Founder’s Day - The 2026 Sion College Lecture: Democracy: It's not a spectator sport

Speaker: Baroness Stuart of Edgbaston

Gislea Stuart - Baroness Stuart of Edgbaston became the First Civil Service Commissioner in March 2022. She is the independent Civil Service Regulator, appointed by HM the King for a five-year term. She and her fellow Commissioners ensure that entry into the civil service is based on merit, following open and fair competition. They also advise on Business Appointment Rules for those leaving the civil service and are the final appeal body for complaints under the Civil Service Code.

Gisela was the Member of Parliament for Birmingham Edgbaston for 20 years. She served as a Health Minister in the first Blair administration as well as serving on the Defence, Foreign Affairs and  Intelligence and Security Committees. She was the chair of Vote Leave and joined the House of Lords as a non-affiliated Crossbencher in 2020.

Gisela will speak about the challenge faced by those who seek elected office. They have to strike a balance between being popular without being populist and she will reflect that voters have to take their share of responsibility for democracy to work.

Online application and payment is available for this event. To apply and pay online you will first need to register if you haven't done so already. Once the Administrator has approved your registration, you will be able to log in and access the online application/payment. You will only need to register once, and for any applications for subsequent events you will need only to log in.

Click here, once you have logged in, to access the online application and payment form.