Builders Merchants Journal – BMJ Publishing to Builders Merchants and the UK merchanting industry for more than 95 years
Dame Penny Mordaunt DBE has been confirmed as a keynote speaker at the BMF All Industry Conference 2027 in Marrakech in June.
Government once treated trade, defence and development as separate issues. They are now closely linked, and Mordaunt is among the few who have overseen all three.
A Royal Navy Reservist for 10 years, Mordaunt held nine ministerial roles across four Cabinet posts during her 14 years as an MP including being the only woman to have served as both Defence Secretary and Minister for the Armed Forces.
Since leaving Parliament in 2024, she was made a Dame in the King’s Birthday Honours 2025, and has chaired the Coalition for Global Prosperity; advocating the transatlantic partnership and treating development and defence as pillars of national resilience, not discretionary spending.
BMF executive chairman, John Newcomb, says: “The diversity of posts Penny has held at the heart of government gives her a unique insight and a deep understanding of what makes this country tick. She has an inside track on how trade policy, sanctions architecture and security commitments are made, and what changes when an election cycle turns over.”
“Regular attendees will know that Penny follows in the footsteps of other political heavyweight speakers including Michael Portillo (2013), Alistair Campbell (2015), Paddy Ashdown (2017), John Prescott (2019), John Bercow (2021), Alan Johnson (2023) and Harriet Harman (2025). Once again, this session promises to be a highlight of our Conference.”
