You must go back to a Friday afternoon in the constituency in late February when Chamber Director, Ian Noble and MP, Mims Davies shared a table at the Coffee Barn café in Uckfield, when we thought it might be a good idea to hold a Parliamentary Dinner for Chamber members.
During her first term of office in the newly formed constituency of East Grinstead, Uckfield and the Villages, Mims was booked in to speak at the Uckfield Chamber AGM later in March and mentioned then, that an evening in Westminster was in the planning.
And so, the day arrived: Wednesday 2 July with 34 guests occupying Parliamentary Dining Room A to capacity. The formality at the Visitors’ entrance is naturally a thorough affair with airport style security, with member names ticked off, on arrival. Following the guided walkway, saw guests enter the grand, Westminster Hall with plenty of space to meet fellow members.
Mims was keen for early arrivals to have the opportunity to meet the Shadow Chancellor, Mel Stride MP who chatted with a small number before the main group arrived. A member of Mims’ team was left at the entrance of the Hall to greet any late comers as most of our party met up and took in the splendour of the building, where the late Queen lay in state ahead of her funeral in 2022.
As we made our way towards our private dining room, we took the opportunity of asking a passer-by to take a group photograph, which was a challenge to get such a large group to smile for a mobile device!
It was a warm evening, and our dining room was compact albeit comfortable with a single long table where guests adhered to a preprepared seating plan. Mims took centre spot and once everyone had grabbed a pre-dinner drink took time, before dinner to explain some of the demands of an opposition front bench MP, including highlights of her day which included a celebration of Women in Parliament.
Dinner was served at 7.45pm with a starter of Coronation Chicken or Star anise & orange compressed watermelon, followed by a main of Pan-fried ‘Gressingham’ duck supreme or Sundried cherry tomato, red kidney bean, sweet potato panko cake. A dessert of Eton Mess with coffee and petit fours, beautifully presented in a House of Commons gift box, concluded the culinary delights. Without question, the service was simply first class and everything that one would expect from such a prestigious establishment.
Our MP worked tirelessly throughout the evening as Mims hosted small group tours of the House of Commons in between courses and following dinner. Absolutely fascinating to walk though the hall with the familiar green benches so often seen on our TV screens. We think that Mims has an excellent future career opportunity as a tour guide. Witty, informative and engaging was how some described their tours of the House!
The cost of attending such an event is not insignificant and so while we’d be pleased to organise another similar event going forward, it maybe a while yet. Unquestionably, the feedback across social media following the evening was hugely positive.
Mims Davies (MP for East Grinstead, Uckfield and the Villages) is the 380th woman to be elected to the House of Commons and co-chairs the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Women in Parliament. She is also the Shadow Minister for Women and Wales.