Europe, the next 50 years a conference at Goodwood House     held on Wednesday 28 March 2007 to celebrate 50 years since the signing of the Treaty of Rome

At the Goodwood House conference on 28 March 130 members and guests of the Sussex Branch of the European Movement celebrated the fiftieth anniversary of the birth of the EU.  After a welcome by the Duke of Richmond, organiser Stephen Quigley introduced Baroness Shirley Williams who looked back over fifty years of peace and increasing prosperity in Europe. Reijo Kemppinen, the European Commission’s London representative, then reviewed some of the key issues the member states now needed to resolve together – and the particular role for the UK.

Local speakers gave presentations on three large urban regeneration projects in Sussex part-funded by the EU, followed after lunch by break-out groups discussing current hot topics varying from Turkey’s membership, to migration and relations with the US.   In these discussions young students from Sussex schools, many of them West Sussex "europeers" took on an important rôle and some presented summaries of the discussions. The final contributions looked forward to the next fifty years of European co-operation and an increasingly positive European influence worldwide.

Between events throughout the day students from the creative arts faculty of Chichester High School for Girls gave dance, drama and art presentations on European themes.