Annual House of Lords Dinner
We were delighted to jointly sponsor the Annual House of Lords Dinner which was held in the wonderful venue of The Cholmondeley Rooms at the Houses of Parliament overlooking the bustling River Thames.
At 7.00pm we arrived and welcomed by Baroness Hooper, Lord Hacking and the inimitable Amir Ali, CCUA President.
With refreshments in hand we wandered through the exquisitely appointed dining room in the permanent marquee, to the veranda to meet old friends and colleagues. Whilst sipping champagne at the reception a number of Thames River Cruisers glided by, but they were probably in awe of the group of delegates of the CCUA chatting happily in the shadow of the Houses of Parliament.
With an outside temperature of 28 degrees and the sun was still high in the sky, it vindicated the wise decision to hold the annual event in June rather than March, when the Veranda feels quite fresh to say the least. All guests were dressed for the occasion and the formalities observed during reception before being called to dinner by the speaker.
Lord Hacking opened the dinner with an amusing anecdote on a previously delivered Grace, and the waiting staff snapped to attention confidently serving the first of a three-course dinner, fit for a king.
Our President delivered an insightful and complimentary speech about his fond memories of a colleague, and friend whilst under clear instructions from Lord Hacking, finished in Ten Minutes flat, before introducing the Guest of Honour Lord Briggs.
Lord Briggs’ speech provided evidence (if it were needed) of the relevance of the industry and in particular the CCUA in assistance to his report on the Briggs Report. He spoke about the how artificial intelligence (AI) may soon become the norm in our Courts or that Judges may have to sound like Daleks.
The evening was again hailed a huge success with many happy guests making the most of their annual catch up, before drifting off into warm London air.
