Overcast, blustery and wet conditions set the scene for this year’s Throne Speech proceedings as invited guests complained the event should have been held indoors.

Works and Engineering crews were on site even as guests arrived, ensuring tents and equipment were secured while frantically attempting to dry off the wet seats.

Cabinet staff resorted to handing out paper towels to guests so they could wipe their own seats down.

While the pomp and ceremony was somewhat dampened by the bad weather, the fashion of the island’s politicians and lawmakers went some way to brightening up the day.

Many of the Progressive Labour Party ladies dressed along party lines, with a flurry of fancy green hats, dresses and accessories.

Kathy Lynn Simmons, the Attorney-General, chose to be bold, wearing a bright, pea-green hat with upturned brim, accented with swirls of ribbon, and a toned-down tweed-style jacket.

Government senators Adrianna Hodgson and Lindsay Simmons, and PLP MP Renée Ming wore green dresses. Ms Simmons paired her outfit daringly with patent black killer heels.

Tinée Furbert, a PLP MP who is always outgoing in her fashion choices, sported an oversized green bucket hat coupled with lavishly bejewelled kitten heels and strings of pearls.

However, it was the non-green attire of Kim Wilson, the Minister of Health, that stole the fashion show. She went all out with a wide-brimmed hat, tipped to the side and propped up from beneath with a navy blue bouquet. With it, she wore a sparkling overcoat and navy heels – an all-round sleek look.

Kristin Burt, the Premier’s wife, brought with her an elegance from a bygone era with her full-length pink, pleated satin dress, puffed at the shoulders and paired with navy hat and heels.

The ladies of the Opposition were comparatively subdued in their fashion choices.

Nicky Gurret, the One Bermuda Alliance candidate, bucked the trend, dressing head to toe in pillar-box red, right down to the lipstick.

Tina Evans Caines, who provided the pre-ceremony commentary, recalled how her mother, the late Dame Lois Browne Evans, relished the fashions of the annual ceremony, making sure always to attend looking “box fresh”.

But fashions aside, it was the work of our lawmakers that the guests were most concerned with.

Randy Horton, the retired former Speaker of the House, sat alone with a relaxed air about him. However, he voiced concern about the state of his country.

“The housing crisis is significant. It’s a significant challenge and we have the question of population growth. We need money coming into the economy to take care of these challenges. I hope something will be done about the high cost of electricity and also healthcare reform.”

A primary 6 class from St George’s Preparatory School was in attendance as part of their social studies unit.

Teacher Tamara Sukdeo, said: “How government acquires and uses its power is a part of our unit of study for social studies. We use the democratic process to elect our head prefects and they all have their roles.

“If they want to go about making changes at school, they have to come with a good platform.”