Press release

Alun Cairns to host Commonwealth Big Lunch

Welsh Secretary to be joined by extreme environment athlete Richard Parks for Cardiff reception on Commonwealth Day

Secretary of State for Wales Alun Cairns will be joined by endurance athlete Richard Parks and representatives from youth, faith, diaspora and sport groups in Wales at a celebration of the global relationships forged by the Commonwealth when he hosts a Commonwealth Big Lunch in Cardiff Bay later today (12 March).

The Commonwealth Big Lunches, launched in partnership with the Eden Project, will take place across the Commonwealth between Commonwealth Day (12 March) and 22 April. The initiative is part of the official celebrations leading up to the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in London next month.

Alun Cairns will celebrate the international and local connections created by the Commonwealth at a Big Lunch event at Caspian Point and encourage people to get together to celebrate their Commonwealth connections right across Wales.

Secretary of State for Wales Alun Cairns said:

The Commonwealth is a unique family of nations made up of people bound by shared histories and values.

To celebrate these bonds and our diversity, I’m delighted that the Office of the Secretary of State for Wales is hosting a Commonwealth Big Lunch right here in Wales, bringing members of our local communities together to celebrate what we have in common, as well as recognising the unique and diverse nature of the Commonwealth.

I’m looking forward to seeing every part of Wales come together to cement friendships, share food and fun with the people they live alongside at their own Commonwealth Big Lunch events between now and April. They offer wonderful opportunities for people of all ages to bring our great Commonwealth family alive in new ways as we work towards a common future – a future I’m incredibly hopeful for and the role Wales has to play in it.

The Commonwealth summit, held between 16-20 April, will see leaders from across 53 Commonwealth countries coming together in London and Windsor to address shared global challenges and discuss how to create a better future.

With the theme of ‘Towards a Common Future,’ leaders will focus on delivering a more prosperous, secure, sustainable and fairer future for all Commonwealth citizens.

ENDS

  • To find out more about the Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting, click here
Published 12 March 2018