
  • Andrew Kulpecz, General Manager of UK Upstream, Chevron Corporation
  • Ryan Shorthouse, Executive Chair, Bright Blue (Chair)