Last month, member and stakeholder delegates gathered at the Wyboston Lakes conference centre in Bedfordshire for the 9th annual ABI Insurance Tax Convention. Due to the refurbishment of our usual venue, this was the first such event not held in Brighton and consequently delegates enjoyed a new location to the North of London.
In total 142 registered delegates, 37 speakers and a handful of ABI colleagues met for a day of technical sessions and networking, the majority of delegates having arrived the previous evening to get settled.
While some changes to the usual programme arose from the change of venue and location, some emerged from the blue at short notice – however, while losing a keynote speaker and the chair of the convention in the preceding week to Covid infection were changes our experienced Events and Tax teams could readily absorb, others required urgent decisions.
In the months of planning for the event and the many hours working with speakers, our partners at the Big Four and our commercial partners Pro-Tax recruitment, one eventuality definitely not anticipated was that the sad passing of HM Queen Elizabeth II would give rise to a period of mourning ending with the state funeral and day of national holiday on Monday 19th. Ultimately it was decided to go ahead with the event on the following day. It was a balanced decision vindicated by the warm response of our member and partner delegates, as well as by the speakers who had generously given of their time and expertise.
Further networking over breakfast was followed by keynote speaker Tom Clougherty, Head of Tax at the Centre for Policy Studies, who gave an interesting assessment of the UK economic and political situation. The rest of the day featured plenary and breakout sessions on subjects as varied as Indirect Tax, M&A, IFRS17, cross-border tax disputes and US tax changes. One issue which recurred throughout the day was the UK’s implementation of Pillar II of the OECD International Framework, and we were joined at Wyboston Lakes by HMRC insurance policy representatives, who spoke at a consultation update panel session. It is doubtless a topic to which we will return.
The tax disputes session was subtitled ‘navigating an uncertain landscape’, and this was a theme underlying all aspects of the event, which is the second-biggest of the ABI calendar. While everyone has their own view, overall the feedback of members on the new venue and scheduling was positive. Dealing with an uncertain environment was a key thread running through the day’s sessions - and found an echo in this demonstration that adaptation and evolution is key to longevity and making such events work for our membership.