Baroness Nicholson spoke yesterday at a debate in the House of Lords on the situation in the Middle East and North Africa, in which she noted the difficulties caused by the incursion into Iraq by ISIS. She continued, however, that prospects for both Iraqi and international business remain strong. The resilience of these prospects are exemplified by the upcoming IBBC November Conference, which will be attended by IBBC Members as well as businessmen and women from all over Iraq, many of whom have had to go to great lengths to secure visas in order to attend.

“UK visa procedures are a constant burden for business ties between the two countries,” she said. “I congratulate UKTI on the huge amount of work done in an impeccable way on this, but the burden put upon our Iraqi friends seeking to visit the UK for business or on holiday is still very high.” Baroness Nicholson called for attention to be given to these procedures to help deepen business and trade links between Iraq and the UK.

The Iraq Britain Business Council will be hosting conferences in Basrah, Baghdad, and Erbil in 2015.

The full transcript of Baroness Nicholson’s speech can be read here:

Lords Hansard for 30 October 2014