Photographs of day two visiting the Holy See
Baroness Warsi and the delegation meeting His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI
Feb 16
Feb 15
Photographs of day one visiting the Holy See
The Delegation of Ministers from the Government of the United Kingdom pictured in St Peter’s Square, marking the official start of a two day visit to the Holy See. The Most Rev Vincent Nichols, Archbishop of Westminster, accompanied the Delegation.
Baroness Warsi pictured during her speech, delivered to the Holy See on the subject of the place of religion in modern political discourse.
Baroness Warsi’s address to students and diplomats of the Pontifical Ecclesiastical Academy was the first element of the UK Ministerial Delegation’s visit to the Holy See.
Copyright UK in Holy See
Feb 14
Sayeeda Warsi: Speech to the Pontifical Ecclesiastical Academy, Vatican City
Check against delivery
INTRODUCTION
Your Eminences. Excellencies. Reverend Fathers. Colleagues, Ladies and Gentlemen.
It is an immense honour for me to stand here today…
…in what is, for more than a billion people, the spiritual capital of the world.
And it is a further privilege to lead the largest ever ministerial delegation from the United Kingdom to the Holy See.
To celebrate the relationship between our two states:
The oldest formal diplomatic relationship in my country’s history.
…and today, one of the strongest.
Our diplomatic relationship began here in 1479, only a short distance from where we now stand.
For reasons we all know too well, we broke diplomatic relations…
…only to restore them during the First World War.
This year marks 30 years since full diplomatic relations were re-established between us.
We want to build upon our bond, to show it to the rest of the world, and to let it inspire others.
Because our relationship enables us to act together in the name of the common good:
To promote democracy.
To fight for human rights.
To encourage fair, responsible trade.
To tackle climate change.
And to help build stable nations.
We are grateful for the superb work our Ambassador Nigel Baker is doing here…
…building on the tremendous tenure of his predecessor Francis Campbell.
The UK recognises that, as the smallest state in the world, the Holy See has the widest global reach.
It therefore seems inevitable that the UK with its global reach and historic and current interests should nurture, strengthen and promote our relationship.
The areas upon which, by working together, we can achieve tangible, practical outcomes are both so vast and so important that they, in many ways, contextualise our differences.
And I believe the strength of our relationship can give tremendous hope and inspiration to others across the world.
Feb 14
Sayeeda Warsi: We stand side by side with the Pope in fighting for faith
Published in The Telegraph, Tuesday 14th February 2012
Today I have the honour of leading the largest ministerial delegation from the United Kingdom to the Vatican – our reciprocal visit following the momentous State Visit of His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI in September 2010.
We will be celebrating the decision Margaret Thatcher took 30 years ago to restore full diplomatic relations between our countries. The relationship between the UK and the Holy See is our oldest diplomatic relationship, first established in 1479. And today, thanks to the great success of the Pope’s visit, it is one of the strongest too.
But this trip is about more than a Valentine’s Day “love in” with our Catholic neighbours. This is about recognising the deep and intrinsic role of faith here in Britain and overseas. For a number of years I have been saying that we need to have a better understanding of faith in our country. Why? Because I profoundly believe that faith has a vital and important role to play in modern society. But mistakenly, faith has been neglected, undermined – and yes, even attacked – by governments in recent years.
Feb 10
Chairman visits Richmond and Hayes
Meeting Brunel University students in Hayes
A warm welcome awaited Sayeeda in Richmond as she continued her Chairman’s tour on Thursday.
Activists in Richmond gathered to greet her at her first stop – a Q&A for members with Zac Goldsmith MP. Sayeeda addressed concerns from local issues to Syria.
After a morning of canvassing, Sayeeda continued to Twickenham to meet local press.
In an interview with the Surrey Comet she lent her support to Boris Johnson before this summer’s elections for London Mayor and urged Lib Dem voters opposed to Ken Livingstone to vote Tory in May.
“It’s not my job to go easy on the Lib Dems. It’s my job to go out and fight every seat,” she said.
Later she was welcomed by activists in Hayes, including a group of Brunel students who asked questions on cabinet relations.
Campaigning with Zac Goldsmith MP
Feb 6
The Inventory: Sayeeda Warsi
Published in the Financial Times, Saturday 4th February
By Hester Lacey
Sayeeda Warsi, 40, co-chair of the Conservative party and minister without portfolio, is the first female Muslim to serve as a minister in a British government. She was made a life peeress in 2007.
What was your earliest ambition?
To be one of the Famous Five; free in a place without too many rules.
Public school or state school? University or straight into work?
Birkdale High School; Dewsbury College and then Leeds university. My education was a privilege. A lot of Asian girls had traditional parents, and had to fight to stay at school, while my parents were very encouraging.
Who was or still is your mentor?
A law teacher at college called Andrea. Her approach was life-changing. Dad, who’s always had a get-up-and-go approach. In terms of politics, Michael Howard.
How physically fit are you?
More than I was six months ago. I could run for two minutes back then, now I can run for 30.
Ambition or talent: which matters more to success?
Success comes because people are in the right place at the right time.
Have you ever taken an IQ test?
Not that I’m aware of.
How politically committed are you?
Right now, my political commitment is my life.
Jan 30
Regional tour – Crawley & Sutton
- Baroness Warsi and Henry Smith MP meet the Crawley News
On Thursday Sayeeda was back on the campaign trail in Crawley.
She was welcomed by the town’s MP Henry Smith MP and Association Chairman Liam Marshall-Ascough before meeting with the local press to discuss her visit.
Sayeeda was shown around Sussex House, a new development site in the town centre which promises to bring hundreds of jobs to the area, before a behind the scenes tour of the town’s Hawth Theatre.
Moving on to Sutton, Sayeeda met up with Conservatives out campaigning for Worcester Park by-election candidate Simon Densley, who joined Sayeeda for a discussion with local businesspeople.
Sayeeda then boarded the train back to London to attend the opening of the Hajj exhibition at the British Museum.
Jan 30
Regional Tour – Yorkshire
Today Sayeeda kicked off 2012’s tour programme with a day of visits in Yorkshire.
Sayeeda with Whetley Hill Care Centre staff and Conservative councillors
Her first stop was Outwood Grange Academy in Wakefield, where a group of students put their questions to Sayeeda during an event that is part of the Speakers for Schools programme.
After a tour of the school Sayeeda travelled to Bradford, where she was warmly received at the town hall by the Conservative group on the Council, led by Councillor Glen Miller.
Following lunch and a discussion of issues facing the Conservatives in Bradford, the group made their way to Seabrook Crisp factory, a family run business (and one of Sayeeda’s favourite childhood snacks!)
Later in the afternoon Sayeeda went on to meet with the community at Whetley Hill, an adult social care facility in the area which has been running for thirty-five years. She was impressed by the facilities and dedication of the staff, and was delighted to hear later that day that Labour-led Bradford Council had reconsidered their decision to cut the services offered by the centre.
After a drop in at the Bradford Telegraph and Argus, Sayeeda left for Ripponden, where she was guest of honour at Calder Valley Conservative reception for Craig Whittaker MP.
Jan 16
Sayeeda Warsi: Baroness of the Punjab
Published in The Daily Telegraph, Monday 16th January
By Peter Oborne
As the traumatic events of the weekend show all too vividly, Pakistan is one of the most turbulent and unstable countries in the world, and a diplomatic nightmare.
But Britain has a secret weapon – Sayeeda Warsi. With her Punjabi heritage, local languages and easy manner, the Conservative Party chairman can reach parts of the Pakistan political system that other government ministers cannot.
As I witnessed at first hand last week, David Cameron has licensed Baroness Warsi to operate as Britain’s unofficial envoy. The Tory chairman flew into a first-rate crisis set off by the potentially deadly stand-off between government and military. The defence secretary had just been fired.
Within hours she was at the Pakistan foreign office for a meeting lasting well over an hour with Pakistan’s newly promoted – and extremely beautiful – foreign secretary, Hinna Rabbani Khar. Just 34 years old, the University of Massachusetts-educated Khar is the latest star phenomenon to hit the Islamabad scene and is suddenly being tipped as a potential successor to Asif Ali Zardari, should the government fall this week.
Jan 2
Sayeeda Warsi in The Independent
Lib Dem president accused of ‘slagging off the coalition’
Published in The Independent, 1st Jan 2012
By Matt Chorley
The Tory party chairwoman, Baroness Warsi, has accused her Liberal Democrat counterpart of treating the coalition like “a bad episode of Come Dine with Me” by enjoying the good things on offer and “then slagging it off afterwards”.
