Central London Debating Society

2012-01-30T10:00:00.000-08:00

Motion: This House beliefs That Great Britain Will be better off Without Scotland
Location: Ye Old Cock Tavern, Fleet Street, EC4Y IAA
Time: 7:30
Date: Thursday the 2nd of February

Last week Scottish First Minister, Alex Salmond, announced the question he plans to ask his people within the next 2 years, the answer to which could spell the end of the 300 year union between England and Scotland.

A war of words has since broken out between the pro and anti independence camps with the latest dispute being over when the referendum should be called. However, as voters north of the border contemplate whether their lives will be better if Scotland leaves the United Kingdom, voters in the south will be asking themselves what's in it for them if they stay.

Does Scotland take its membership of the UK and all the benefits it affords to them for granted? Does the referendum provide an opportunity for the rest of Britain to negotiate a better deal with Scotland even if they opt to remain within the Union? Or is our relationship with Scotland vital to our well-being and our survival of the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression?

You decide.

Admission:

Admission is, as ever, totally free of charge. All are welcome, so if you know anyone who might be interested in this debate, do feel free to bring them along.
Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email us at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

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The CLDS Team

Next debate: Thursday 19th January - Should high speed rail be stopped?

2012-01-15T03:28:00.000-08:00

Motion: This House Would Stop High Speed Rail
Location: Ye Old Cock Tavern, Fleet Street, EC4Y IAA
Time: 7:30
Date: Thursday the 19th of January

Last Tuesday, the government formally announced its plans to implement a new national high speed rail network running from London to Birmingham, Leeds, Manchester, and the East Midlands. The first phase of the project, also known as HS2, will be to connect London to Birmingham by 2026.

All three of the UK's leading political parties support high speed rail, claiming that it will slash journey times, reduce congestion, and create jobs. However, the government's plans have prompted a backlash from opponents of HS2 who claim that it will "wreak untold environmental damage" and "will never pay for itself", while the public and the press remain as of yet unconvinced.

The first leg of the network will not be operational for at least another 14 years, but construction will begin much sooner, prompting more immediate concerns about the impact of HS2 on communities up and down the route as well as the cost.

Is a high speed rail network for the UK really necessary; can it really deliver the promised benefits of jobs, prosperity, and regeneration of the country's railways; do opponents of the scheme have a point or is this just another case of NIMBYism; is HS2 a responsible use of taxpayers' money when drastic cuts are being made across the board to pay down the deficit; are there any viable alternatives?

You decide.

Admission:

Admission is, as ever, totally free of charge. All are welcome, so if you know anyone who might be interested in this debate, do feel free to bring them along.

Further Reading:

Background:
1) High Speed 2 gets the go ahead (BBC)
2) Mixed reaction to High speed rail go ahead (BBC)
3) Brits split over high speed rail (YouGov)

Arguments in favour:
1) High speed rail fears unfounded (Financial Times)
2) Yes to HS2 campaign (Yes to HS2)
3) High speed rail has regenerated regional cities in France (Yorkshire needs high speed rail)

Arguments against:
1) High speed rail a waste of money (Guardian)
2) Stop HS2 campaign (Stop HS2)
3) High speed rail right in principle but HS2 project is wrong (Daily Telegraph)

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email us at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Follow us on Facebook and Twitter:

Join our facebook group and sign up for all our latest events and news updates. You can also follow us on Twitter to receive new updates and see who else is following us at http://twitter.com/centraldebating

The CLDS Team

End of year balloon debate - Thursday 8th December

2011-12-04T04:19:00.000-08:00

Date: Thursday 08 December 2011
Time: 7:30
Location: The Harcourt Arms
Balloon Debate Motion: Who is your all-time greatest idol and why?

For our traditional end of year balloon debate, 6 volunteers will represent their personal heroes with the last person standing to be crowned greatest of them all (think Stars in their Eyes without the singing).

They will be tasked with navigating 4 rounds of debating, each in a different format, at the end of which the audience will be asked to vote off at least one contestant. They will have 4 minutes to make their case, except in the final round where they will have a full 5 minutes.

The formats for each round will be the following:

1. Speakers allowed only to talk about themselves and why they deserve to win (1 person voted off)
2. Speakers allowed only to talk about their opponents and why they deserve to lose (1 person voted off)
3. Q&A from the audience (2 people voted off)
4. Freestyle (winner takes all)

Idols can be absolutely anyone from any time period, dead or alive, real or fictional - all we want to know is why they beat everyone else's heroes hands down.

Admission:

Admission is, as ever, totally free of charge. All are welcome, so if you know anyone who might be interested in this debate, do feel free to bring them along.

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email us at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Follow us on Facebook and Twitter:

Join our facebook group and sign up for all our latest events and news updates. You can also follow us on Twitter to receive new updates and see who else is following us at http://twitter.com/centraldebating

The CLDS Team

Next Debate - 24th November - Unity Government for the UK?

2011-11-20T04:39:00.000-08:00

Venue: Harcourt Arms, 32 Harcourt Street, Baker Street, London, W1H 4HX
Date: Thursday 24th of November 2011
Time: 7:30pm - 9.30pm
Motion: This House Would form a unity government in the UK

Background:

The global sovereign debt crisis has seen the rise of a new breed of politician and a new style of politics.

Markets have punished politicians for being indecisive, unpopular or incompetent with high interest rates sending the economies of Greece, Italy and Spain into debt-death spirals. Berlusconi and Papandreou have been replaced by unelected economists seen by the markets as a 'safe set of hands' to repair, rebuild and protect the economy.

With no mandate, should technocrats be able to pass unpopular measures? Do we need stability over accountability in a time of crisis? With growth stalling in the UK, do we need technocratic leadership? Are grand coalitions, referendums or snap elections the way forward for the democratic legitimacy of austerity? Is too much democracy killing the Eurozone?

Admission:

Admission is, as ever, totally free of charge. All are welcome, so if you know anyone who might be interested in this debate, do feel free to bring them along.

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email us at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Follow us on Facebook and Twitter:

Join our facebook group and sign up for all our latest events and news updates. You can also follow us on Twitter to receive new updates and see who else is following us at http://twitter.com/centraldebating

The CLDS Team

Debate results and upcoming events

2011-11-14T04:38:00.000-08:00

Last Thursday, we returned to the Harcourt Arms for one of our closest debates of the year on one of the msot burning issues in current affairs: what to do about Iran.

You can find the full summary below, but needless to say all four speakers were on top form, so a big thank you to Babs Williams, Michael Worthington, Shaughan Dolan, and Janneke van Leeuwen who made her debut in style. Thanks also to Olly Glover who chaired the debate with charm and authority, but as ever our deepest gratitude is extended to you, our audience members, who helped make this one of our most nailbiting debates with your informed comments and questions. We look forward to seeing you again soon.

Below you will find a list of upcoming events for the rest of the month, detailing locations, dates, times, and formats.

Upcoming events:

Monday 14th November (today) - London Cogers - Old Bank of England pub, Fleet Street - 7pm - free speech forum to discuss the events of the last month - admission free for first timers and voluntary donations requested of regular attendees - http://cogers.org/

Wednesday 23rd November - Westminster Cogers - Plumbers Arms, Lower Belgrave Street, Victoria - 7pm - free speech forum to discuss the events of the last month - admission free for first timers and voluntary donations requested of regular attendees - http://cogers.org/

Thursday 24th November - next meeting of Central London Debating Society - details to be confirmed this weekend

Debate Summary:

This House would disarm Iran by force

Preliminary vote: For 4, Against 8, Abstentions 8

Definition: A NATO led invasion of Iran to remove it's nuclear weapons making capability and replace the current Iranian regieme

Key arguments:
Prop: Iran is developing a program of nuclear weapons building as it has done in the past.

Opp: There is no evidence that Iran is building nuclear weapons.

Prop: Attempts to make Iran give up its nuclear weapons through diplomacy have failed. War is now the only option.

Opp: Diplomatic avenues are still open. Going to war would worsen diplomatic relations with Russia and China.

Prop: Iran acquiring nukes would lead to regional instability in the Middle East as all those opposed to Iran would be encouraged to develop them.

Opp: Israel has already acquired nuclear weapons. If Iran had them the situation would become balanced.

Prop: The Iranian government ignores the human rights of its people. The current Iranian government is bad for the people of Iran. This regime needs to be removed to protect the people of Iran.

Opp: The security of the people of Iran would be destroyed by an invasion as has happened in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Prop: The invasion will result in a pro-Western regime being set up in Iran.

Opp: The leading candidates in any post-invasion Iranian state will be anti-Western as a result of the chaos brought by the war.

Prop: Unless NATO invades Iran, Israel will go it alone. This will result in more civilian casualties.

Opp: If Israel tried to invade Iran by itself we would have to go to war with Israel.

Final vote: For 4, Against 8, Abstentions 7
Final vote (no abstentions): For 9, Against 10

MOTION DEFEATED

Joining the Central London Debating Society:
Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email us at central.debating@gmail.com

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Next debate: Thursday 10th November - This House Would Disarm Iran by Force

2011-11-06T05:49:00.000-08:00

Date: Thursday 10 November
Time: 7:30pm
Venue: Harcourt Arms, 32 Harcourt Street, London W1H 4HX
Motion: This House Would disarm Iran by force

Background:
Iran has a nuclear program that dates back to the 1950s as the peaceful development of nuclear energy plants. As the decades have passed the political landscape has changed, the Arab-Israeli conflict has escalated and so to has the nature of Iran's nuclear ambitions. President Ahmadinejad has long been supportive of an Iranian nuclear program proudly announcing in 2006 that he could make his own stockpiles of enriched uranium.

Accused of corruption, cronyism and electoral fraud and having pledged to "wipe Israel of the map" can Ahmadinejad be trusted to keep his nuclear ambitions peaceful? Should Arab states be allowed to enjoy the security that nuclear weapons bring? Is liberal interventation inevitable in Iran? Or a would we be looking for yet more "weapons of mass destruction" that do not exist?

You decide.

Admission:
Admission is, as ever, totally free of charge. All are welcome, so if you know anyone who might be interested in this debate, do feel free to bring them along.

Joining the Central London Debating Society:
Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email us at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Follow us on Facebook and Twitter:
Join our facebook group and sign up for all our latest events and news updates. You can also follow us on Twitter to receive new updates and see who else is following us at http://twitter.com/centraldebating

Next Debate - 27th October 2011 - This House Would Occupy The City

2011-10-23T04:52:00.000-07:00

Location: Ye Olde Cock Tavern, The Strand, London, EC4Y 2AA
Date: Thursday 27th of October
Time: 7:30- 9:30
Motion: This House Would Occupy The City

Last week, thousands of demonstrators camped outside St Paul's Cathedral to denounce corporate greed and inequality, replicating the Occupy Wall Street movement in America that has rapidly spread across the world in a matter of days.

Several notable celebrities, including Salman Rushdie and Julian Assange, have signed an online petition, declaring their support for the worldwide occupy movement and calling on others to join them. Meanwhile, St Paul's Cathedral has been forced to close, reportedly costing one of London's prime tourist attractions thousands of pounds in lost revenue.

As the protesters show no sign of leaving any time soon, many questions remain: how sustainable is the 'Occupy the City' movement, spanning over 80 countries, united by a set of wide-ranging, but loosely defined aims and objectives? Are we witnessing the radical transformation of our politics and and our economy with more and more people expressing their discontent through protest and direct action? And do the protesters speak for the 99% as they claim or are they simply a vocal minority?

Should we join them and Occupy the City too? You decide.

Further Reading:

Background:
1) Occupy demo forces St Paul's to close (BBC)
2) Leading authors back Occupy movement (Guardian)
3) Occupy Wall Street's global echo (Council for Foreign Relations)

Yes we should occupy:
1) Why we should all be occupying the City (occupythecity.co.uk)
2) Protest is the only way to change the world (Naomi Klein)
3) Occupy movement is voicing the concerns of the silent majority (Guardian)

No we shouldn't:
1) Protesters have overstayed their welcome at St Paul's (Daily Telegraph)
2) Occupy London has got its facts wrong (London Loves Business)
3) Protesters should take their demands to the ballot box not the street (Economist)

Admission:

Admission is, as ever, totally free of charge. All are welcome, so if you know anyone who might be interested in this debate, do feel free to bring them along.

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email us at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Follow us on Facebook and Twitter:

Join our facebook group and sign up for all our latest events and news updates. You can also follow us on Twitter to receive new updates and see who else is following us at http://twitter.com/centraldebating

Next debate: Question Time on the Strand - Plan B for the economy, Conference season review, and fixed term marriage contracts...

2011-10-08T11:14:00.000-07:00

DATE: Thursday 13th October
TIME: 7.30pm - 9.30pm
VENUE: Ye Olde Cock Tavern, The Strand, EC4Y 2AA
MOTION: Question Time debate

We return to our popular Question Time format for this Thursday's debate on the Strand. We will have a panel of four speakers offering their views on three topical issues in the news this week, ranging from the headline issues to more lighthearted stories that might not have otherwise caught your attention.

You can find us in the upstairs function room of the Ye Olde Cock Tavern pub on the Strand, opposite the Old Bank of Engla...nd, which we will have to ourselves all night. Look forward to seeing you there.

This week's topics will be:

1) Plan B for the economy?

The coalition government is pursuing an economic agenda of austerity, with cuts to public sector spending and investment at the forefront of a package of measures intended to reduce our fiscal deficit. But with unemployment remaining high, private sector investment low, rising inflation and stagnant economic growth, is the time now right to consider less brutal economic medicine? What would Plan B look like, and should we stick with our current austere course, or embrace the alternatives?

http://news.bbc.co.uk/today/hi/today/newsid_9584000/9584021.stm

2) Who impressed you this year at conference?

In addition to an Indian summer and record-breaking September and October temperatures, recent weeks have offered us a veritable smörgåsbord of political debate and discourse, with all 3 of the most prominent political parties holding their annual conferences. But which parties and leaders gave the most impressive performance?

http://www.economist.com/blogs/blighty/2011/10/conference-round-up

3) Fixed term marriage contracts?

The local government of Mexico City recently decided that the best way to change their sky-rocketing divorce rate was to change the meaning of marriage. Their plan is to introduce fixed term marriage contracts, so that couples who find themselves regretting their decision simply allow their vows to expire instead of going through the acrimony of divorce. So, if marriage needn't be for life any more - just how long should it last?

http://edition.cnn.com/2011/10/03/world/americas/mexico-2-year-marriages/

Admission:

Admission is, as ever, totally free of charge. All are welcome, so if you know anyone who might be interested in this debate, do feel free to bring them along.

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email us at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Follow us on Facebook and Twitter:

Join our facebook group and sign up for all our latest events and news updates. You can also follow us on Twitter to receive new updates and see who else is following us at http://twitter.com/centraldebating

Next debate: Should adverts for no win - no fee law firms be banned?

2011-09-25T14:48:00.000-07:00

Date: Thursday 29th September
Time: 7.30pm
Venue: The Devereux Pub, Essex Street, WC2R 3JJ
Motion: This House Would ban advertising for no fee - no win law firms

Background:

Companies have highlighted the unfairness of the No-win No-Fee system which has led to higher insurance premiums, allowed frivolous lawsuits against employers and is creating a 'compensation culture' much like the self proclaimed land-of-litagation the United States.

The Dowler family have criticised the new government proposals abolishing 'no-win, no-fee services' saying without the Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA) "we would not have been able to start a case or even threaten it" which led to a million dollar settlement for the alleged phone-hacking of their recently deceased daughter .

In a economic climate where businesses are struggling to survive is it right to lump companies with millions of dollars of potentially flippant legal casework? Is compensation culture a good thing? Does the CFA encourage legitimate claimants, who would not otherwise, to come forward?

Venue:

We will be in the Devereux pub this Thursday just off the Strand on Essex Street. The debate will take place in the main function on the top floor. For directions to the pub, see here

Further reading:

Background:
1) Government to clamp down on no win no fee claims (Which Magazine)
2) Dowler family backs no win no fee (BBC)

Yes:
3) Ban will curb compensation culture (Independent)
4) Personal injury adverts go too far (Guardian)

No:
5) No win - no fee firms brought down phone hackers (Access to Justice Group)
6) Claimants will suffer if no win - no fee is scrapped (Guardian)

Admission:

Admission is, as ever, totally free of charge. All are welcome, so if you know anyone who might be interested in this debate, do feel free to bring them along.

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email us at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Follow us on Facebook and Twitter:

Join our facebook group and sign up for all our latest events and news updates. You can also follow us on Twitter to receive new updates and see who else is following us at http://twitter.com/centraldebating

Debating Workshop- Constructing Speeches, Developing Arguements and Persuasive Analysis

2011-09-19T05:06:00.000-07:00

Venue:Old Bank of England pub, Fleet Street, EC4Y 2LT, London
Time: 7.30PM

Do you feel that you would like to stand up and give a speech in a debate but feel unsure how to?

The Central London Debating Society will be running it's first training session on Wednesday 21st September.

We will be discussing some of the basic elements you need to write a 5 minute speech, including how to structure it, the style and delivery of the speech and the logical analysis your points need to stand up to scrutiny.

Come along to learn some of the tricks you can use to make a winning speech.

The session will be led by Jason and Shaughan who have over 15 years debating experience between them. They will help you build confidence, argue logically and persuasively and provide a platform for developing public speaking skills without being put in front of an audience.

Hope you'll join us for a night of constructive discussion and personal development.

The CLDS Team

This House Would Back The Creation of a Palestinan State

2011-09-12T08:18:00.000-07:00

DATE: Thursday 15th September
TIME: 7.30pm
VENUE: Old Bank of England Pub, Strand, EC4A 2LT
MOTION: This House Would back the creation of a Palestinan State

Background:

On September 20th the Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas is expected to bid for the full recognition of Palestine as a sovereign state by the United Nations. With statehood on the cards a whole range of social, political and legal issues begin to emerge from the status of the trade embargo on Palestine to whether Peace keepers would have to be deployed to protect Palestinian borders.

With Israel keen to block any international interference can the UN begin to broker a two state-solution in one of the longest running conflicts of the 20th Century? What implications does it have for settled Israelis on the West Bank? Is this first step towards peace or will it escalate violence in the region even further? Is Hamas even a legitimate government for the West to begin dialogue with?

Venue:

We will be in the The Old Bank of England pub this Thursday next to the Royal Courts of Justice on the Strand. The debate will take place in the main function room opposite the bar. For directions to the pub, see here

Admission:

Admission is, as ever, totally free of charge. All are welcome, so if you know anyone who might be interested in this debate, do feel free to bring them along.

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email us at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Follow us on Facebook and Twitter:

Join our facebook group and sign up for all our latest events and news updates. You can also follow us on Twitter to receive new updates and see who else is following us at http://twitter.com/centraldebating

Next debate: Thursday 1st September - Is Britain in a state of moral decline?

2011-08-29T10:18:00.000-07:00

DATE: Thursday 01 September
TIME: 7.30pm
VENUE: The George, Strand, WC2R 1AP
MOTION: This House Believes that Britain is in a state of moral decline

Background

After the London riots that gripped the capital and beyond just weeks ago David Cameron has described the "Slow motion moral collapse" of Britain over the last decade.

Tony Blair in a rare intervention in British domestic politics said the moral collapse simply wasn't happening and that the riots were a "very specific problem caused by very specific phenomenons" of worklessness, inequality and a breakdown of family.

Is "youth culture" responsible for breakdown of society? Does moral decline go deeper than just the rioters? Do we give enough respect to moral behaviours in our communities? Is Britain in a state of irreversible moral decline?

You decide

Venue

We will be in the The George pub this Thursday opposite the Royal Courts of Justice on the Strand. The debate will take place in the upstairs function room directly above the bar. For directions to the pub, see here

Further Reading:

1) David Cameron attributes riots to broken society (Daily Express)

2) Tony Blair criticises David Cameron's analysis (Observer)

3) England riots and the aftermath (BBC)

Admission:

Admission is, as ever, totally free of charge. All are welcome, so if you know anyone who might be interested in this debate, do feel free to bring them along.

Joining the Central London Debating Society:
Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email us at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Follow us on Facebook and Twitter:

Join our facebook group and sign up for all our latest events and news updates. You can also follow us on Twitter to receive new updates and see who else is following us at http://twitter.com/centraldebating

Next debate: Thursday 04 August 2011 - Has the EU failed?

2011-07-30T08:32:00.000-07:00

DATE: Thursday 04 August
TIME: 7.30pm
VENUE: Old Bank of England, 194 Fleet Street, EC4A 2LT
MOTION: This House Believes the EU has failed

Background

The EU was established on the value of greater stability through Economic, Social and Political union throughout EU member states. Since the Global Financial Crisis of 2007 we have seen a steady decline in the European Economic Area's ability to operate with Portugal, Ireland, Greece and Spain accepting large austerity packages alongside massive EU bailouts.

Despite this the European project has a great many successes to it's name such as taking the lead on directives for climate change, the development of the single market and even the EU bailouts for member states have been largely organised and funded by the European Central Bank.

With a Greek Default growing ever more likely by the day, can the strained fiscal union of the EU last the distance of the downturn? Has at 27 member states become too big and too bloated? Should we be integrating further and faster, with a common currency, foreign policy and taxation policy? Is the EU good value for money?

Venue

We will be in the Old Bank of England pub this Thursday next to the Royal Courts of Justice on Fleet Street. The debate will take place in the ground floor function room next to the bar. For directions to the pub, see here

Further reading

Background:
1) Q&A on Eurozone bailouts (The Times)
2) How possible or likely is British withdrawal from the EU? (Politics UK)
3)
European leaders move closer to full fiscal union (Euractive)

Has the EU failed?

Yes:
1) Conservatives pledge sovereignty bill to protect supremacy of Parliament over EU (Daily Telegraph)
2) Europe's political classes are to blame for downfall of EU (The American Spectator)
3)
Were the Eurosceptics right? (BBC)

No:
1) The European Union's Fort Sumter Moment (Huffington Post)
2) The benefits of pooling British sovereignty with the EU (European Movement)
3) Why Europe will run the 21st Century? (Centre for European Reform)

Admission:

Admission is, as ever, totally free of charge. All are welcome, so if you know anyone who might be interested in this debate, do feel free to bring them along.

Joining the Central London Debating Society:
Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email us at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Follow us on Facebook and Twitter:

Join our facebook group and sign up for all our latest events and news updates. You can also follow us on Twitter to receive new updates and see who else is following us at http://twitter.com/centraldebating

Results of media plurality debate and upcoming events this week...

2011-07-25T04:54:00.000-07:00

Debate Result:

Thank you to everyone who made it out for last Thursday's debate on media plurality, but in particular to our speakers: Bianca and Craig for the proposition and Myles who joined me (Tony) on the opposition team.

It was a thoroughly enjoyable debate made all the more interesting by the illuminating comments and thoughtful questions raised by the audience.

The motion was defeated in the end, but both sides acknowledged that the press is a flawed institution in need of reform and I am confident everyone who attended left the debate a lot more informed about this important issue than when they arrived - and our members know their stuff, so that's saying something.

Please see below for a full summary of the arguments made by both sides and a breakdown of the result

Events this week:

If you enjoyed last Thursday's debate or are simply looking for something interesting to do this week, you will enjoy these events.

1) Tuesday 26th July - 6.30pm - LSE debate: Keynes vs Hayek - to be broadcast on BBC Radio 4 - Old Theatre, Old Building, Houghton Street, WC2A 2AE - This is a free event, but places are limited, so arrive early to get a seat.

For further details, see: http://www2.lse.ac.uk/publicEvents/events/2011/20110726t1830vOT.aspx

2) Wednesday 27th July - 7pm - Westminster Cogers - The Plumber's Arms, Lower Belgrave Street, Victoria - Have your say on the issues and news stories of the last month - Admission to this event is free

For further details, see: http://cogers.org/Westminster.html

Results Summary:

Motion: This House Would clean up the media by imposing restrictions on press ownership

Preliminary vote: For 8, Against 6, Abstentions 4

Definition: No entity (individual or corporation) may own more than 20% of British newspaper titles.

Key arguments:

Proposition: The press is a powerful force. If that power is in the hands of too few people then these men can dictate opinions to the politicians and the public.
Opposition: The press is a weak and rapidly dying force. This proposition will reduce the amount of resources available to the press too much and hence kill it off entirely.

Proposition: The press has influence over what stories are presented and how they are presented. They have influence over how people think.
Opposition: People do not follow the press that much any more. Their opinions are not being influenced by the media's line.

Proposition: Politicians think that people follow the press and hence they put a lot of effort into courting press opinion.
Opposition: Even if people have their opinions influenced by the media there is more to the media than just the press. The broadcast media and the internet both beat the print media on influence.

Proposition: The competition commission is woeful when it comes to dealing with the influence of press barons as it is controlled by politicians who themselves are controlled by the media.
Opposition: The competition commission does a good job of promoting plurality of opinion in the press.

Proposition: The fundamental problem with the British press is a lack of plurality of ownership.
Opposition: The fundamental problem with the British press is a lack of resources.

Final vote: For 5, Against 15, Abstentions 0

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Next debate: Thursday 21 July - Is restricting media ownership solution to phone hacking scandal?

2011-07-17T16:06:00.000-07:00

DATE: Thursday 21 July
TIME: 7.30pm
VENUE: The George, 213 Strand, WC2R 1AP
MOTION: This House Would clean up the media by restricting ownership of the press

Background:
In the light of the recent phone hacking scandal currently engulfing the world largest Media organisation and the cross party vote blocking Newscorps bid to buy the remaining share of BskyB, Ed Miliband has spoken publicly of his desire to reduce the maximum market share of the media that any one individual or company can hold.

Does the government have a right to dictate who is 'a fit and proper' owner of a UK enterprise? Would such measures prevent a repeat of the phone hacking scandal? Should an organisation that used previously bribery, intimidation and illegal activity be allowed to have any stake in the UK Media? To whom would these measures apply: just newspapers, or broadcasters and the blogosphere too?

Venue:
This week,we will be meeting in the upstairs function room of our new home,The George, located on the Strand (see here for directions). The room can accomodate up to 60 people with a fully staffed bar on the floor below and it will be ours all night, so come along and join us for a relaxed evening with interesting people.

Further Reading:
1) Miliband calls for overhaul of media ownership rules (Observer)
2) Phone-hacking scandal latest developments (BBC)
3) Lessons on media mergers from abroad (Enders Analysis)
4) Experts call for relaxation of media ownership laws (mediaweek)
5) An alternative method of press regulation? (International Forum for Responsible Media)

Admission:
Admission is, as ever, totally free of charge. All are welcome, so if you know anyone who might be interested in this debate, do feel free to bring them along.

Joining the Central London Debating Society:
Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email us at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

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Debate result - Thursday 07 July - This House Would make it harder to go on strike - Motion passes

2011-07-09T07:33:00.000-07:00

Debate result - This House Would make it harder to go on strike - Thursday 07/07/11 -Motion passed by 11 votes to 7

*If you liked this, you should definitely try the City of London Cogers on Monday 11th July at the Old Bank of England pub on Fleet Street from 7pm. Their free flowing format is perfectly suited for anyone looking for an alternative to conventional adversarial debating. Several of us from CLDS will definitely be there, so friendly faces are guaranteed :)*

CLDS news roundup:

Thank you to all our speakers in Thursday's heated debate on imposing a minimum turnout requirement for strike ballots held by trade unions. The honours went to Shaughan Dolan and Olly Glover, arguing for a minimum turnout requirement for all strike ballots held by trade unions. They narrowly pipped Babs Williams and Bill Moss, whose passionate debating style won many supporters in the audience, as the motion was passed with a margin of just four votes. See below for a full summary.

Thank you also to everyone who turned up early for our AGM. A copy of the annual report is available on request, outlining our progress over the last year and our ambitions for the one ahead. Most important of all was the election of our two newest committee members, Olly Glover and Michael Worthington. Welcome to you both!

Many of you will have noticed that we have held our last three debates in as many different locations as we continued our search for a venue that could adequately accommodate our growing attendances, while remaining pleasant and easy to reach. I can confirm that following Thursday's very successful debate, our search is over and we will be holding all our forthcoming debates, for the remainder of this summer at least, in the George Pub on Fleet Street, directly opposite the Royal Courts of Justice.

Best quote form this week's debate:
"Sir, you are comparing apples with pears....or cumquats with starfruits" (You know who you are)

Motion:
This House Would Make it Harder to go on Strike

Preliminary Vote:
For 9, Against 8, Abstentions 1

Policy:
There should be a 50% minimum turnout in strike ballots in order for the ballot to be considered valid.

Key arguments:

Proposition: Having strikes determined by such a small proportion of the total union membership is undemocratic, especially when it has such a big effect on ordinary people.
Opposition: In a democracy decisions are made by those who turn up. This is the case in all political elections and referenda so why shouldn't it be the case in union votes?

Proposition: Public sector workers receive very good pensions compared to private sector workers. These pensions are subsidised by the tax payer. As people are living longer these pensions will need to be reformed.
Opposition: Public sector pensions aren't as good as the proposition is making out. Even if they are that good that is the way it should be. Private sector pensions are too small.

Proposition: Strikes are a huge problem which undermine government policy and the lives of the public. This is a problem which needs to be corrected.
Opposition: We already have some of the toughest strike laws in the world. There is no need to neuter the unions any more than has already been done.

Proposition: If the public sector go on strike the public have no alternatives to switch to.
Opposition: That is one of the prices you pay to have public sector employment.

Final Vote: For 11, Against 7, Abstentions: 3

Next debate:
Our next debate will be held on Thursday 21st July at the George Pub from 7.30pm. The motion will be announced next weekend.

Joining the Central London Debating Society:
Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email us at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

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Next debate - Thursday 07 July - This House Would make it harder to go on strike

2011-07-03T04:51:00.000-07:00

DATE: Thursday 07 July
TIME: 7.30pm - 10.30pm
VENUE: The George, 213 Strand WC2R 1AP
MOTION: This House Would make it harder to go on strike

BACKGROUND:
Last Thursday, government ministers clashed with trade union leaders as hundreds of thousands of public sector workers went on strike across the country in protest against proposed changes to their pensions. In response to threats of further strikes in the future, the government is under pressure from both business leaders and London Mayor, Boris Johnson, to toughen the law on strike action, especially where essential public services are concerned.

In particular, both the Mayor and the CBI say a minimum turnout should be required for all union ballots and that any strikes called without passing this threshold should be considered illegal. At present, only a majority is needed for a strike to be called regardless of turnout. No decision has been taken yet by the government, but insist that with further strikes still a strong possibility, 'all options remain on the table'.

Should the Prime Minister follow Boris Johnson's advice, and risk an all out confrontation with the country's most powerful trade unions, by making it harder to go on strike? Are the proposed changes to public sector pay and pensions essential to reducing the deficit or are they an unfair attack on the livelihoods of millions of workers throughout the UK?

VENUE:
This week, as we continue our search for a new venue in which to host our summer debates, we will be meeting in the upstairs function room of the George on the Strand (see here for directions). The room can accomodate up to 60 people with a manned bar available to provide food and drink and it will be ours all night.

FURTHER READING:

BACKGROUND:
1) Vince Cable warns unions of tougher strike laws (Reuters)
2) Hundreds of thousands join June 30th strike (Guardian)
3) Public sector pensions report explained (BBC)
4) The pros and cons of tightening the rules on industrial action (The Economist)

ARE PUBLIC SECTOR PENSION CHANGES UNFAIR?
5) Why David Cameron is right on public sector pensions (Channel 4 fact-check blog)
6) Public sector pensions are still a great deal (Citywire)
7) Government reforms will prompt more public sector pension opt-outs (Financial Times)
8) Pension changes not reform, but just a pay cut (False Economy)

Admission:
Admission is, as ever, totally free of charge. All are welcome, so if you know anyone who might be interested in this debate, do feel free to bring them along.

Joining the Central London Debating Society:
Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email us at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

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Next Debate: Thursday 23 June - How would you fix the economy?

2011-06-18T17:25:00.000-07:00

DATE: Thursday 23rd June
TIME: 7.30pm (for 8pm start) - 9.30pm
VENUE: The Devereux, Strand, WC2R 3JJ
MOTION: How would you fix the economy?

Background:
Since assuming office 12 months ago, the coalition government has attempted to balance the books by reforming large swathes of Britain's economy such as the public sector, financial institutions and taxation. Despite these efforts to get the economy moving, growth in GDP has stalled for the past 6 months.With fresh bail-outs for Greece and the worsening debt crisis gripping the Eurozone, Britain has never been more in need of fresh thinking on the Economy.

The format for this debate will be slightly different from our usual debates. We will have a three person panel putting forward their proposal for fixing the economy, but instead of another team of speakers opposing them, we will be asking our audience to scrutinise their plans and suggest their own alternatives. The panel will then be given the opportunity to amend their proposals to include some of the suggestions put forward by the audience who will then be asked to vote.

Getting There:
Due to our higher than expected turnout last week, we will be changing venue for our next debate to ensure we have enough space for everyone who wishes to attend. We will be in the Devereux, a pub on the Strand who have given us their function room for the night which has capacity for up to 60 people. Please see here for directions.

We expect to return to the Harcourt Arms once attendance rates return to normal.

Further Reading:
1) The rights and wrongs of Britain's deficit (FT)
2) UK national debt explained (Economics Help)
3) Bank of England forecasts slower than expected growth for UK economy
4) Saving the UK economy: What would Keynes do? (Global Politics)
5) Economic reform: a role for the Big Society? (Public Finance magazine)
6) Biggest strikes for 100 years (Guardian)
7) Why spending cuts are good for the economy (Money Week)
8) A new outlook on the economy: The Zeitgeist Movement (TZM UK)

Admission:
Admission is, as ever, totally free of charge. All are welcome, so if you know anyone who might be interested in this debate, do feel free to bring them along.

Joining the Central London Debating Society:
Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email us at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Follow us on Facebook and Twitter:
Join our facebook group and sign up for all our latest events and news updates. You can also follow us on Twitter to receive new updates and see who else is following us at http://twitter.com/centraldebating

Results of positive discrimination debate - Thursday 09 June 2011

2011-06-12T04:33:00.000-07:00

Thanks to everyone who made it to Thursday's debate, particularly our four speakers: Michael, Babs, Araba, and Richard. We enjoyed a record attendance of 42 people in all and most importantly managed to hear from pretty much each and every one of you over the course of a passionate yet thoughtful debate.

Congratulations to Michael and Babs who persuaded the audience to support their proposals to increase the use of positive discrimination in the education system. Below are the results of the preliminary and final votes along with a brief summary of the arguments made by each side.

Preliminary Vote: For 9, Against 10, Abstentions 13
Final vote: For 19, Against 12, Abstentions 3

MOTION PASSES

Summary:

Definition: We would set a quota of state school pupils for admissions to Oxbridge based on the percentage of pupils studying at state schools.

Proposition: This measure will compensate those who have been disadvantaged by a lack of resources at a young age but still have enormous potential.
Opposition: This measure discriminates against hard working pupils and parents who use private sector education.

Proposition: Positive discrimination provides disadvantaged groups with role models at Oxbridge which will encourage them to strive.
Opposition: Positive discrimination will result in people being labelled. Those who succeed will be considered by society to be failures who were given an unfair leg up.

Opposition: All discrimination on the basis of race, gender, class etc is wrong.
Proposition: Positive discrimination in the education system will improve our society.

Opposition: If we want to improve lives we have to intervene at a much younger age.

Proposition: We agree that we have to intervene at a young age but think that we should also intervene at university.

Proposition: The government should use legislation to drive forward the cultural change that our education needs.

Opposition: Legislation won't work unless we have the cultural change first.

Joining the Central London Debating Society:
Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email us at central.debating@gmail.com

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Next debate: Thursday 09 June - This House Supports more positive discrimination in the education system

2011-06-04T08:34:00.000-07:00

DATE: Thursday 09 June
TIME: 7.30pm - 9.30pm
VENUE: Harcourt Arms, 32 Harcourt Street, London W1H 4HX
MOTION: This House Supports more positive discrimination in the education system

BACKGROUND:
The row over the non-admission of state school pupil Laura Spence into Oxford University in the year 2000 is an illustration of the battles that have been going on in the British education system for some time over how to make sure that the highest levels of education are open to all.

Education is seen as a key driver of social mobility and as such access to elite educational institutions has always been a hard fought political debate, one which has resurfaced over the past year with a government containing many privately educated ministers and plans to raise university tuition fees to £9,000.

How do we ensure that educational access is based on merit not on background? Can we preserve the high standards of our top universities and at the same time allow admission of state school pupils? Should we force universities or good schools to take less privileged pupils?

Getting there:
If you would like to watch this debate, then simply come along on the night. You will find us in the upstairs dining room of the Harcourt Arms pub at 32, Harcourt Street W1H 4HX (a max 1o min walk from Baker St tube). For directions, see this map.

Further Reading:
Background:

1)The Laura Spence affair (Wikipedia)
2) Positive discrimination v Positive action (Times)
3) Fair access to education (Office of Fair Access)

Arguments in favour:
1) School admission system is not fair
2) Tuition fees will deter poorer students (Guardian)

Arguments against:
1) Universities should not be required to compensate for failure of schools (Times)
2) A defence of grammar school education (Times)

Admission:
Admission is, as ever, totally free of charge. All are welcome, so if you know anyone who might be interested in this debate, do feel free to bring them along.

Joining the Central London Debating Society:
Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email us at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

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Upcoming events next week

2011-05-31T11:01:00.000-07:00

Next CLDS debate
Our next debate will be held on Thursday 09 June at the Harcourt Arms, 32 Harcourt Street, W1H 4HX.

The motion will be announced this weekend, so sign up today to become a member of the Central London Debating Society and tell us what issue you would like to hear debated.

Coalition debate
Next Monday (6th June), our friends at the Sylvans Debating Society will be meeting at the Old Bank of England pub in Fleet Street next to the Royal Courts of Justice. The motion for their debate is: This House Believes that the coalition government will not last a full 5 year term.

All are welcome, kick off is at 7pm, and admission is free. They have their speakers already, but audience members are allowed to speak for up to 5 mins from the floor, so there will be plenty of opportunities to get involved.

Joining the Central London Debating Society:
Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email us at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

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Results of Question Time panel debate - Thursday 26 May 2011

2011-05-30T02:43:00.000-07:00

Last Thurday, we invited a panel of four speakers to debate three of the biggest topics in the headlines over the last few weeks: super-injunctions, international aid, and referenda.

Thank you to everyone who made it out for the debate - it was one of our best attended events yet - and we extend our deepest gratitude to our speakers (Richard Weydert Jacquard, Shaughan Dolan, Henry Vann, and Benjamin Gray) who were all on top form and made it a night to remember, especially when they broke into song at the end :)

Well done to Richard who topped the poll, winning the debate with a total of 18 votes. Below is a brief summary of the key arguments made by our speakers.

SUPER INJUNCTIONS
Benjamin:The privacy given by super-injunctions allow for the rule of law to triumph over trial by media. Just because they are unenforceable in some cases doesn't mean they shouldn't be there in principle.

Henry:There is usually a power imbalance between those who take out the super-injunctions and those who were involved and would like to speak to the press. Justice should be conducted out in the open for people to see, not behind closed doors.

Richard: On the one hand once privacy has been lost in a case you can't get it back, on the other freedom of the press is very important. They must be able to report so that they can hold to account those in power.

Shaughan: In a case where privacy is set against freedom of speech then freedom of speech should win. The power imbalance between people is irrelevant as the internet will ensure that any imbalances are levelled out.

INTERNATIONAL AID
Richard: We have the responsibility to take people out of poverty. However we should not neglect taking British people out of poverty. A cap & collar system should be used when determining international aid.

Henry: Defence and international aid are essentially trying to achieve the same thing. We could solve a lot of problems not just by throwing money at them but by changing laws of international trade, for example patent law.

Shaughan Dolan: We can't have countries economies flat-lining, therefore we need to give them money to kick start their economies again. Aid should be given in a strategic manner, not through a bid system.

Benjamin Gray: There is no one single coherent policy that will solve the problems of poverty in this world. We must balance the policies of DfID against the political free will of the countries to whom we are giving aid.

REFERENDA (this was intended to be a more light-hearted humourous debate in case anyone is baffled by the suggestions for our next referendum or why half the panel ended up singing the words to Jerusalem at the end...)

Richard: A referendum on reform of the House of Lords.
Benjamin: A referendum on whether we should have referenda.
Henry: A referendum on changing the national anthem to Jerusalem.
Shaughan: A referendum on firing Scotland into the sea.

Joining the Central London Debating Society:
Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email us at central.debating@gmail.com

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Next debate: Thursday 26 May 2011: Question Time debate on press freedom, overseas aid, and referenda

2011-05-21T10:57:00.000-07:00

DATE: Thursday 26 May 2011
TIME: 7.30pm - 9.30pm
VENUE: Harcourt Arms, 32 Harcourt Street, London W1H 4HX
MOTION: Question Time debate: Press freedom, overseas aid, and referenda

BACKGROUND:
This week the Central London Debating Society welcomes you to a Question Time style debate with a panel of four speakers offering their own views and competing to win over the support of the audience for their position on three of the mostly talked about topics in current affairs at the moment. Our three topics for Thursday's debate will be: press freedom, overseas aid, and referenda.

Press Freedom
In the light of recent super-injunction scandals of Andrew Marr, Imogen Thomas and Sir Fred Goodwin does an individuals right to privacy outweigh the public's right to know? In the age of blogging, facebook and twitter is it right, possible or even necessary to censor the press? As such we will be asking:

“When, if ever, should the freedom of the press be curtailed?”----------------------------------------------------------------------

Overseas Aid
As the world continues to be gripped by the fallout of the global financial meltdown and British tax payers are being asked to tighten their belts, defence minister Liam Fox has argued our current overseas aid commitments is incompatible with the government's deficit reduction plans. We will be considering whether bail outs and international aid should be given reform or scrapped all together and asking:

"How, if at all, would you reform overseas aid?"----------------------------------------------------------------------

Referenda
Given the most recent referendum on the Alternative Vote and the upcoming vote on Scottish independence we will be asking whether referenda are the best way to pass legislation. Should politicians be listeners or leaders? Should we be having more or less referenda? What big questions would you like see put to the people? We will be holding it's own referenda on:

"What should and shouldn't be put to referendum?"----------------------------------------------------------------------

Getting there:
If you would like to watch this debate, then simply come along on the night. You will find us in the upstairs dining room of the Harcourt Arms pub at 32, Harcourt Street W1H 4HX (a max 1o min walk from Baker St tube). For directions, see this map.

Further Reading:
1) Press Freedom - Q&A on Super-injunctions (BBC)
2) Overseas aid - dispute over aid pledge (Guardian)
3) Referenda - A history of UK referenda (BBC)

Admission:
Admission is, as ever, totally free of charge. All are welcome, so if you know anyone who might be interested in this debate, do feel free to bring them along.

Joining the Central London Debating Society:
Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email us at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Follow us on Facebook and Twitter:
Join our facebook group and sign up for all our latest events and news updates. You can also follow us on Twitter to receive new updates and see who else is following us at http://twitter.com/centraldebating

Result of Osama Bin Laden debate

2011-05-14T07:32:00.000-07:00

CLDS members decide the United States was wrong to kill Osama Bin Laden

A big thank you to those of you who were able to make it along to last Wednesday's debate and I look forward to hopefully seeing many more of you at our upcoming debates throughout the year. Our four speakers did not disappoint in what was our best attended debate in the history of the Central London Debating Society. Thank you again to Paul, Simon, Shaughan, and Olly for your equally outstanding performances. Victory ultimately went to Shaughan and Olly, though as the motion was decisively defeated. The full results are shown below.

Full results of Wednesday night's debate

Motion: This House Believes the US was right to kill Osama Bin Laden - Wednesday 11 May 2011

Proposing: Paul Carroll, Simon Stiel
Opposing: Olly Glover, Shaughan Dolan

Preliminary Vote: For 9, Against 12, Abstentions 3

Main arguments:

Proposition: Osama bin Laden was an important field commander and status symbol for Al-Qaeda. His death deprives them of an important resource.
Opposition: Al-Qaeda does not operate in a centralised manner. You can't just cut off the head an watch it die as it has no one head. Dead he works very well for Al-Qaeda as a martyr.
Proposition: Giving Osama bin Laden a fair trial would be impractical as there would be many attempts to rescue him. And in the end he would still end up dead.
Opposition: We believe in the right to a fair trial for all, no matter how obviously guilty they are.
Proposition: As an enemy field commander at a time of war Osama bin Laden was a legitimate target.
Opposition: You can't declare war on Al-Qaeda therefore Osama was a fugitive on the run. Shooting him while he was unarmed was therefore illegal.
Proposition: The Navy Seals who attacked the compound had to assume that they were under a severe threat as one of Al-Qaeda's main weapons is suicide bombings.
Opposition: They only encountered one armed guard. They could have used stun weapons to capture Osama alive.
Final vote: For 6, Against 16, Abstentions: 2

Motion DEFEATED.

Joining the Central London Debating Society:
Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email us at central.debating@gmail.com

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Next debate: Wednesday May 11 - Was the United States right to kill Osama Bin Laden?

2011-05-08T09:33:00.000-07:00

DATE: Wednesday 11 May
TIME: 7.30pm - 9.30pm
VENUE: Harcourt Arms, 32 Harcourt Street, London W1H 4HX
MOTION: This House Believes the United States was right to kill Osama Bin Laden?

NOTE:
For those of you who were expecting this week's debate to be held on Thursday, we have had to move it forward to Wednesday due to limited availability of our room at the Harcourt Arms. I apologise for any inconvenience this causes and assure you that for future debates we will return to our usual Thursday slot.

Background:
On Monday, 2nd May, the world learned that Osama Bin Laden was dead, killed by US Navy Seals during a raid on his hideaway in Abbottabad, Pakistan, prompting scenes of jubilation in Washington D.C and New York.

However, following the revelations that Bin Laden was unarmed when he was killed, more and more people have begun to question the necessity and legality of the Navy Seals' actions, including Benjamin B Ferencz,... a former Chief Prosecutor at the Nuremberg trials of the NAZIs.

In the meantime, America's relationship with Pakistan, a critical ally in the 'war on terror' has also come under renewed strains following complaints by the country's government that they were not told in advance about the planned raid amidst concerns that Bin Laden would have been forewarned if they had.

Numerous officials in the US administration, including the President, Secretary of State, and Attorney General have since lined up to defend the killing of Osama Bin Laden as being in line with 'our laws and our values'.

Was the United States rights to kill Osama Bin Laden? You decide.

Debate format:
There will be four speakers in this debate, each of whom will have five minutes to make their case. After that there will be an extensive Q&A session to allow the audience plenty of time to have their own say from the floor. The motion will then be put to a vote.

There's always plenty of time to grab a drink and get settled before the event starts too and we always stick around for a few more once it's over as inevitably that is always when the real debating begins.

If you have any questions or need any more information, do not hesitate to email us at central.debating@gmail.com.

Getting there:
If you would like to watch this debate, then simply come along on the night. You will find us in the upstairs dining room of the Harcourt Arms pub at 32, Harcourt Street W1H 4HX (a max 1o min walk from Baker St tube). For directions, see this map.

Admission:
Admission is, as ever, totally free of charge. All are welcome, so if you know anyone who might be interested in this debate, do feel free to bring them along.

Further Reading:

Background:
1) President Barack Obama announces that Osama Bin Laden is dead (BBC)
2)Bin Laden was unarmed when killed (AP)
3) US-Pakistan row over Abbottabad row (Bloomberg)

Yes the United States was right:
1)Killing Bin Laden was an act of national self-defence (Eric Holder, US Attorney General)
2) The legal justifications (New Republic)
3)Death of Osama has made the world a safer place (Financial Times)

No the United States was wrong:
1)Bin Laden killing morally wrong (Benjamin Ferencz in the First Post)
2)Bin Laden killing illegal? (Spiegel Online)
3) Bin Laden a martyr to Afghans (Reuters)

Joining the Central London Debating Society:
Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email us at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

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Join our facebook group and sign up for all our latest events and news updates. You can also follow us on Twitter to receive new updates and see who else is following us at http://twitter.com/centraldebating

This House Believes in a borderless Britain

2011-04-18T04:33:00.000-07:00
DATE: Thursday, 21st April 2011
TIME: 7.30pm - 9.30pm
VENUE: Harcourt Arms, 32 Harcourt Street, W1H 4HX
MOTION: This House Believes in a borderless Britain

Background:
Vince Cable and David Cameron had a public argument this week over the benefits of immigration, while France and Italy have been rowing over temporary migrants. Both of these raise the immigration debate once again. Should we be worried about people from other nations moving into Britain? It has been happening for many years now under the open borders of the EU. With many people round the world wearing the same brands and having an email contacts list that sounds like a mini United Nations, national identity is increasingly looking like a relic of the 20th century. Is it time for countries to integrate to improve trading, governance and life in general? Or is our home country (wherever that may be for you) so important to our interest and sense of identity that we must preserve it against an ever more chaotic world.

Debate format:
There will be four speakers in this debate, each of whom will have five minutes to make their case. After that there will be an extensive Q&A session to allow the audience plenty of time to have their own say from the floor. The motion will then be put to a vote.

There's always plenty of time to grab a drink and get settled before the event starts too and we always stick around for a few more once it's over as inevitably that is always when the real debating begins.

If you have any questions or need any more information, do not hesitate to email us at central.debating@gmail.com.

Getting there:
If you would like to watch this debate, then simply come along on the night. You will find us in the upstairs dining room of the Harcourt Arms pub at 32, Harcourt Street W1H 4HX (a max 1o min walk from Baker St tube). For directions, see this map.

Admission:
Admission is, as ever, totally free of charge. All are welcome, so if you know anyone who might be interested in this debate, do feel free to bring them along.

Further reading:
Background:

1) David Cameron speech on immigration in full

2) France and Italy in migrant row (BBC)

Arguments in favour:

1) The case against immigration controls (New Compass)

2) Britain is not full (New Statesman)

Arguments against:

1) Almost 1 in 8 living in UK are born abroad (Daily Telegraph)

2)Immigration of small benefit to UK (BBC)

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email us at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Follow us on Facebook and Twitter:

Join our facebook group and sign up for all our latest events and news updates. You can also follow us on Twitter to receive new updates and see who else is following us at http://twitter.com/centraldebating

Next debate: Is it time to abolish GMT?

2011-04-02T08:23:00.000-07:00
DATE: Thursday 07 April 2011
TIME: 7.30pm - 9.30pm
VENUE: The Harcourt, 32 Harcourt Street, London W1H 4HX
MOTION: This House Would abolish Greenwich Mean Time (GMT)

Background:

The end of March saw the clocks go forward once more. Should they ever be moved back again?

British Summer Time has been a part of British life since 1916 and was extended in 1960 from 4 months to 7 months. Only once, however, has any government tried to formally abolish GMT and keep the clocks set forward all year round. Harold Wilson's experimentation with British Standard Time ran for 3 years until 1971, before being abandoned. The campaign for lighter evenings (but darker mornings) has continued unabated, though, and the call for change is set to be debated in Parliament with the Daylight Savings Bill, known to have David Cameron's support, already before MPs.

Should GMT be abolished once and for all and how should it be done: in one fell swoop or incrementally month by month? Should the change apply to the entire of the UK or should the regions, such as Scotland, be granted an exemption if they oppose the plan? How should such a decision even be taken? Does the impact it would inevitably have on the day to day lives of people across the country merit a national referendum on the issue?

You decide.

Debate format:

There will be four speakers in this debate, each of whom will have five minutes to make their case. After that there will be an extensive Q&A session to allow the audience plenty of time to have their own say from the floor. The motion will then be put to a vote.

There's always plenty of time to grab a drink and get settled before the event starts too and we always stick around for a few more once it's over as inevitably that is always when the real debating begins.

If you have any questions or need any more information, do not hesitate to email us at central.debating@gmail.com.

Getting there:

If you would like to watch this debate, then simply come along on the night. You will find us in the upstairs dining room of the Harcourt Arms pub at 32, Harcourt Street W1H 4HX (a max 1o min walk from Baker St tube). For directions, see this map.

Admission:

Admission is, as ever, totally free of charge. All are welcome, so if you know anyone who might be interested in this debate, do feel free to bring them along.

Further reading:

Background:

1) Plan to bring clocks forward permanently (BBC)
2) The history of Daylight Saving Time (National Maritime Museum)
3) Public opinion poll on keeping British Summer Time all year (Pelican PR)
4) Russia abolishes Daylight Saving Time - RT News

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email us at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Follow us on Facebook and Twitter:

Join our facebook group and sign up for all our latest events and news updates. You can also follow us on Twitter to receive new updates and see who else is following us at http://twitter.com/centraldebating

Next debate: Thursday 07 April

2011-03-31T04:42:00.000-07:00
Our next debate has been postponed until Thursday 07 April. The motion will be announced shortly. For those of you who were expecting it to take place tonight as originally scheduled, please be aware that we will not be meeting for another week yet.

We can confirm that our next debate will definitely take place next Thursday 07 April from 7.30pm at the Harcourt Arms. In other words: same time and same place as always. Details of the motion to be debated will follow shortly.

Best Wishes

CLDS Team

Question Time Debate

2011-03-13T08:04:00.000-07:00
DATE: Thursday 17 March
TIME: 7.30pm - 9.30pm
VENUE: Harcourt Arms, 32 Harcourt Street W1H 4HX

The format for this week's debate will be a question time style panel where speakers will be free to offer their own perspectives, rather than simply argue in favour of or against a specific motion, and the audience will have a chance to do a lot more of the talking. We will need four speakers who will take questions from the audience throughout the night on three pre-selected topical issues before offering their final thoughts in a short 4 minute speech at the end of the debate.

To ensure we have a rounded and enjoyable debate, we'll throw in a softer, more light-hearted issue to balance out our two hard-hitting headline topics. We will end the night by asking the audience to vote for the speaker they agree with the most.

The topics for this week will be:

1) Is it the government's responsibility to protect us from ourselves as well as from each other?

Background: The government recently announced a ban on the display of cigarrettes in shops across the UK. Should the display of cigarettes in shops be banned? Is smoking a fundamental human right? Should the publicly funded NHS pay for the adverse health effects? Does the tobacco lobby exert undue influence? Have your say.

2) Should Britain suport and participate in a military intervention in Libya?

Background: As the violence in Libya continues to escalate and the British government faces up to a series of high profile diplomatic failures including the capture of a team British SAS soldiers and negotiators, what should the coalition do now? Is an intervention possible without the involvement of the United States and is the opposition right to insist it only take with explicit authorisation from the United Nations. What form should a military intervention take and what happens after that? You decide.

3) What should be England's national vegetable?

Background: Wales has the Leek and Ireland has the potato. From the traditional sprout, still ruling at Christmas, to the more colourful carrot, the soulful chick pea and the salty seaweed, what should be England's national vegetable?

Getting there:

If you would like to watch this debate, then simply come along on the night. You will find us in the upstairs dining room of the Harcourt Arms pub at 32, Harcourt Street W1H 4HX (a max 1o min walk from Baker St tube). For directions, see this map.

Admission:

Admission is, as ever, totally free of charge. All are welcome, so if you know anyone who might be interested in this debate, do feel free to bring them along.

Further reading:

Smoking display ban

1) Government announces ban on shop displays of cigarrettes

2) Smoking display ban is overstepping the mark (Spiked Online)

3) Display ban is moral obligation (Guardian)

Libya

1) Latest update on Libya crisis

2) Why the west should not take military action in Libya (Foreign Policy)

3) Military intervention in Libya is a moral imperative (Observer)

3) England's national vegetable

1) A national vegetable for England? (BBC)

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email us at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Follow us on Facebook and Twitter:

Join our facebook group and sign up for all our latest events and news updates. You can also follow us on Twitter to receive new updates and see who else is following us at http://twitter.com/centraldebating

This House would vote Yes to AV on May 5

2011-02-27T22:43:00.000-08:00
DATE: Thursday, 3rd March
TIME: 7.30pm - 9.30pm
VENUE: The Harcourt Arms
MOTION: This House would vote Yes to AV on May 5

Background:

This May the British public will go to the polls to decide whether we should change the voting system in general elections from the first past the post (FPTP) system in which one candidate is selected by the voter to the alternative vote (AV) system in which candidates are ranked in order of preference.

The complaints made against our current voting system are many. That it disadvantages smaller parties. That it produces safe seats which disenfranchises a large portion of the electorate. That it is not a fair reflection of the will of the British people. Supporters of AV say that it will change all that. Opponents say that FPTP produces strong government and allows the British people to chuck political parties out of power at the ballot box. Some question whether AV will even fix the problems it says it will. It isn't a proportional system and in some people's eyes that means it doesn't go far enough.

Which way should you vote on AV? Come along to this debate to discuss the ideas and arguments from both sides.

Speakers:

This week's debate will be slightly different as we will be inviting four guest speakers, including representatives of both national campaigns for and against voting reform, to take the floor and explain their point of view.

To ensure debating society members are given a chance to speak in this debate, we are adding an extra speaker to each side. so all in all there will be three speakers in favour and three against. the Yes team will be joined by Shaughan Dolan, one of our longest-serving members who is responsible for putting this week's special debate together, leaving the speaking slot on the No side up for grabs.

As we expect several volunteers for this space, in the interests of fairness, we are this week asking any volunteers to send us a single paragraph, summing up their position. The author of the best entry will then be awarded the final speaking slot tomorrow evening to give you enough time to prepare.

Attending the debate:

Because of the high profile of the motion and our speakers, we anticipate this debate being slightly busier than usual. As a result, the debate will begin at 7.30pm on the dot and we request that anyone wishing to attend arrive between 7pm and 7.20pm. If you arrive after 7.30pm and we already have more than 40 people (the full capacity of the room), you may not be able to get in, so please arrive promptly to ensure that you can get a seat. We hope you will stay to share a drink with us and our guest speakers when the debate is over and get to know us all a little better. The room is booked for the whole night.

Further reading:

Alternative Vote Electoral Reform Society

No to AV reject scare stories claim BBC News

David Cameron and the alternative voting system

Is AV a better voting system LSE blog (London School of Economics)

Nick Clegg: The chance to clean up politics and improve democracy Liberal Democrats Website

If you have any questions or need any more information, do not hesitate to email us at central.debating@gmail.com.

Getting there:

You will find us in the upstairs dining room of the Harcourt Arms pub at 32, Harcourt Street W1H 4HX (a max 1o min walk from Baker St tube). For directions, see this map.

Admission:

Admission is, as ever, totally free of charge. All are welcome, so if you know anyone who might be interested in this debate, do feel free to bring them along.

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email us at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Have you seen our website?

Visit us at http://clds.debatewise.com/ and join in our latest debates online from privatising the post office to legalising prostitution.

Follow us on Facebook and Twitter:

Join our facebook group and sign up for all our latest events and news updates. You can also follow us on Twitter to receive new updates and see who else is following us at http://twitter.com/centraldebating

Best wishes
CLDS

This House Believes George W Bush was right

2011-02-12T06:34:00.000-08:00

DATE: Thursday, 17 February 2011

TIME: 7.30pm

VENUE: Harcourt Arms, 32 Harcourt Street, London W1H 4HX

MOTION: This House Believes that George W Bush was right

Background:

The recent resignation of the presidents of Egypt and Tunisia in the face of mass protests have raised the possibility of democratic reforms in the Middle East.

Democracy in this region has always been a tricky subject for the West to deal with. Throughout the latter part of the 20th century the mantra was: "He may be a son of a bitch, but at least he was our son of a bitch", or in other words it didn't matter what a dictator did to his people as long as he gave the West assistance when requested.

This theory was challenged after the 9/11 attacks. George W Bush actively sought to replace anti-US dictators not with pro-US dictators but with western style democracies. Supporters of this policy said that the best way to stop terrorist forces like Al-Qaeda from taking over in the Middle East was to promote democracy.

Although dismissed after the invasion of Iraq, it seems George W Bush's democraticising theory may simply have been ahead of its time. But does it really work? Internationally observed elections in Palestine led to the election of Hamas, a group which is widely regarded as being responsible for terror attacks on Israel.

Is it right for the West to start supporting democracy in the Middle East, even if that results in the election of groups we don't like? How should our leaders respond to the uprisings in Tunisia and Egypt?

You decide.

Debate format:

There will be four speakers in this debate, each of whom will have five minutes to make their case. After that there will be an extensive Q&A session to allow the audience plenty of time to have their own say from the floor. The motion will then be put to a vote.

There's always plenty of time to grab a drink and get settled before the event starts too and we always stick around for a few more once it's over as inevitably that is always when the real debating begins.

If you have any questions or need any more information, do not hesitate to email us at central.debating@gmail.com.

Getting there:

If you would like to watch this debate, then simply come along on the night. You will find us in the upstairs dining room of the Harcourt Arms pub at 32, Harcourt Street W1H 4HX (a max 1o min walk from Baker St tube). For directions, see this map.

Admission:

Admission is, as ever, totally free of charge. All are welcome, so if you know anyone who might be interested in this debate, do feel free to bring them along.

Further reading:

Background:
1) Tunisian President Zine al Abidine Ben Ali forced out (BBC)
2) Egypt President Hosni Mubarak stands down (BBC)
3) Bush demands democracy in the Middle East (BBC)

Commentary and opinion:
1) Predicting the revolution (Shadown Government)
2) America's embarrassing allies (Foreign Policy)
3) Egypt's revolution; Bush's victory (New York Times)
4) George Bush's liberal legacy (Spiegel Online)
5) Was George W Bush right? (The Economist)
6) Problem with democratisation as a strategy (bnet)

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email us at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Follow us on Facebook and Twitter:

Join our facebook group and sign up for all our latest events and news updates. You can also follow us on Twitter to receive new updates and see who else is following us at http://twitter.com/centraldebating

This House Believes that Men are from Mars and Women are from Venus

2011-01-31T04:29:00.001-08:00
DATE: Thursday, 03 February 2011
TIME: 7.30pm
VENUE: Harcourt Arms, 32 Harcourt Street, London W1H 4HX
MOTION: This House Believes that Men are from Mars and Women are from Venus

Background:
Sexism has been back in the news recently when a conversation between two presenters on Sky Sports in which they disparaged a female assistant referee was leaked to the media. Differences between men and women have additionally been raised by the replacing of various female presenters of shows with the suspicion that they have been replaced because of their age, something that is less likely to happen with men. So what is the right response to tackling the apparent sexism in society? Should we be treating men as if they were from Mars and women from Venus? Do we need to give women better (but different) treatment? Or is the concentration on gender actually exacerbating the problem? Is it time to starting treating women exactly as we would treat men?

Who is right? You decide.

There will be four speakers in this debate, each of whom will have five minutes to make their case. After that there will be an extensive Q&A session to allow the audience plenty of time to have their own say from the floor. The motion will then be put to a vote.

There's always plenty of time to grab a drink and get settled before the event starts and we always stick around for a few more once it's over as inevitably that is always when the real debating begins.

If you have any questions or need any more information, do not hesitate to email us at central.debating@gmail.com.

Getting there:

If you would like to watch this debate, then simply come along on the night. You will find us in the upstairs dining room of the Harcourt Arms pub at 32, Harcourt Street W1H 4HX (a max 1o min walk from Baker St tube). For directions, see this map.

Admission:

Admission is, as ever, totally free of charge. All are welcome, so if you know anyone who might be interested in this debate, do feel free to bring them along.

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email us at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Have you seen our website?

Visit us at http://clds.debatewise.com/ and join in our latest debates online from privatising the post office to legalising prostitution.

Follow us on Facebook and Twitter:

Join our facebook group and sign up for all our latest events and news updates. You can also follow us on Twitter to receive new updates and see who else is following us at http://twitter.com/centraldebating

Best wishes

This House would ban state-owned banks from paying out bonuses

2011-01-17T08:38:00.000-08:00
DATE: Thursday, 20 January 2011

TIME: 7.30pm - 9.30pm

VENUE: Harcourt Arms, 32 Harcourt Street, W1H 4HX

MOTION: This House would ban state-owned banks from paying out bonuses

This year the banking sector is set to pay out billions of pounds in bonuses to staff. RBS may pay out £1bn in bonuses, Barclays close to £5bn. All this is going on against a background of cuts and austerity measures in many other sectors. There is enormous public resentment that a group of businesses which were seen to play a large part in causing the financial crisis and many of which only survived thanks to a large investment of public money are never-the-less not sharing the pain. But is this right? Some people would say that bankers are highly paid because they are in high demand. If no-one wanted banks they wouldn't get any money. Would anything actually improve if bankers gave up their bonuses? Or would our banking sector just become much less competitive?

Who is right? You decide.

Further reading:

The arguments banks use to justify bonuses (Financial News)

Bank bonuses not a done deal (Press Association)

Do bankers' bonuses really work (Times)

BBA statement on FSA review of remuneration code (British Bankers Association)

Bonus payments (Financial Times)

Banks fight to keep senior staff in battle for global talent (Financial Times)

There will be four speakers in this debate, each of whom will have five minutes to make their case. After that there will be an extensive Q&A session to allow the audience plenty of time to have their own say from the floor. The motion will then be put to a vote.

There's always plenty of time to grab a drink and get settled before the event starts and we always stick around for a few more once it's over as inevitably that is always when the real debating begins.

If you have any questions or need any more information, do not hesitate to email us at central.debating@gmail.com.

Getting there:

If you would like to watch this debate, then simply come along on the night. You will find us in the upstairs dining room of the Harcourt Arms pub at 32, Harcourt Street W1H 4HX (a max 1o min walk from Baker St tube). For directions, see this map.

Admission:

Admission is, as ever, totally free of charge. All are welcome, so if you know anyone who might be interested in this debate, do feel free to bring them along.

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email us at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Have you seen our website?

Visit us at http://clds.debatewise.com/ and join in our latest debates online from privatising the post office to legalising prostitution.

Follow us on Facebook and Twitter:

Join our facebook group and sign up for all our latest events and news updates. You can also follow us on Twitter to receive new updates and see who else is following us at http://twitter.com/centraldebating

Best wishes
CLDS

Next debate: Thur 6 Jan - This House believes privacy is no longer a social norm

2011-01-02T15:16:00.000-08:00
DATE: Thursday, 6 January 2011

TIME: 7.30pm - 9.30pm

VENUE: Harcourt Arms, 32 Harcourt Street, W1H 4HX

MOTION: This House believes privacy is no longer a social norm

For most of living memory privacy has been a standard in our society. What people knew about you was limited, and only a limited number of people knew information about you. Even the ones who did know, didn't know everything. But now in the days of Facebook, Twitter and YouTube, with the ability to broadcast our thoughts and feelings across the internet to everyone we know and those we don't, is this still the case? Has privacy ceased to be a normal value in society?

Who is right? You decide.

Further reading:

Facebook's Zuckerberg says the age of privacy is over (ReadWriteWeb)

Yahoo, Feds battle over email privacy (Wired)

Social media: privacy and security repercussions (SearchEngineWatch.com)

The European Commission is taking the UK to court for breaking EU rules on safeguarding internet privacy (Independent)

Why McNally may be wrong on privacy law (New Statesman)

Google's EU warning over Street View privacy (Telegraph)

Security breach: Google's admits copying household security passwords (Channel4News)

Information revelation and privacy in online social networks (The Electronic Society, 2005)

There will be four speakers in this debate, each of whom will have five minutes to make their case. After that there will be an extensive Q&A session to allow the audience plenty of time to have their own say from the floor. The motion will then be put to a vote.

There's always plenty of time to grab a drink and get settled before the event starts and we always stick around for a few more once it's over as inevitably that is always when the real debating begins.

If you have any questions or need any more information, do not hesitate to email us at central.debating@gmail.com.

Getting there:

If you would like to watch this debate, then simply come along on the night. You will find us in the upstairs dining room of the Harcourt Arms pub at 32, Harcourt Street W1H 4HX (a max 1o min walk from Baker St tube). For directions, see this map.

Admission:

Admission is, as ever, totally free of charge. All are welcome, so if you know anyone who might be interested in this debate, do feel free to bring them along.

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email us at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Have you seen our website?

Visit us at http://clds.debatewise.com/ and join in our latest debates online from privatising the post office to legalising prostitution.

Follow us on Facebook and Twitter:

Join our facebook group and sign up for all our latest events and news updates. You can also follow us on Twitter to receive new updates and see who else is following us at http://twitter.com/centraldebating

Best wishes
CLDS

Sunday 19 Dec: End of Year Social

2010-12-13T10:32:00.001-08:00
Dear all,

The debating society is breaking for Christmas now, so we thought we'd organise a proper afternoon out to say goodbye to 2010 in style.

Plan is simple: meet at Marble Arch tube station (exit 3 by the Arch itself) at 12.00 noon and while away a few hours in Winter Wonderland where we will eat, drink and be sick on the rollercoasters.

If you'd like to join us, please let Tony know or send an email to central.debating@gmail.com. If you can't make it at 12, then just turn up whenever you can make it and give Tony a call on 0777 565 7712 so he can tell you where we are.

All are welcome, so feel free to bring a friend along.

To all those who can't make it, Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year and we'll see you at our first debate of 2011.

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email us at central.debating@gmail.com.

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Have you seen our website?

Visit us at http://clds.debatewise.com/ and join in our latest debates online from privatising the post office to legalising prostitution.

Follow us on Facebook and Twitter:

Join our facebook group and sign up for all our latest events and news updates. You can also follow us on Twitter to receive new updates and see who else is following us at http://twitter.com/centraldebating

Best wishes
CLDS

Thurs 9 December: Christmas Debate Spectacular

2010-12-06T16:22:00.001-08:00
TIME: 7.30pm - 9.30pm

VENUE: Harcourt Arms, 32 Harcourt Street, W1H 4HX

The Central London Debating Society would like to invite you to the Christmas Debate Spectacular. Unlike normal weeks there is no formal motion this time. Instead we will have a series of smaller debates on different themes, in different styles and involving as many different people as possible. The motions will be announced on the night but don't worry, they will not require any prior research.

We want to try and get as many of you involved as possible so if you've never sat at the front before and debated this is the perfect opportunity to try out your skills. Come along for a light hearted evening of witty banter and Christmas cheer.

There's plenty of time to grab a drink and get settled before the event starts and we will stick around for a few more once it's over as inevitably that is always when the real debating begins.

If you have any questions or need any more information, do not hesitate to email us at central.debating@gmail.com.

Getting there:

If you would like to watch this debate, then simply come along on the night. You will find us in the upstairs dining room of the Harcourt Arms pub at 32, Harcourt Street W1H 4HX (a max 1o min walk from Baker St tube). For directions, see this map.

Admission:

Admission is, as ever, totally free of charge. All are welcome, so if you know anyone who might be interested in this debate, do feel free to bring them along.

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email us at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Have you seen our website?

Visit us at http://clds.debatewise.com/ and join in our latest debates online from privatising the post office to legalising prostitution.

Follow us on Facebook and Twitter:

Join our facebook group and sign up for all our latest events and news updates.You can also follow us on Twitter to receive new updates and see who else is following us at http://twitter.com/centraldebating

Best wishes
CLDS

Next debate - Thur 25 Nov: This House believes that happiness is a better measure of national prosperity than economic growth

2010-11-21T13:12:00.000-08:00
DATE: Thursday, 25 November 2010

TIME: 7.30pm - 9.30pm

VENUE: Harcourt Arms, 32 Harcourt Street, W1H 4HX

MOTION: This House believes that happiness is a better measure of national prosperity than economic growth

The standard measure of how well a country is doing is its gross domestic product. GDP growth is praised whereas shrinking GDP (a recession) is to be avoided at all costs. Falling GDP can lead to a depression in the economy, with the unemployment and associated misery that that brings.

However is GDP the best measure of how well a country is doing? David Cameron recently announced his intention to survey the British people on their happiness levels. Surveys have shown that beyond a certain point money no longer makes you happier. Has economic growth outlived its usefulness as an indicator of how well a country is doing?

Who is right? You decide.

Further reading:

Actually, Mr Cameron, happiness... (The Guardian)

Sarkozy's happiness index (The Independent)

Why it's hard to measure happiness (BBC)

What makes Britain smile (Wired)

Cameron's happiness index (Wall Street Journal)

Happiness revisited (BBC)

Money makes you happy (thisismoney/ Daily Mail)

Can money buy happiness (Scientific American)

There will be four speakers in this debate, each of whom will have five minutes to make their case. After that there will be an extensive Q&A session to allow the audience plenty of time to have their own say from the floor. The motion will then be put to a vote.

There's always plenty of time to grab a drink and get settled before the event starts and we always stick around for a few more once it's over as inevitably that is always when the real debating begins.

If you have any questions or need any more information, do not hesitate to email us at central.debating@gmail.com.

Getting there:

If you would like to watch this debate, then simply come along on the night. You will find us in the upstairs dining room of the Harcourt Arms pub at 32, Harcourt Street W1H 4HX (a max 1o min walk from Baker St tube). For directions, see this map.

Admission:

Admission is, as ever, totally free of charge. All are welcome, so if you know anyone who might be interested in this debate, do feel free to bring them along.

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email us at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Have you seen our website?

Visit us at http://clds.debatewise.com/ and join in our latest debates online from privatising the post office to legalising prostitution.

Follow us on Facebook and Twitter:

Join our facebook group and sign up for all our latest events and news updates.You can also follow us on Twitter to receive new updates and see who else is following us at http://twitter.com/centraldebating

Best wishes
CLDS

Next debate - Thur 11 Nov: This House would give all Prisoners the Vote

2010-11-06T12:26:00.000-07:00

DATE: Thursday, 11 November 2010

TIME: 7.30pm - 9.30pm

VENUE: Harcourt Arms, 32 Harcourt Street, W1H 4HX

MOTION: This House would give all Prisoners the Vote

Like Lords, the mentally ill and the Queen, prisoners have no right to vote in Britain. It is just one of a number of rights (including the right to freedom of movement) that is taken away from prisoners as part of the action of the justice system against them for their crimes. However the European Court of Human Rights has recently ruled that the removal of the right to vote breaches prisoners' human rights and therefore must be reinstated.

Is the judgement of the ECHR correct? Is the right to vote so fundamental that it shouldn't be taken away? Will it help criminals rehabilitate? Does someone who has stepped outside the bounds of society deserve to have a say in how it is run?

Who is right? You decide.

Further reading:

Guardian: Prisoners to get the right to vote

BBC: Q&A UK prisoners' right to vote

Telegraph: Prisoners' right to vote behind bars 'should be restricted', say ministers

Prison Reform Trust: The right to vote for sentenced prisoners

Criminal Justice Alliance: Sep.09 response to Ministry of Justice consultation paper

There will be four speakers in this debate, each of whom will have five minutes to make their case. After that there will be an extensive Q&A session to allow the audience plenty of time to have their own say from the floor. The motion will then be put to a vote.

There's always plenty of time to grab a drink and get settled before the event starts and we always stick around for a few more once it's over as inevitably that is always when the real debating begins.

If you have any questions or need any more information, do not hesitate to email us at central.debating@gmail.com.

Getting there:

If you would like to watch this debate, then simply come along on the night. You will find us in the upstairs dining room of the Harcourt Arms pub at 32, Harcourt Street W1H 4HX (a max 1o min walk from Baker St tube). For directions, see this map.

Admission:

Admission is, as ever, totally free of charge. All are welcome, so if you know anyone who might be interested in this debate, do feel free to bring them along.

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email us at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Have you seen our website?

Visit us at http://clds.debatewise.com/ and join in our latest debates online from privatising the post office to legalising prostitution.

Follow us on Facebook and Twitter:

Join our facebook group and sign up for all our latest events and news updates.You can also follow us on Twitter to receive new updates and see who else is following us at http://twitter.com/centraldebating

Best wishes
CLDS

Next week's unmissable events

2010-10-30T04:24:00.000-07:00
Next week will see two unmissable events in two days. Here's everything you need to know...

1) Monday, 1st November: Coalition spending cuts debate at the Sylvans Debating Society

WHERE: The old Bank of England pub, 194 Fleet Street, EC4A 2LT (nearest tube Holborn or Charing Cross, see here for map)

TIME: 7PM - 9PM

WHAT'S HAPPENING: Our sister society, the Sylvans, will be debating the merits of the coalition government's spending cuts, the motion for the evening being: "This House believes the Government's deficit reduction programme to be a reckless gamble with the economy". Admission to this debate is free and anyone is welcome.

2) Tuesday, 2nd November: 'Mid-terms' election party

WHERE: The Harcourt, 32 Harcourt Street W1H 4HX (nearest tube Baker St, see here for map)

TIME: 7PM - 11PM

WHAT'S HAPPENING: The debating society will be teaming up with award winning blog, 'The Vibe', to host our very own mid-terms party as America goes to the polls. We'll provide some nibbles, while drinks will be available from the downstairs bar all night. As ever, admission to this event is free and anyone is welcome.

Look forward to seeing you there.

The CLDS team

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email us at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Follow us on Facebook and Twitter:

Join our facebook group and sign up for all our latest events and news updates.You can also follow us on Twitter to receive new updates and see who else is following us at http://twitter.com/centraldebating

Next debate - Thur 28 October: Should Britain be a Military Power of the First Rank?

2010-10-23T10:54:00.000-07:00

DATE: Thursday, 28 October 2010

TIME: 7.30pm - 9.30pm

VENUE: Harcourt Arms, 32 Harcourt Street, W1H 4HX

MOTION: This House Believes Britain should be a Military Power of the First Rank

Since the days of the Empire Britain has been a significant military power in the world. Throughout two world wars and numerous other conflicts Britain has had a military that it can be proud of, one which stands shoulder to shoulder with the toughest military powers of the day.

However the recent austerity drive and the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan have led to questions as to whether Britain is still able to measure up on the world stage. Does the world still need Britain to try to defend it? Is it still in the national interest for Britain to have a military that can be described as first rank?

Who is right? You decide.

Further reading:

Strategic defence and security review (British Army)

Press Release (The Cabinet Office)

The national security strategy (Directgov)

UK can no longer mount military operations like Iraq (Guardian)

Winners and losers emerge in defence cuts (FT)

Brfitish cuts to military concern US officials (New York Times)

Navy cuts would lead to Argentina taking Falklands "without shot fired" (Daily Telegraph)

Join the debate:

There will be four speakers in this debate, each of whom will have five minutes to make their case. After that there will be an extensive Q&A session to allow the audience plenty of time to have their own say from the floor. The motion will then be put to a vote.

There's always plenty of time to grab a drink and get settled before the event starts and we always stick around for a few more once it's over as inevitably that is always when the real debating begins.

If you have any questions or need any more information, do not hesitate to email us at central.debating@gmail.com.

Getting there:

If you would like to watch this debate, then simply come along on the night. You will find us in the upstairs dining room of the Harcourt Arms pub at 32, Harcourt Street W1H 4HX (a max 1o min walk from Baker St tube). For directions, see this map.

Admission:

Admission is, as ever, totally free of charge. All are welcome, so if you know anyone who might be interested in this debate, do feel free to bring them along.

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email us at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Have you seen our website?

Visit us at http://clds.debatewise.com/ and join in our latest debates online from privatising the post office to legalising prostitution.

Follow us on Facebook and Twitter:

Join our facebook group and sign up for all our latest events and news updates.You can also follow us on Twitter to receive new updates and see who else is following us at http://twitter.com/centraldebating

Best wishes
CLDS

Next debate - Thursday 14 October - Should universal benefits be capped?

2010-10-10T08:38:00.000-07:00

DATE: Thursday, 14 October 2010

TIME: 7.30pm - 9.30pm

VENUE: Harcourt Arms, 32 Harcourt Street, W1H 4HX

MOTION: This House Would cap universal benefits to reduce the deficit

Last week, the coalition government announced plans to restrict child benefit payments to individuals earning under 44,000 pounds a year and to cap welfare payments overall to 26,000 pounds a year in keeping with the average wage.

The current level of welfare provision, the coalition claims, are no longer affordable at a time when the government's top priority is to reduce the sixe of the deficit. The Labour party and leading trades unions oppose the cuts, however, which they say will harm working families who are vulnerable enough already following the recent recession.

Who is right? You decide.

SPEAKERS:

If you would like to speak in this debate, get in touch and let us know which side you would like to speak on.

As ever, we will also be taking plenty of questions and comments from the floor. So, if you have something to say, come along and we'll make sure you get a chance to speak too.

GETTING THERE:

The Harcourt Arms is just a 10 minute walk from Baker Street tube station. We will be in the upstairs dining room of the pub. If you're not sure where to go, ask anyone behind the bar. For directions to the venue, see: http://tinyurl.com/33vmfp5

FURTHER READING:

Background

1) Coalition cuts child benefit for top earners (BBC News)

2) Ed Miliband opposes child benefit cut (New Statesman)

3) Cutting universal benefits (Guardian)

Arguments for the motion:

1) Public support child benefit cut (Sky News)

2) Universal child benefit is an unaffordable luxury (Politics.co.uk)

3) Universal credit vs universal benefits (Conservative Home)

Arguments against the motion

1) Child benefit cut is an attack on women (Liberal Conspiracy)

2) Benefit cuts don't add up (Hopi Senn)

3) Devolved leaders attack coalition cuts (BBC News)

2010-09-19T14:49:00.000-07:00
DATE: Friday 24 September 2010

TIME: 7.30pm - 9.30pm

VENUE: Harcourt Arms, 32 Harcourt Street W1H 4HX

MOTION: This House believes religion has no place in a modern democracy

Please note this week's debate is on FRIDAY. We have unfortunately been unable to secure the venue for our usual slot and hope that you are able to join us on Friday 24th September instead

Background:

During the recent visit of the Pope to Britain atheist protests highlighted objections to religious considerations in determining what is right, moral or wrong in a democracy.

Faith schools, although praised as providing moral and spiritual guidance as well as education, are criticised by some for biased education and discriminatory admission policies.

Do religious teachings and judgements have any relevance to democracy? Without religion how does society deal with issues of morality? Are countries that have declared a specific religion as the basis of their nation disadvantaged or do they benefit from such structure?

You decide.

Join the debate:

There will be four speakers in this debate, each of whom will have five minutes to make their case. After that there will be an extensive Q&A session to allow the audience plenty of time to have their own say from the floor. The motion will then be put to a vote.

There's always plenty of time to grab a drink and get settled before the event starts and we always stick around for a few more once it's over as inevitably that is always when the real debating begins.

If you have any questions or need any more information, do not hesitate to email us at central.debating@gmail.com.

Getting there:

If you would like to watch this debate, then simply come along on the night. You will find us in the upstairs dining room of the Harcourt Arms pub at 32, Harcourt Street W1H 4HX (a max 1o min walk from Baker St tube). For directions, see this map.

Admission:

Admission is, as ever, totally free of charge. All are welcome, so if you know anyone who might be interested in this debate, do feel free to bring them along.

Further reading:

New Statesman: The case against Vatican power

Daily Telegraph: Pope puts religion back in the spotlight

The Guardian: Faith schools don't blinker children

Government & Social Development Resource Ctre: Religion and democracy in secular states

Marc Stern: Is religion compatible with liberal democracy

Prospect Magazine: The return of goodness

IEP: Utilitarianism and J S Mill

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email us at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Have you seen our website?

Visit us at http://clds.debatewise.com and join in our latest debates online from privatising the post office to legalising prostitution.

Follow us on Facebook and Twitter:

Join our facebook group and sign up for all our latest events and news updates.You can also follow us on Twitter to receive new updates and see who else is following us at http://twitter.com/centraldebating

Best wishes
CLDS

2010-09-05T14:59:00.000-07:00
DATE: Thursday 9 September 2010

TIME: 7.30pm - 9.30pm

VENUE: Harcourt Arms, 32 Harcourt Street W1H 4HX

MOTION: This House would make energy independence the UK's top priority

Background:

In the aftermath of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, the race to find new reserves through the controversial deep sea drilling technique is well under way as nations, including Britain, seek to meet their growing demand for energy without increasing their dependence on foreign resources.

Meanwhile, one of the most comprehensive assessments ever conducted of global temperatures by the Met Office has been cited as the greatest evidence yet of global warming.

How urgent is energy independence, at a time when western economies remain frail as they begin to emerge from the recession? Is now the time to embrace alternative energy and, if so, which alternatives?

You decide.

Join the debate:

There will be four speakers in this debate, each of whom will have five minutes to make their case. After that there will be an extensive Q&A session to allow the audience plenty of time to have their own say from the floor. The motion will then be put to a vote.

There's always plenty of time to grab a drink and get settled before the event starts and we always stick around for a few more once it's over as inevitably that is always when the real debating begins.

If you have any questions or need any more information, do not hesitate to email me at central.debating@gmail.com

Getting there:

If you would like to watch this debate, then simply come along on the night. You will find us in the upstairs dining room of the Harcourt Arms pub at 32, Harcourt Street W1H 4HX (a max 1o min walk from Baker St tube). For directions, see this map.

Admission:

Admission is, as ever, totally free of charge. All are welcome, so if you know anyone who might be interested in this debate, do feel free to bring them along.

Further reading:

Oil (The Guardian)

Oil company proifts (Wall Street Journal)

Land development (National Grid)

Fossil fuels and nuclear power (Greenpeace)

Climate change (BBC Weather)

Takeover bid for North Sea oil explorer (The Guardian)

Scheme to pull 'electricity from the air' (BBC)

Wind turbines for Swindon's Honda plant (BBC)

Dirty energy - Canadian crude (The Economist)

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email me at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Have you seen our website?

Visit us at http://clds.debatewise.com and join in our latest debates online from privatising the post office to legalising prostitution.

Follow us on Facebook and Twitter:

Join our facebook group and sign up for all our latest events and news updates.You can also follow us on Twitter to receive new updates and see who else is following us at http://twitter.com/centraldebating

Best wishes
CLDS

Burqa debate in Fleet Street

2010-09-02T04:01:00.000-07:00

Our friends at the Sylvans debating society will be debating the proposed burqa bans sweeping Europe and have invited us to join them. The motion for the debate is 'This House Would ban the burqa'.

The event is open to all and will take place at the Old Bank of England pub in Fleet Street - see http://tiny.cc/cwdl7 for a map of the area - from 7pm. Audience members will be free to make their own floor speeches for up to five minutes, so if you have something to say on this topic, come along.

Check out their website for further details: http://www.sylvans.org.uk/

Our next debate will take place next week, details of which will be sent out shortly.

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email us at central.debating@gmail.com. Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Have you seen our website?

Visit us at http://clds.debatewise.com/ and join in our latest debates online from privatising the post office to legalising prostitution.

Follow us on Facebook and Twitter:

Join our facebook group and sign up for all our latest events and news updates. You can also follow us on Twitter to receive new updates and see who else is following us at http://twitter.com/centraldebating.

Best Wishes

The CLDS Team

2010-08-22T11:56:00.000-07:00
DATE: Thursday 26 August

TIME: 7.30pm – 9.30pm

VENUE: Harcourt Arms, 32 Harcourt Street W1H 4HX

MOTION: Superpower special (panel debate)

Dear all,

It's that time of the year again.

We've been grappling with some serious issues over the last few weeks at CLDS and will be taking on many more in the weeks to come. So, as we wave goodbye to August, we commemorate what few days of sunshine we've had with the debating society summer special in the form of one of our much loved panel debates.

This year, we will welcome five volunteers to choose a superpower and argue why theirs is the best of them all over a series of rounds. At the end of each round, the audience will be asked to vote off one member of the panel until we are left with the winner.

The powers available are: the ability to fly, X-ray vision, invisibility, the ability to breathe underwater, and telepathy.

Join the debate:

If you would like to speak in this debate, get in touch ASAP and let us know which superpower you would like to speak for. Also, if you're really itching to take part, but would rather select your own power, then let us know and we'll consider it, but we can tell you now the ability to steal other people's powers is not on the table.

There will still be a Q&A for people who'd rather come along and pepper the speakers with their questions, so plenty of opportunities for everyone to take part.If you have any questions or need any more information, do not hesitate to email us at central.debating@gmail.com.

Getting there:

If you would like to watch this debate, then simply come along on the night. You will find us in the upstairs dining room of the Harcourt Arms pub at 32, Harcourt Street W1H 4HX (a max 10 min walk from Baker St tube). For directions, see this map.

Admission:

Admission is, as ever, totally free of charge. All are welcome, so if you know anyone who might be interested in this debate, do feel free to bring them along.

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email us at central.debating@gmail.com. Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Have you seen our website?

Visit us at http://clds.debatewise.com/ and join in our latest debates online from privatising the post office to legalising prostitution.

Follow us on Facebook and Twitter:

Join our facebook group and sign up for all our latest events and news updates. You can also follow us on Twitter to receive new updates and see who else is following us at http://twitter.com/centraldebating.

Best Wishes
The CLDS Team

2010-08-08T11:19:00.000-07:00
DATE: Thursday 12 August 2010

TIME: 7.30pm - 9.30pm

VENUE: Harcourt Arms, 32 Harcourt Street W1H 4HX

MOTION: This House Believes the internet is the biggest threat to national security

Background:

China hacking into Google accounts, Julian Assanage revealing thousands of pages of classified documents on the war in Afghanistan, a single British citizen hacking into the Pentagon databases.

Is the internet now the biggest threat to national security? From partial bans on blackberries in the Middlle East to manhunts for whistleblowers and extradition trials for computer hackers here in the UK, governments across the world are clamping down on the internet.

Are they right to be so concerned and take such drastic action? You decide.

Join the debate:

There will be four speakers in this debate, each of whom will have five minutes to make their case. After that there will be an extensive Q&A session to allow the audience plenty of time to have their own say from the floor. The motion will then be put to a vote.

There's always plenty of time to grab a drink and get settled before the event starts and we always stick around for a few more once it's over as inevitably that is always when the real debating begins.

If you have any questions or need any more information, do not hesitate to email me at central.debating@gmail.com

Getting there:

If you would like to watch this debate, then simply come along on the night. You will find us in the upstairs dining room of the Harcourt Arms pub at 32, Harcourt Street W1H 4HX (a max 1o min walk from Baker St tube). For directions, see this map.

Admission:

Admission is, as ever, totally free of charge. All are welcome, so if you know anyone who might be interested in this debate, do feel free to bring them along.

Further reading:

Background to the motion:

1) What is Wikileaks? (BBC)

2) Google suspects China of cyber-attacks (AFP)

3) Proposed Blackberry ban criticised (CNET)

Arguments in favour:

4) A defence of state secrecy (Public Technology)

5) Wkileaks morally guilty (Reuters)

6) Cyber-war threat from China (Times)

Arguments against:

6) Cybercrime is not national security threat (Dark Government)

7) Al Qaeda biggest threat to national security (Times)

8) National security redefined by globalisation (Council for Foreign Relations)

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email me at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Have you seen our website?

Visit us at http://clds.debatewise.com and join in our latest debates online from privatising the post office to legalising prostitution.

Follow us on Facebook and twitter:

Join our facebook group and sign up for all our latest events and news updates.You can also follow us on Twitter to receive new updates and see who else is following us at http://twitter.com/centraldebating

Best WishesTony

2010-07-23T21:36:00.000-07:00
Date: Thursday 29 July

Time: 7.30pm - 9.30pm

Venue: Harcourt Arms, 32 Harcourt Street, W1H 4HX

Motion: This House Would cut government funding for the Football Association

Background:

The dismal performance of the national team in the World Cup last month left English football in disarray and reignited the debate over whether the sport's governing body, the Football Association (FA), is fit for purpose.

The government has been pressuring the FA to accept a raft of sweeping reforms first proposed back in 2005 and has threatened to cut funding before, but has never followed through.

As Britain comes to term with the austerity budget with government departments facing up to 40% cuts in some cases, is it time the new government laid down the law and cut funding to the FA?

You decide.

Join the debate:

There will be four speakers in this debate, each of whom will have five minutes to make their case. After that there will be an extensive Q&A session to allow the audience plenty of time to have their own say from the floor. The motion will then be put to a vote.

There's always plenty of time to grab a drink and get settled before the event starts and we always stick around for a few more once it's over as inevitably that is always when the real debating begins.

If you have any questions or need any more information, do not hesitate to email me at central.debating@gmail.com

Getting there:

If you would like to watch this debate, then simply come along on the night. You will find us in the upstairs dining room of the Harcourt Arms pub at 32, Harcourt Street W1H 4HX (a max 1o min walk from Baker St tube). For directions, see this map.

Admission:

Admission is, as ever, totally free of charge. All are welcome, so if you know anyone who might be interested in this debate, do feel free to bring them along.

Further reading:

1) Proposed government reforms of the FA (BBC)

2) New coalition sports minister presses FA for reform (FC Business)

3) Serious financial challenges ahead for FA (Guardian)

4) Sweeping cuts to sport budget (Guardian)

5) National team will continue to struggle until FA is reformed (Daily Telegraph)

6) FIFA rules prohibit government from interfering in FA affairs (Financial Times)

7) FA set for state independence (Daily Mirror)

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email me at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Have you seen our website?

Have you seen our website yet? Visit us at http://clds.debatewise.com and join in our latest debates online from privatising the post office to legalising prostitution.

Follow us on Facebook and twitter

Join our facebook group and sign up for all our latest events and news updates.

You can also follow us on Twitter to receive new updates and see who else is following us at http://twitter.com/centraldebating

Best Wishes

Tony

Next debate: Is feminism outdated?

2010-07-10T07:32:00.000-07:00
DATE: THURSDAY 15 JULY

TIME: 7.30PM - 9.30PM

VENUE: HARCOURT ARMS, W1H 4HX

MOTION: THIS HOUSE BELIEVES FEMINISM IS OUTDATED

Background:

The history of feminism, widely understood as the struggle for equality of the sexes, is as long as the history of civilisation itself: famous feminists can be traced back as far as ancient Greece if not further. The last century, however, has arguably seen greater progress for women's rights, across the world than at any other time.

The suffragettes secured the legal and political rights that paved the way for the women who now occupy top positions in businesses, courtrooms, and governments too. The second wave of feminism in the 1960s and 1970s fought for social equality, campaigning for contraception, abortion rights, sexual harrasment laws, and a general reversal of attitudes towards women.

So, is the struggle now over? Or has it at least changed enough to render the traditional feminist outlook on the world obsolete? You decide.

Join the debate:

There will be four speakers in this debate, each of whom will have five minutes to make their case. After that there will be an extensive Q&A session to allow the audience plenty of time to have their own say from the floor. The motion will then be put to a vote.

There's always plenty of time to grab a drink and get settled before the event starts and we always stick around for a few more once it's over as inevitably that is always when the real debating begins.

If you have any questions or need any more information, do not hesitate to email me at central.debating@gmail.com

Getting there:

If you would like to watch this debate, then simply come along on the night. You will find us in the upstairs dining room of the Harcourt Arms pub at 32, Harcourt Street W1H 4HX (a max 1o min walk from Baker St tube). For directions, see this map.

Admission:

Admission is, as ever, totally free of charge. All are welcome, so if you know anyone who might be interested in this debate, do feel free to bring them along.

Further reading

Background info:

1) A brief history of feminism - New Internationalist

2) What is feminism? - Wikipedia

3) UK Equality Act 2010 (summary) - Government Equalities Office

Arguments for the motion:

4) Women: are we equal now? - Spiked Online

5) Why I'm not a feminist, but a womanist - Guardian

6) The social movement left out - SOA Watch

Arguments against the motion:

7) Is feminism dead? New Statesman

8) Feminism today - Guardian

9) The third wave of feminism - The F-word

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email me at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Have you seen our website?

Have you seen our website yet? Visit us at http://clds.debatewise.com and join in our latest debates online from privatising the post office to legalising prostitution.

Follow us on Facebook and twitter

Join our facebook group and sign up for all our latest events and news updates.

You can also follow us on Twitter to receive new updates and see who else is following us at http://twitter.com/centraldebating

Best Wishes

Tony

Central returns from its summer break...sort of

2010-07-02T14:46:00.000-07:00
It's been a few weeks since our last debate which itself marked a dramatic first for the society. The motion was on whether or not it is right to use force to stop the spread of nuclear weapons. After a preliminary vote showed the majority of the audience to be opposed to the idea, the motion's proponents successfully turned enough people during the ensuing debate to win the final vote. Impressive!

Since then, we've been on something of an enforced break as there is no virtually no bar in London that hasn't hired out all its spare rooms to screen the world cup with our regular venue, the Harcourt Arms, proving to be no exception. So, we took the opportunity to hold our first Annual General Meeting (AGM) in which we invited members to discuss with us what they like most about the society, what they think we could do better and where they see it all going in the future.

You can read the full minutes of the meeting here, but if you're just looking for the jist of it, here is a brief list of the top priorities we agree for the society in the next year:

The formation of an executive committee to plan out and administer the society's activities, consisting of five people be chosen through open elections at our next debate (15 July)

The location of a new venue (as much as we love the Harcourt Arms) that provides wheelchair access to the debating chamber aka a nice cosy room above a well stocked bar

Increased provision of training and feedback for members looking to learn how to improve their public speaking and debating skills

Linking up with fellow speaking clubs and debating society across London to host our first debating tournament

Creating a new website, in addition to (not in place of) our fine blog to keep members and visitors updated about debates and related events of interest across the capital

Our next debate will be held on Thursday 15 July at the Harcourt Arms which is also when we will be electing officers for our brand new executive committee. The only condition for people interested in applying is that you must first be a member of the debating society. However, joining up is free of charge, so if you're interested, just email me at central.debating@gmail.com

The motion for the next debate will be announced shortly and all details wll be duly posted here as soon as they are available.

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email me at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Have you seen our website?

Have you seen our website yet? Visit us at http://clds.debatewise.com and join in our latest debates online from privatising the post office to legalising prostitution.

Follow us on Facebook and twitter

Join our facebook group and sign up for all our latest events and news updates.

You can also follow us on Twitter to receive new updates and see who else is following us at http://twitter.com/centraldebating

Best Wishes

Tony

Next debate: Thursday 10 June - Nuclear disarmament

2010-06-03T17:10:00.000-07:00

DATE: Thursday 10 June 2010

TIME: 7.30pm - 9.30pm

VENUE: Harcourt Arms, W1H 4HX

MOTION: This House Would use force to stop the proliferation of nuclear weapons

BACKGROUND:

Last week, almost 200 nations came together in New York to agree to an international plan, spearheaded by American President Barack Obama, to strengthen the nuclear non-proliferation treaty (NPT) driven by the aspiration to eventually rid the world of atomic weapons.

At the same time, Iran is continuing to defy its critics by developing nuclear power, while North Korea, widely believed to already possess nuclear weapons, has reignited old hostilities with its southern neighbours. India, Pakistan, and Israel menawhile refuse to even sign the NPT.

So, is global nuclear disarmament an achievable or desirable goal? Do all states who choose to ignore such sentiments have the right to build their own nuclear weapons? Can any one country be trusted more (or less) with nuclear technology than any other and do the world's leading powers have a duty or a right to intervene to prevent the proliferation of such weapons?

JOIN THE DEBATE:

There will be four speakers in this debate, each of whom will have five minutes to make their case. After that there will be an extensive Q&A session to allow the audience plenty of time to have their own say from the floor. The motion will then be put to a vote.

There's always plenty of time to grab a drink and get settled before the event starts and we always stick around for a few more once it's over as inevitably that is always when the real debating begins.

If you have any questions or need any more information, do not hesitate to email me at central.debating@gmail.com

GETTING THERE:

If you would like to watch this debate, then simply come along on the night. You will find us in the upstairs dining room of the Harcourt Arms pub at 32, Harcourt Street W1H 4HX (a max 1o min walk from Baker St tube). For directions, see this map.

ADMISSION:

Admission is, as ever, totally free of charge. All are welcome, so if you know anyone who might be interested in this debate, do feel free to bring them along.

FURTHER READING:

1) Israel rejects nuclear Middle East talks plan - BBC

2) Nuclear disarmament Q&A - BBC

3) U.S hopes for Iran sanctions vote at UN next week - AFP

4) North Korea says war with South Korea could begin at any moment - Bloomberg

5) Nuclear non-Proliferation Treaty - United Nations

6) The spread of nuclear weapons: a debate - Reason magazine

7) Pre-emptive nuclear strike a key option, NATO told - Guardian

8) Diplomacy best approach to end nuclear proliferation - Defense Talk

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email me at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Have you seen our website?

Have you seen our website yet? Visit us at http://clds.debatewise.com and join in our latest debates online from privatising the post office to legalising prostitution.

Follow us on Facebook and twitter

Join our facebook group and sign up for all our latest events and news updates.

You can also follow us on Twitter to receive new updates and see who else is following us at http://twitter.com/centraldebating

Best Wishes

Tony

Next debate: Bankers' bonuses

2010-05-23T07:15:00.000-07:00

DATE: Wednesday 26 May 2010

TIME: 7.30pm - 9.30pm

VENUE: Harcourt Arms, W1H 4HX

MOTION: This House Would place a bank on bankers' bonuses

BACKGROUND:

After the triumph of proportional representation two weeks ago, our next debate will deal with another one of the country's hot potato issues: bankers bonuses. Should they be capped in a bid to reign in the city and its excesses or are we making a scapegoat of an entire profession and in so doing jeopardising the recovery? You decide.

JOIN THE DEBATE:

There will be four speakers in this debate, each of whom will have five minutes to make their case. After that there will be an extensive Q&A session to allow the audience plenty of time to have their own say from the floor. The motion will then be put to a vote.

There's always plenty of time to grab a drink and get settled before the event starts and we always stick around for a few more once it's over as inevitably that is always when the real debating begins.

If you have any questions or need any more information, do not hesitate to email me at central.debating@gmail.com

GETTING THERE:

If you would like to watch this debate, then simply come along on the night. You will find us in the upstairs dining room of the Harcourt Arms pub at 32, Harcourt Street W1H 4HX (a max 1o min walk from Baker St tube). For directions, see this map.

ADMISSION:

Admission is, as ever, totally free of charge. All are welcome, so if you know anyone who might be interested in this debate, do feel free to bring them along.

NOTE:

This debate will take place on WEDNESDAY 26th May. This is due to our room already being booked out for the Eurovision semi-finals on Thursday (I know, I know). My apologies for any inconvenience this may cause. The change in date is for this week only and we will return to our usual Thursday slot for the next debate.

FURTHER READING:

You want to know more about this subject? Here are a few helpful links...

1) Liberal Democrats proposal for bonus cap (BBC)

2) A defence of bankers' bonuses (Times)

3) Q&A on bankers' bonuses (BBC)

4) Goldman Sachs imposes bonus cap (Guardian)

5) FSA bans guaranteed bonuses (Reuters)

6) News report on surge in bankers' earnings (Guardian)

7) Lloyds shareholders back salary and bonus packages (Reuters)

8) EU consensus on bankers' bonuses (EU Observer)

9) Bonus reform: country by country (BBC)

10) 25 people to blame for financial crisis (TIME)

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email me at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Have you seen our website?

Have you seen our website yet? Visit us at http://clds.debatewise.com and join in our latest debates online from privatising the post office to legalising prostitution.

Follow us on Facebook and twitter

Join our facebook group and sign up for all our latest events and news updates.

You can also follow us on Twitter to receive new updates and see who else is following us at http://twitter.com/centraldebating

Best Wishes

Tony

Proportional Representation wins out in electoral reform debate

2010-05-14T07:24:00.000-07:00
Motion: This House Believes in Proportional Representation

Vote: 12 in favour, 3 against, 2 abstentions

Result: Motion passed

Last night's debate saw the proponents of Proportional Representation (PR) score an overwhelming victory, securing a healthy majority of the audience vote. The motion, 'This House Believes in PR', passed smoothly with 12 votes in favour and just 3 against with 2 abstentions.

The opposition made a spirited defence of the First Past the Post system on the one hand, while advancing several proposals of their own to resolve the problems raised with the current electoral system during the debate on the other. Ultimately, however, the proposition's call for a new system to address the disenfranchisement of voters in safe seats and to foster the co-operative spirit of coalition government persuaded the voters in the audience to support them.

Thank you to our speakers and to our discerning audience whose eagle eye scrutiny of the arguments contributed as much to the result as the speeches themselves. The evening was roundly enjoyed by all and it was great to see so many new faces along with a host of regulars without whom the debating society would not be the same.

The theme for our next debate will be the economy and will take place on Thursday May 27th. The motion has yet to be decided, but will be announced shortly.

Upcoming Events:

Saturday May 29 - Public Speaking Olympiad
The Olympiad will take place all day from 10.30am to 4.30pm at the London pub, The George, which is located on the Strand opposite the Law Courts.

The day will feature four teams assembled from speaking clubs across the country each competing in several different formats from conventional public speaking to parliamentary debating.

Admission for the whole day costs just £5, but there are only limited places available, so if you are interested in taking part, please contact Gwyn Redgers at gwyn@collegeofpublicspeaking.co.uk or on 0208 785 6910

Friday 04 June - Annual dinner debate
This prestigious dinner is one of the highlights of the public speaking calendar and will be held by the Sylvan's debating society at the Spaghetti House on 30 St Martin's Lane, London WC2.

Guests will be treated to a special menu and a night of light debate and are requested to arrive at 6.30pm for a 7pm start. Tickets for the dinner, including one free glass of wine, will cost £27.

To book your place at the dinner and find out more information about the evening, please contact Donald Leon Soon on 0208 904 8056 or email gwyn@redgers.com

Monday 07 June - Marriage debate
Hosted once more by the Sylvan's debating society, the motion for their monthly debate will be 'This House Believes the government should encourage marriage'.

The debate will be held at the Old Bank of England pub on Fleet Street, EC4A 2LT from 7pm. There will be just two speakers for this debate and the audience will be invited to make floor speeches of their own too.

Admission for this debate is free and all our welcome. For further details, contact Gwyn Redgers on 0208 785 6910 or at gwyn.redgers.com

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email me at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Have you seen our website?

Have you seen our website yet? Visit us at http://clds.debatewise.com and join in our latest debates online from privatising the post office to legalising prostitution.

Follow us on Facebook and twitter

Join our facebook group and sign up for all our latest events and news updates.

You can also follow us on Twitter to receive new updates and see who else is following us at http://twitter.com/centraldebating

Best Wishes

Tony

Next debate: This House Believes in Proportional Representation - Thursday 13 May from 7.30pm

2010-05-09T03:23:00.000-07:00
DATE: Thursday 13 May

TIME: 7.30pm - 9.30pm

VENUE: Harcourt Arms, 32 Harcourt Street, W1H 4HX (see map here)

MOTION: This House Believes in Proportional Representation

BACKGROUND:

This week our debate returns to its usual Thursday night slot; same time, same place as usual. I invite you to join us as we examine the case for and against proportional representation.

A hung parliament and the prospect of a coalition government has suddenly seen electoral reform become more than just a talking point as the Conservatives and Labour both woo the Liberal Democrats for their support.

There are many questions to be had about which type of PR system works best, but the big issue of whether it is a fair way of deciding who runs the country in the first place remains. This will be our topic for Thursday's debate.

JOIN THE DEBATE

If you would like to come along and watch this debate, then simply come along on the night. You will find us in the upstairs dining room of the Harcourt Arms pub at 32, Harcourt Street W1H 4HX (a max 1o min walk from Baker St tube). For directions, see this map.

There will be four speakers in this debate, each of whom will have five minutes to make their case. After that there will be an extensive Q&A session to allow the audience plenty of time to have their own say from the floor. The motion will then be put to a vote.

There's always plenty of time to grab a drink and get settled before the event starts and we always stick around for a few more once it's over as inevitably that is always when the real debating begins.

If you have any questions or need any more information, do not hesitate to email me at central.debating@gmail.com

ADMISSION

Admission is, as ever, totally free of charge. All are welcome, so if you know anyone who might be interested in this debate, do feel free to bring them along.

FURTHER READING

A few links which may be helpful to anyone looking to learn a little more about this subject...

1) What is proportional representation - politics.co.uk

2) Half of UK voters want PR - Daily Telegraph

3) Examples of coalition government from across the world - BBC

4) First Past the Post VS Proportional Representation - about.com:economics

5) An unfair system: interesting consequences - Angry Mob blog

6) David Cameron on Proportional Representation - Guardian

7) Ten arguments against PR - News Junction

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email me at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Have you seen our website?

Have you seen our website yet? Visit us at http://clds.debatewise.com and join in our latest debates online from privatising the post office to legalising prostitution.

Follow us on Facebook and twitter

Join our facebook group and sign up for all our latest events and news updates.

You can also follow us on Twitter to receive new updates and see who else is following us at http://twitter.com/centraldebating

Best Wishes

Tony

Next debate: election special

2010-04-20T16:20:00.000-07:00
DATE: Wednesday 28th April 2010

TIME: 7.30pm - 9.30pm

VENUE: Harcourt Arms, York Street, W1H 4HX

MOTION: Which party deserves to win the election?

Next Wednesday, the Central London Debating Society will host its own election special: a balloon debate in which each speaker will have to make their case in a series of rounds, being voted off one by one. The last man or woman standing will be the winner - now if only all elections could be decided that way!

THE PARTIES

There will be five parties represented at this debate: the Labour party, the Conservative party, the Liberal Democrats, the Green party and UKIP.

THE FORMAT

In the first round, each speaker will only be allowed to make a positive case for their own party. In the second round, they will only be allowed to tell the audience why they should not vote for any of the other parties. The third round will be a Q&A session and in the final round, the two remaining speakers will be able to make their case however they wish. One speaker will be voted off after each round by the audience.

SPEAKERS

There will be five speakers in this debate, one for each party. All contestants will have 5 minutes each to speak in every round.

As for our discerning audience, only one of the rounds will be devoted to a Q&A for this debate, but you will be able to vote off one of the speakers at the end of each round. So, if you're interested in watching this debate, then just come along on the night and enjoy.

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email me at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Have you seen our website?

Have you seen our website yet? Visit us at http://clds.debatewise.com and join in our latest debates online from privatising the post office to legalising prostitution.

Follow us on Facebook and twitter

Join our facebook group and sign up for all our latest events and news updates.

You can also follow us on Twitter to receive new updates and see who else is following us at http://twitter.com/centraldebating

Best Wishes

Tony

Fancy being on live TV this month? Read on...

2010-04-16T13:26:00.000-07:00
ITV recently got in touch, asking me to pass on the details of anyone interested in being an audience member for their election special discussion programmes over the coming weeks. They are still looking for new people and their only criteria are that you can't already be a member of a political party or a candidate in the upcoming elections.

The show, called campaign 2010 (what else would it be called?) will be similar in format to Question Time with senior political figures appearing on a panel of special guests. Audience members would also be invited to make their own comments and ask questions from the floor.

So, if you're interested in making your own personal contribution to the election campaign on live TV, let me know by emailing: central.debating@gmail.com with your name and daytime telephone number and I will pass on your details immediately.

The dates of the shows for which ITV are recruiting their audiences are as follows. If you have any specific preferences, be sure to include them in your email.

Tuesday 20 April – 9.30pm
Tuesday 27 April – 8.00pm
Tuesday 4 May – 8.00pm

There is no set cut off point for new submissions of interest just yet, but obviously the sooner you get in touch the better.

P.S. ITV are looking for ordinary voters, but are also keen to find supporters of each political party, so if you do lean one way or the other, it will probably help your chances of getting on the show if you let me know.

Of course, it goes without saying that your information will not be shared with anyone other than the producer at ITV or used for any purpose other than getting you on the box in prime time.

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email me at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Have you seen our website?

Have you seen our website yet? Visit us at http://clds.debatewise.com and join in our latest debates online from privatising the post office to legalising prostitution.

Follow us on Facebook and twitter

Join our facebook group and sign up for all our latest events and news updates.

You can also follow us on Twitter to receive new updates and see who else is following us at http://twitter.com/centraldebating

Best Wishes

Tony

Next debate: Organ donation

2010-04-12T07:09:00.000-07:00
DATE: Wednesday 14 April 2010

TIME: 7.30PM - 9.30PM

VENUE: Harcourt Arms, York Street, W1H 4HX

MOTION: This House Would automatically place all UK citizens on the organ donor register

The government originally gave its backing to this proposal in 2008 and it has been a hot topic of debate ever since. The British Medical Association has lined up with the government calling for a system of 'presumed consent', while other organisations such as Patient Concern have and the Human Tissue Authority have opposed a change in the law.

So, who is right? You decide.

If you would like to watch this debate, then just come along on the night. Each speaker will have five minutes to make their case, following which there will be an extensive Q&A session to allow the audience plenty of time to have their own say from the floor. The motion will then be put to a vote.

This debate will as usual take place in the upstairs dining room of the Harcourt Arms, a cosy pub at the end of York Street and just five minutes walk from Baker Street tube station. For directions, see here.

Please feel free to join for a few drinks once the event is over as inevitably that is always when the real debating begins.

If you have any questions or need any more information, do not hesitate to email me at central.debating@gmail.com

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email me at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Have you seen our website?

Have you seen our website yet? Visit us at http://clds.debatewise.com and join in our latest debates online from privatising the post office to legalising prostitution.

Follow us on Facebook and twitter

Join our facebook group and sign up for all our latest events and news updates.

You can also follow us on Twitter to receive new updates and see who else is following us at http://twitter.com/centraldebating

Best Wishes

Tony

Two upcoming events you won't want to miss

2010-03-30T07:25:00.000-07:00
There are two very special debates coming up in April, courtesy of the London Cogers and the Sylvans Debating Club, which I highly recommend for anyone interested in politics and public speaking.

1) Tuesday 06 April 2010 at 7pm in the Old Bank of England on Fleet St

"This House would welcome a hung parliament"
- Proposer: David Babington-Smith
- Opposer: Donald Leon Soon

2) Monday 19 April at 7pm in The George, also on Fleet St

The UK constitution debate - £3 suggested donation

Speakers:

1) The case for keeping it - Steve Doran (Central London Debating Soc)
2) The case for scrapping it and starting again - Dave Cozens (Cogers)
3) Is there a case for change? - Nat le Roux (Constitution Society)

Guests are welcome to turn up on the night, but if you wish to pre-book your place or you have any other questions or enquiries, please either email contact@cogers.org or telephone Gwyn Redgers on 0208 785 6910

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email me at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Have you seen our website?

Have you seen our website yet? Visit us at http://clds.debatewise.com and join in our latest debates online from privatising the post office to legalising prostitution.

Follow us on Facebook and twitter

Join our facebook group and sign up for all our latest events and news updates.

You can also follow us on Twitter to receive new updates and see who else is following us at http://twitter.com/centraldebating

Best Wishes

Tony

Next debate: This House Would directly elect the Prime Minister

2010-03-15T15:56:00.000-07:00
Date: Thursday 18th March 2010

Time: 7.30pm - 9.00pm

Venue: Harcourt Arms, York Street, W1H 4HX

Motion: This House Would directly elect the Prime Minister

Background:

As Britain moves closer to an American-style election campaign with the leaders of the three main political parties contesting the country's first television debate and parties obsess over the poll ratings of their leaders, it seems that voters are being asked to choose a Prime Minister even though they are only empowered to elect their local MP.

So, is it time we directly elected our Prime Minister or should MPs alone be left to decide who will run the country?

How to participate:

There will be four speakers for this debate - two in favour of the motion and two against. Each speaker will have five minutes to make their case before handing over to the audience for their questions and comments.

After that, each side will be asked to select one speaker to make a two minute closing speech. The audience will then vote on the motion.

If you're interested in coming along, then feel free just to turn up on the night and see how it's done. If you do have something to say, we always encourage our audiences to contribute to the debate and keep the speakers on their toes.

Venue:

We hold each of our fortnightly debates in the upstairs dining room of the Harcourt Arms pub in York St, just five minutes walk from Baker Street and Edgware Road tube stations. They serve plenty of food and take orders at the bar.

We have the room for the entire night till closing time, so feel free to join us for some food and drink after the debate. For a map of the area, see here.

Contact:

If you would like to come to this debate or you have any questions about how it all works, email central.debating@gmail.com

Alternatively, just turn up on the night. You'll always be welcome.

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email me at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Have you seen our website?

Have you seen our website yet? Visit us at http://clds.debatewise.com and join in our latest debates online from privatising the post office to legalising prostitution.

Follow us on Facebook and twitter

Join our facebook group and sign up for all our latest events and news updates.

You can also follow us on Twitter to receive new updates and see who else is following us at http://twitter.com/centraldebating

Best Wishes

Tony

Next debate: Can and should the media ever really be impartial?

2010-03-01T16:17:00.000-08:00
Date: Thursday 4th March 2010

Time: 7.30pm - 9.00pm

Venue: Harcourt Arms, York Street, W1H 4HX

Motion: This House Believes that media impartiality is neither possible nor desirable

Background:

A committment to impartiality has long been the backbone on British journalism. Yet continually the media has come under fire for being biased on one side or another including the globally respected BBC.

On the other side of the Atlantic, however, American news corporations with overtly left or right wing agendas are commonplace and boast legions of devout followers across the country.

Speakers:

There will be four speakers for this debate - two in favour of the motion and two against. Each speaker will have five minutes to make their case before handing over to the audience for their questions and comments.

After that, each side will be asked to select one speaker to make a two minute closing speech. The audience will then vote on the motion.

If you're interested in coming along, then feel free just to turn up on the night and see how it's done. If you do have something to say, we always encourage our audiences to contribute to the debate and keep the speakers on their toes.

Venue:

We hold each of our fortnightly debates in the upstairs dining room of the Harcourt Arms pub in York St, just five minutes walk from Baker Street and Edgware Road tube stations. They serve plenty of food and take orders at the bar.

We have the room for the entire night till closing time, so feel free to join us for some food and drink after the debate. For a map of the area, see here.

Other upcoming events:

On Wednesday 3rd March, the Camden speakers club will be hosting an evening with Evan Harris MP, entitled the 'Art of Persuasion'. The event will be held at the Camden Irish Centre from 7.30pm. See www.camdenspeakers.org.uk for details and to book your place.

Contact:

If you would like to come to this debate or you have any questions about how it all works, email central.debating@gmail.com

Alternatively, just turn up on the night. You'll always be welcome.

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email me at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Have you seen our website?

Have you seen our website yet? Visit us at http://clds.debatewise.com and join in our latest debates online from privatising the post office to legalising prostitution.

Follow us on Facebook and twitter

Join our facebook group and sign up for all our latest events and news updates.

You can also follow us on Twitter to receive new updates and see who else is following us at http://twitter.com/centraldebating

Best Wishes

Tony

No dress code for this house

2010-02-20T00:06:00.000-08:00
Thursday's debate on setting a national dress code was, to be sure, an engaging and entertaining contest as each side try to outflank the other as tough on certain types of dress and tolerant of others. Ultimately though, it was the audience that held them to account, grilling each speaker over exactly where they stood on the issue, examining each set of arguments with tooth-comb scrutiny.

The proposition focused on a very narrow definition of the motion in which they proposed to ban the burqa, while the opposition railed against the plan, citing the European Convention of Human Rights, but slightly confused their position by also expressing their concerns about the burqa.

The audience quickly leapt on the proposition's failure to outline exactly what their proposal would entail and how they would enforce it, while pressing the opposition to take a more united stance on the issue. They also explored the question of identity and whether we should have the right to anonymise ourselves at will, whether it be by wearing a burqa or any other form of dress that obscures our most recognisable feature, our faces.

In the end, the motion was comprehensively defeated with only one person voting in favour of it, but all agreed that it was a fun evening and most importantly, every single member of the audience had something to say during the debate.

There are two lessons to take away from this debate I think:

First, credibility is everything when you're proposing a new policy. If you can't explain the details of how it would work, then the audience will find it harder to take you seriously and will spend more time questioning whether your policy is credible than whether it is the right thing to do or not.

Second, agree a common position with your debating partner before you say anything. You can make the best speech in the world, but if your partner appears to be making a different argument, the audience will just get confused and frustrated. This can often happen when debaters feel passionate about a topic on which they are speaking and as a result go off on a tangent to get something off their chest. My advice; leave your agendas at home. A passionate speech will serve you well, but only if it is consistent with the central argument your side is making.

Next debate: This House Would set a national dress code

2010-02-13T08:24:00.000-08:00
Background:

Should the UK have a national dress code and clearly establish once and for all the limits of individual liberty and cultural expression? UKIP have already proposed banning the Burqa in Britain. Are they right and how do we even decide which clothes or symbols are acceptable and which are not?

Speakers:

There will be four speakers for this debate - two in favour of the motion and two against. Each speaker will have five minutes to make their case before handing over to the audience for their questions and comments.

After that, each side will be asked to select one speaker to make a two minute closing speech. The audience will then vote on the motion.

If you're interested in coming along, then feel free just to turn up on the night and see how it's done. If you do have something to say, we always encourage our audiences to contribute to the debate and keep the speakers on their toes.

Venue:

We hold each of our fortnightly debates in the upstairs dining room of the Harcourt Arms pub in York St, just five minutes walk from Baker Street and Edgware Road tube stations. They serve plenty of food and take orders at the bar.

We have the room for the entire night till closing time, so feel free to join us for some food and drink after the debate. For a map of the area, see here.

Contact:

If you would like to come to this debate or you have any questions about how it all works, email central.debating@gmail.com

Alternatively, just turn up on the night. You'll always be welcome.

Useful links:

1) Banning the Burqa is simply not British - Times

2) Does religious dress contradict principle of freedom? - Economic Times

3) French immigrant with 'burqa' wife banned - AFP

4) Tesco ban on shoppers in pyjamas - BBC

5) Bluewater hoodie ban - BBC

6) Cultural freedom under U.S constitution - First Amendment Centre

7) Defence of the Burqa ban - Independent

8) Exclusion of muslim pupil for wearing religious dress unlawful - BBC

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email me at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Have you seen our website?

Have you seen our website yet? Visit us at http://clds.debatewise.com and join in our latest debates online from privatising the post office to legalising prostitution.

Follow us on Facebook and twitter

Join our facebook group and sign up for all our latest events and news updates.

You can also follow us on Twitter to receive new updates and see who else is following us at http://twitter.com/centraldebating

Best Wishes

Tony

Next debate: Name and shame young offenders?

2010-01-31T04:51:00.000-08:00
When: Thursday 04 February 2010

Time: 7.30pm - 9.30pm

Where: Harcourt Arms pub W1H 4HX

Motion: This House Would name and shame young offenders

Background:

The incarceration of the 'Edlington brothers', aged just 10 and 11, for the torture and assault of two other boys, has reignited the debate over the naming and shaming of young offenders.

Denise Fergus, the mother of murdered toddler James Bulger, backed up by the Conservative party, says they should be stripped of their right to privacy due to the severity of their crimes.

Their opponents claim it is wrong to treat minors like adults and that naming them would destroy any chance they might have of leading a normal life in the future once they have completed their sentences.

Who's right? You decide.

Speakers:

There will be four speakers for this debate - two in favour of the motion and two against. Each speaker will have five minutes to make their case before handing over to the audience for their questions and comments.

After that, each side will be asked to select one speaker to make a two minute closing speech. The audience will then vote on the motion.

If you're interested in coming along, then feel free just to turn up on the night and see how it's done. If you do have something to say, we always encourage our audiences to contribute to the debate and keep the speakers on their toes.

Venue:

We hold each of our fortnightly debates in the upstairs dining room of the Harcourt Arms pub in York St, just five minutes walk from Baker Street and Edgware Road tube stations. They serve plenty of food and take orders at the bar.

We have the room for the entire night till closing time, so feel free to join us for some food and drink after the debate. For a map of the area, see here.

Links

1) Why brothers should be named - Metro - http://www.metro.co.uk/news/810233-name-edlington-torture-brothers-says-james-bulgers-mum

2) Judge decides not to name brothers - Guardian - http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2010/jan/22/edlington-brothers-names-not-revealed

3) Conservatives call for report on Edlington case to be published in full - BBC - http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/8476965.stm

4) Sarah's law (to publish names of convicted sex offenders) expanded - BBC - http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/8477310.stm

5) Age of criminal responsibility in England and Wales - Parliament - http://www.parliament.uk/commons/lib/research/briefings/snha-03001.pdf

***
SPECIAL IRAQ WAR DEBATE MONDAY 01 FEBRUARY:

On Monday, 1st February, the Sylvans Debating society will be meeting in the Old Bank of England pub in Fleet St at 7pm. They will be debating whether Tony Blair should be arrested and tried for involving the UK in the war in Iraq.

Everyone is welcome and just to shake things up, the format for this debate will be slightly different. There will be just two speakers, who will have 10 minutes each before handing over to the audience who will have five minutes each to make their own speeches from the floor.

***

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email me at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Find the Central London Debating Society online

Have you seen our website yet? Visit us at http://clds.debatewise.com and join in our latest debates online from privatising the post office to legalising prostitution.

Join our facebook group and sign up for all our latest events and news updates.

You can also follow us on Twitter to receive new updates and see who else is following us at http://twitter.com/centraldebating

Best Wishes

Tony

Upcoming debates in London...

2010-01-22T23:36:00.000-08:00
Just a quick note about some of the events being put on by other debating societies across the Capital that I know fans of this group will be interested in. So, if you're a member of the society, an experienced public speaker, or just someone interested in hearing informed discussion of topical issues, then I highly recommend each of these debates.

1) SOAS open debate: This House Would compel AIDS patients to disclose their disease to their partners

Thursday 28th January 2010 - 8pm at G2 Assembly Room on Russell Square campus, Thornhaugh Street, WC1H 0XG - admission free - for details contact Jordan or Mashall at soasdebsoc@gmail.com

2) Sylvans Debating society: This House Believes that Tony Blair should be tried for his part in bringing about the UK's entry into the war in Iraq

Monday 1st February 2010 - 7pm at the Old Bank of England pub, Fleet Street, EC4A 2LT - admission free - for further details contact Gwyn Redgers at gwyn@redgers.com.

3) Britain's Future: a live debate hosted by the Independent newspaper featuring Charles Clarke (Lab), Chris Huhne (Lib Dem), Michael Brown (Con), and Yasmin Alibhai-Brown and Steve Richards from the Independent

Wednesday 3rd February 2010 - 6.30pm Central Hall, Westminster (across the road from Parliament) - admission free - to book your place visit http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/independent-live-britains-future-1871813.html

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email me at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Find the Central London Debating Society online

Have you seen our website yet? Visit us at http://clds.debatewise.com and join in our latest debates online from privatising the post office to legalising prostitution.

Join our facebook group and sign up for all our latest events and news updates.

You can also follow us on Twitter to receive new updates and see who else is following us at http://twitter.com/centraldebating

Best Wishes

Tony

Next debate: Should faith schools be made to teach gay rights?

2010-01-15T11:06:00.000-08:00
When: Thursday 21 January 2010

Time: 7.30pm - 9.30pm

Where: Harcourt Arms pub W1H 4HX

Motion: This House Would compel faith schools to teach gay rights

Background:

This week saw gay rights become an election issue as the Lib Dems called for faith schools to be legally obliged to teach that homosexuality is "normal and harmless". The Church of England responded that the curriculum is just fine as it is. Needless to say any change in the law would also have sweeping effects for schools of all faiths.

So, does the law need to be changed or is this policy a violation of faith schools' religious freedoms?

Speakers:

There will be four speakers for this debate - two in favour of the motion and two against. Each speaker will have five minutes to make their case before handing over to the audience for their questions and comments. After that, each side will be asked to select one speaker to make a two minute closing speech. The audience will then vote on the motion.

Venue:

We hold each of our fortnightly debates in the upstairs dining room of the Harcourt Arms pub in York St, just five minutes walk from Baker Street and Edgware Road tube stations. They serve plenty of food and take orders at the bar.

We have the room for the entire night till closing time, so feel free to join us for a drink after the debate. For a map of the area, see here.

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email me at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Find the Central London Debating Society online

Have you seen our website yet? Visit us at http://clds.debatewise.com and join in our latest debates online from privatising the post office to legalising prostitution.

Join our facebook group and sign up for all our latest events and news updates.

You can also follow us on Twitter to receive new updates and see who else is following us at http://twitter.com/centraldebating

Best Wishes

Tony

Happy New Year - Join us for our first debate of 2010

2010-01-03T01:55:00.000-08:00
When: Thursday 07 January 2010

Time: 7.30pm - 9.30pm

Where: Harcourt Arms pub W1H 4HX

Motion: This House Would introduce passenger profiling in all UK airports

Background:

The attempted terrorist attack by Nigerian student, Umar Farouk Abdul Mutallab, on a transatlantic flight to Detroit on Christmas Day has reopened the debate on passenger profiling.

Writing in the Times Philip Baum, editor of Aviation Security International, said:

"A passenger whose ticket was paid for in cash in Ghana for a journey starting in Nigeria and ending in the US, who was travelling for two weeks with no checked bags, having visited countries associated with terrorism — let alone his name being known to the authorities — must warrant greater scrutiny; targeting passengers like that has nothing to do with religion or colour of skin. Similarly, we are wasting time and resources by asking a family jetting off to Disneyland to undergo body scans."

Is he right? You decide.

Speakers:

There will be four speakers for this debate - two in favour of the motion and two against. Each speaker will have five minutes to make their case before handing over to the audience for their questions and comments. After that, each side will be asked to select one speaker to make a two minute closing speech. The audience will then vote on the motion.

Venue:

We hold each of our fortnightly debates in the upstairs dining room of the Harcourt Arms pub in York St, just five minutes walk from Baker Street and Edgware Road tube stations. They serve plenty of food and take orders at the bar.

We have the room for the entire night till closing time, so feel free to join us for a drink after the debate. For a map of the area, see here.

Other upcoming events:

The Sylvans Debating Society will be holding their monthly debate on Monday 4th January at the Old Bank of England pub in Fleet St. The motion for this month is 'This House Would build 10 new nuclear power stations in the UK'.

The event is open to all and will start at 7pm. The format is slightly different. There are only 2 speakers and the audience is encouraged to make speeches of their own, as opposed to a Q&A, before voting on the motion.

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email me at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Find the Central London Debating Society online

Have you seen our website yet? Visit us at http://clds.debatewise.com and join in our latest debates online from privatising the post office to legalising prostitution.

Join our facebook group and sign up for all our latest events and news updates.

You can also follow us on Twitter to receive new updates and see who else is following us at http://twitter.com/centraldebating

Best Wishes

Tony

End of year special: Best decade debate

2009-11-29T07:01:00.000-08:00

DATE: Thursday 10 December

TIME: 7.30pm - 10.30pm

VENUE: Harcourt Arms, York St, London W1H 4HX (see here for map)

MOTION: Balloon debate - what was the best decade in modern history?

What's the debate about?

Our next debate is our last for this year and as we head into the final weeks of the first decade of the 21st century, the motion for this debate seemed obvious: what was the best decade in modern history?

The spotlight will be on the last six decades since the war; the 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, 1990s and the 2000s (the noughties). There will be six speakers, one for each decade, who will have to argue why their chosen decade was the best.

How does it work?

Instead of our traditional 2 v 2 format, this will be a balloon debate. A balloon debate is a bit like Question time, except each speaker has to make their case to the audience as to why they should be kept on the panel over a series of rounds.

At the end of each round, the audience will vote for the speaker they want to keep and the person with the least votes will leave the panel. The last speaker standing will be the winner.

Where will the debate take place and what should you do if you want to attend?

Each of our debates is held at the Harcourt Arms, a cosy pub at the end of York St and a five minute walk from Baker St tube station (see top for map).

If you would like to come to this debate, then all you need to do is turn up on the night. We always give the audience a chance to put their questions and comments to the speakers before voting for who they want to win. However, you don't have to speak or do anything else if you'd just rather watch the debate.

Admission is free and friends are always welcome, so if you know someone who might be interested in this event, bring them along.

Xmas/end of year social:

As this is our last debate of the year, we'll all be letting our hair down and enjoying a few festive drinks and nibbles (the pub does some very nice food) in the run up to the Christmas holidays. We've hired out the pub's dining room and we'll have it all night, so feel free to join us and if you're new to the society it will be a good chance for you to get to know us all.

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simple email me at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Find the Central London Debating Society online

Have you seen our website yet? Visit us at http://clds.debatewise.com and join in our latest debates online from privatising the post office to legalising prostitution.

Join our facebook group and sign up for all our latest events and news updates.

You can also follow us on Twitter to receive new updates and see who else is following us at http://twitter.com/centraldebating

Next debate - Thursday 26th November - how to fix climate change

2009-11-22T02:50:00.000-08:00
DATE: Thursday 26th November 2009

VENUE: Harcourt Arms pub, York Street, London W1H 4HX

TIME: 7.30pm - 9.30pm

MOTION: This House Believes that the only way to fix climate change is if the richest nations pay for it

BACKGROUND:

The debate over climate change is raging more than ever, but the main issue of contention is no longer whether climate change exists, but whose job it is to fix it. As the world's developing economies continue to grow, so do their carbon emissions. However, they say they will not consider any reductions in output unless the world's developed nations are prepared to compensate them with financial and technological support.

VENUE:

We will be returning once more to the Harcourt Arms pub for this debate. We have hired out their dining room which, with its comfy sofas, tables and chairs, has consistently proved the perfect venue for our events.

The Harcourt Arms is situated at the end of York Street, just a few minutes walk from Baker Street tube station. See here for a map of the area.

HOW TO GET INVOLVED:

If you would like to attend this debate, feel free to turn up on the night and grill the speakers from the floor. If you would like to speak, however, email me at t.koutsoumbos@gmail.com.

For anyone who'd like to give it a try but doesn't have much experience of public speaking, let me know and we can have a chat about how to make a good argument and go through the rules to help you prepare.

After the debate's over, I hope you'll all stick around for a drink, as we have the room for the whole night if we want it.

HOW DOES IT WORK:

Each debate comprises four speakers, two on each side arguing for and against the motion. The speakers have five minutes each to make their case before the debate is handed over to the audience for a Q&A session. This is where everyone else gets the opportunity to cross-examine the speakers and offer their own comments on the motion. After that each side has two minutes to sum up their arguments before the motion is decided by a public vote.

Admission is free and plus ones are always welcome, so if you know someone who might be interested in this event, bring them along.

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simple email me at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Follow the Central London Debating Society online:

Visit our website and take part in online debates to build up some experience and see what other people have to say about all the hot topics of the day.

Find us on facebook and join the Central London Debating Society group

Follow us on twitter to get all our latest updates about upcoming debates and other events at http://twitter.com/londondebating

See you at the debate

Tony

Next debate: This House Believes Britain's drug laws are in urgent need of reform

2009-11-08T02:12:00.000-08:00
DATE: Thursday 12th November 2009

VENUE: Harcourt Arms pub, York Street, London W1H 4HX

TIME: 7.30pm - 9.30pm

MOTION: This House Believes Britain's drug laws are in urgent need of reform

BACKGROUND:

The sacking of government adviser Professor David Nutt by the Home Secretary Alan Johnson has reopened the debate over drugs classification and the means by which such decisions are taken.

Should cannabis be legal or decriminalised? Should alcohol and tobacco be classified as harmful substances and what implications would this have for their legal status and that of illegal drugs? Who should be making such decisions in the first place: elected politicians or independent experts?

VENUE:

We will be returning once more to the Harcourt Arms pub for this debate. We have hired out their dining room which, with its comfy sofas, tables and chairs, has consistently proved the perfect venue for our events.

The Harcourt Arms is situated at the end of York Street, just a few minutes walk from Baker Street tube station. See here for a map of the area.

HOW TO GET INVOLVED:

If you would like to attend this debate, feel free to turn up on the night and grill the speakers from the floor. If you would like to speak, however, email me at t.koutsoumbos@gmail.com.

For anyone who'd like to give it a try but doesn't have much experience of public speaking, I'm happy to meet you about half an hour or so before the debate starts and go through the rules with you and help you prepare.

After the debate's over, I hope you'll all stick around for a drink, as we have the room for the whole night if we want it.

Also, if you know anyone who might be interested in coming to the debate, please feel free to bring them along as everyone is welcome at the Central London Debating Society.

HOW DOES IT WORK:

Each debate comprises four speakers, two on each side arguing for and against the motion. The speakers have five minutes each to make their case before the debate is handed over to the audience for a Q&A session. This is where everyone else gets the opportunity to cross-examine the speakers and offer their own comments on the motion. After that each side has two minutes to sum up their arguments before the motion is decided by a public vote.

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simple email me at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Visit our website and take part in online debates to build up some experience and see what other people have to say about all the hot topics of the day.

Find us on facebook and join the Central London Debating Society group

You can now also follow us on twitter to get all our latest updates about upcoming debates and other events at http://twitter.com/londondebating

See you at the debate

Tony

Upcoming debates and events in London this week

2009-10-31T05:40:00.000-07:00
As part of our aim to promote free speech and the art of debating across London, I am always happy to promote other societies' events in addition to my own especially as many groups have been extremely helpful in promoting the Thursday debates for which I am always grateful. So, below is a list of events and debates in London this week that those of you interested in debating may want to go along to:

1) Monday 2nd November - Sylvan Debating Society - This House Believes that Britain is now a police state.

The debate will be held at the Old Bank of England pub in Holborn at 6.45pm - all are welcome and audience members will be given time to contribute to the debate as well.

2) Tuesday 3rd November - SOAS debating society Halloween special - This House Believes that the government has not prepared for the imminent zombie apocalypse

This debate will be held at SOAS JCR in Russell Square from 7pm. Snack food will be provided and fancy dress is encouraged. For further details, see http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=191708802951&ref=mf or contact Jordan at soasdebsoc@gmail.com

3) Friday 6th November - Central London Debating Society social - Harcourt Arms pub in York Street - 7pm onwards

This is just an informal gathering, predominantly for the people who would like to come along to our debates, but can't do Thursday nights. It is also a great opportunity to meet people who have never debated before to meet a few of us and find out what it's all about.

There will still be plenty of debating going on, but just over a few drinks and some food. Won't be booking a room for this - an ordinary pub table will do just fine - all are welcome.

If you have any questions or need any more details, feel free to contact me at: central.debating@gmail.com

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simple email me at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Best Wishes

Tony

Next debate: Thursday 29th October - This House Would only use military force for sef-defence

2009-10-21T22:38:00.000-07:00

DATE: Thursday 29th October 2009

VENUE: Harcourt Arms pub, York Street, London W1H 4HX

TIME: 7.30pm - 9.30pm

MOTION: This House Would only use military force for self-defence

BACKGROUND:

From Kosovo to Iraq, the last decade has been characterised as one of military intervention for reasons other than national security with British liberal interventionists making common cause with American neo-conservatives.

The deterioration of Afghanistan and the prolonged occupation of Iraq, however, have led many to question whether we should return to keeping our military at home and only deploying it abroad if provoked.

VENUE:

We will be returning once more to the Harcourt Arms pub for this debate. We have hired out their dining room which, with its comfy sofas, tables and chairs, has consistently proved the perfect venue for our events.

The Harcourt Arms is situated at the end of York Street, just a few minutes walk from Baker Street tube station. See here for directions.

Hopefully, you'll stick around afterwards too and have a drink (that's where the real debates start). For anyone thinking about dinner, the pub also does some great food, so you can easily grab a bite to eat too.

HOW TO GET INVOLVED:

If you would like to attend this debate, feel free to turn up on the night and grill the speakers from the floor. If you would like to speak or chair though, please email me at central.debating@gmail.com

Also, if you know anyone who might be interested in coming to the debate, please feel free to bring them along as everyone is welcome at the Central London Debating Society.

HOW DOES IT WORK:

Each debate comprises four speakers, two on each side arguing for and against the motion. The speakers have five minutes each to make their case before the debate is handed over to the audience for a Q&A session. This is where everyone else gets the opportunity to cross-examine the speakers and offer their own comments on the motion. After that each side has two minutes to sum up their arguments with the winner decided by popular vote.

RECOMMENDED READINGS

For anyone interested in learning more about the topic of this week's debate, see below for a list of selected readings.

1) The Blair Doctrine - Open Democracy

2) The Bush Doctrine - Council for Foreign Relations

3) The Obama Doctrine? - Washingtom Post

4) Idealistic foreign policy in Africa - Foreign Policy Centre

5 Realism has beaten idealism - Foreign Policy Centre

6) A defence of liberal interventionism - Speech by David Miliband, UK Foreign Secretary

7) A realist critique of the war in Afghanistan - Coalition for a realistic foreign policy

8) Realist v idealist foreign policy - Centre for European Reform

9) Critique of UK foreign policy - Guardian

10) Some great debating tips for prospective speakers

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simple email me at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Best Wishes

Tony

BNP Question Time debate update

2009-10-13T05:06:00.000-07:00
DATE: Thursday 15th October 2009

VENUE: Harcourt Arms pub, York Street, London W1H 4HX

TIME: 7.30pm - 9.30pm

MOTION: This House Believes the BNP should not be allowed on Question Time

Bonnie Greer confirmed to appear on Question Time alongside Nick Griffin of the BNP, Jack Straw of the Labour party and Chris Huhne of the Lib Dems. Conservative panellist not yet named.

Also, see article below for interesting new perspective on the debate.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/politics/article6871898.ece

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simple email me at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Best Wishes

Tony

Next debate: This House Believes the BNP should not be allowed on Question Time

2009-10-10T08:42:00.000-07:00

DATE: Thursday 15th October 2009

VENUE: Harcourt Arms pub, York Street, London W1H 4HX

TIME: 7.30pm - 9.30pm

MOTION: This House Believes the BNP should not be allowed on Question Time

BACKGROUND:

In less than two weeks, the BNP are set to appear on Question Time on the BBC. They were invited to take part in keeping with the Beeb's rule of treating each political party with a national profile fairly. Since the BNP won two seats in the European Parliament, so the argument goes, they are now electorally competitive at the national level.

We ask if it is right that the BNP should be treated like any other party or whether their controversial methods and ideology warrant them being barred from spreading their message through the mainstream media.

VENUE:

We will be returning once more to the Harcourt Arms pub for this debate. We have hired out their dining room which, with its comfy sofas, tables and chairs, has consistently proved the perfect venue for our events.

The Harcourt Arms is situated at the end of York Street, just a few minutes walk from Baker Street tube station. See here for directions.

Hopefully, you'll stick around afterwards too and have a drink (that's where the real debates start). For anyone thinking about dinner, the pub also does some great food, so you can easily grab a bite to eat too.

HOW TO GET INVOLVED:

If you would like to attend this debate, feel free to turn up on the night and grill the speakers from the floor. If you would like to speak or chair though, please email me at central.debating@gmail.com

Also, if you know anyone who might be interested in coming to the debate, please feel free to bring them along as everyone is welcome at the Central London Debating Society.

HOW DOES IT WORK:

Each debate comprises four speakers, two on each side arguing for and against the motion. The speakers have five minutes each to make their case before the debate is handed over to the audience for a Q&A session. This is where everyone else gets the opportunity to cross-examine the speakers and offer their own comments on the motion. After that each side has two minutes to sum up their arguments with the winner decided by popular vote.

LAST WEEK'S DEBATE:

We achieved yet another record turnout last week with almost 30 people (well 27) turning up for the debate on Britain's membership of the European Union. Both teams ended up sharing the spoils as the oppostion won the debate, defeating the motion, while Tim Aker of the proposition was awarded the title of best speaker of the night.

Well done to Tim along with Magnus and Paul on the propostion and also congratulations to my team-mates Michael and Gwyn who both pulled off two sensational performances to seal victory in what was a closely contested debate.

RECOMMENDED READINGS

For anyone interested in learning more about the topic of this week's debate, see below for a list of selected readings.

BBC invites BNP on QT - http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/8240206.stm

London students debate BNP appearance on QT - http://www.london-student.net/2009/10/05/the-great-debate-should-the-bnp-be-allowed-on-question-time

Jack Straw agrees to face BNP on QT - http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/straw-to-appear-on-question-time-with-bnp-leader-1794134.html

Peter Hain pledges to boycott BNP appearance on QT - http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/welsh-politics/welsh-politics-news/2009/09/08/hain-to-boycott-question-time-over-bbc-plan-to-invite-bnp-91466-24629815/

Blog post by former executive editor of QT on dilemna of inviting BNP on show - http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/theeditors/2009/09/question_time_and_the_bnp.html

Imprisonment of David Irving for holocaust denial - http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/4733820.stm

Geert Wilders barred from UK - http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article5709892.ece

International Debate Education Association (IDEA) - http://www.idebate.org/index.php (very useful debating exercise on how to attack opposition claims and defend arguments)

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simple email me at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Best Wishes

Tony

News and Updates

2009-10-08T13:59:00.001-07:00
IT'S OUR HALF BIRTHDAY NEXT WEEK:

The Central London Debating Society will be 6 months old next week. The club has come a long way since April when we started off with just a handful of members struggling to find a room to hold our events.

Now the society boasts well over a 100 members and a regular venue in a popular central London pub.

Come help us celebrate by joining the debating society and doubling our membership before our first whole anniversary. We're always eager to take on new members of all levels of experience and ability. The only thing you need to join our society is an opinion/

Think it's worth bringing in half a birthday cake to the next debate??

WE HAVE OUR FIRST SPONSOR AND A NEW WEBSITE:

At last week's debate, I announced that the Central London Debating Society had secured its first sponsor, a social enterprise named debatewise. To find out more information about debatewise, you can check them out at: http://debatewise.com

They have built a new website for us (don't worry our regular blog hasn't gone anywhere) where you, loyal and trusted members, can set up your own online debates and contribute to them throughout the week in your spare time.

Simply register yourselves on the website for free and enter a motion for a new debate and then invite others to incrementally add different points to both side of the argument.

I will keep a close eye on the website myself and will select any debates that really take off online for the main Thursday night event.

The site's still in its infancy - I've put up a couple of points from one of our recent debates on the DNA database as a template - but it really just needs people to add content to it. So, take a look at: http://clds.debatewise.com and start your own debate today.

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simple email me at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Best Wishes

Tony

Next Debate: Thursday 1st October - This House Believes in mulitlateralism

2009-09-25T12:57:00.000-07:00
WHEN: Thursday 1st October

WHERE: Harcourt Arms, York Street W1H 4HX

TIME: 7.30pm - 9.30pm

MOTION: This House Would leave the European Union

ABOUT THIS WEEK'S MOTION:

Next Friday, the Irish people will vote in a referendum on the Lisbon Treaty, marking the next stage in the process of European intergration. In the UK, the Conservative party has urged the government to also give the British people a vote on the treaty.

Supporters of the European Union, however, claim that opposition to the Lisbon Treaty in the UK is just a disguise for their desire to leave the European Union altogether. In recent years, this has even prompted the Liberal Democrats to call for a referendum on our very membership of the EU itself.

VENUE:

We will be returning once more to the Harcourt Arms pub for this debate. We have hired out their dining room which, with its comfy sofas, tables and chairs, has consistently proved the perfect venue for our events.

The Harcourt Arms is situated at the end of York Street, just a few minutes walk from Baker Street tube station. See the attached map for directions and if you have any trouble getting there, call me on the number given below.

Hopefully, you'll stick around afterwards too and have a drink (that's where the real debates start). For anyone thinking about dinner, the pub also does some great food, so you can easily grab a bite to eat too.

HOW TO GET INVOLVED:

If you would like to attend this debate, feel free to turn up on the night and grill the speakers from the floor. If you would like to speak or chair though, please email central.debating@gmail.com

Also, if you know anyone who might be interested in coming to the debate, please feel free to bring them along as everyone is welcome at the Central London Debating Society.

LAST WEEK'S DEBATE:

Last week's debate was on the DNA database, bringing in our highest turnout yet of 23 people - that room in the Harcourt Arms is starting to look smaller and smaller.

It was a very interesting debate with some insightful contributions from the audience on balancing an individual's freedom from crime with their freedom from the state.

In the end, the opposition won out and the motion was defeated. However, it was a close vote with the opposition managing to change just enough minds to take the tie.

Well done to Rob and Jessica on a deserved victory and a big thank you to Demetri and Laura speaking for the proposition.

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simple email me at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Best Wishes

Tony

Next debate: This House Would remove all innocent people from the DNA database

2009-09-10T01:10:00.000-07:00
DATE: Thursday 17th September 2009

TIME: 7.30pm - 9.30pm

VENUE: Harcourt Arms W1H 4HX

MOTION: This House Would remove all innocent people from the DNA database

ADMISSION IS FREE

ABOUT THIS WEEK'S MOTION:

DNA fingerprinting, identifying an individual by taking a sample of their DNA, is twenty-five years old this week. While many different applications have been found for the technique, by far the most controversial is the construction of the Police DNA database.

The man responsible for pioneering the method, Professor Sir Alec Jeffreys, has therefore decided to commemorate the anniversary of his greatest breakthrough by calling for all subjects of police investigations subsequently proven to be innocent to be removed from the DNA database.

Furthermore, the European Court of Justice ruled in December 2008 that keeping innocent people on the database was a breach of their human rights. So, should the police now be forced by the UK government to remove them?

VENUE:

We will be returning once more to the Harcourt Arms pub for this debate. We have hired out their dining room which, with its comfy sofas, tables and chairs, has consistently proved the perfect venue for our events.

The Harcourt Arms is situated at the end of York Street, just a few minutes walk from Baker Street tube station. See here for directions and if you need any more help getting there, contact me on the email address given below.

Hopefully, you'll stick around afterwards too and have a drink (that's where the real debates start). For anyone thinking about dinner, the pub also does some great food, so you can easily grab a bite to eat too.

HOW TO GET INVOLVED:

We need four speakers as usual for this debate, two to speak in favour of the motion and two against. If you would like to speak, then send me a message and let me know which side you would like to be on. The same applies if you would like to try your hand at chairing.

If you would prefer to simply come along and watch and then grill the speakers in the audience Q&A segment of the debate, then feel free to just turn up on the night.

CONTACT:

Anything you need, just get in touch either by emailing me at central.debating@gmail.com

If you know anyone who might be interested in coming along to this, feel free to bring them along - the more the merrier and it is of course totally free to attend.

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simple email me at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Best Wishes

Tony

Debating society news and updates

2009-09-07T23:19:00.000-07:00
Lucky number 100:

Last week, the Central London Debating Society received its one hundredth member, a massive milestone for this group. Let's see if we can double that before the year's out!

Last week's debate:

The motion for this debate, which attracted our highest turnout yet, was 'This House Believes that life should mean life'. It was a very lively debate, in no small part down to the audience who truly excelled in their cross-examination of the speakers.

In the end, the opposition won out in the popular vote in a debate that focused as much on the right of politicians to interfere in the judicial system as well the issue of life imprisonment itself.

So, congratulations to Jason Maude and Laura Nelson of the victorious opposition and a big thank you to Michael Worthington, my partner speaking for the proposition. Well done to Mya Lam too, who did an excellent job chairing the debate for the first time.

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simple email me at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Best Wishes

Tony

Next debate: Thursday 3rd September 2009 - This House Believes that life should mean life

2009-08-26T04:10:00.000-07:00
DATE: Thursday 3rd September

TIME: 7.30pm - 9.30pm

VENUE: Harcourt Arms W1H 4HX

MOTION: This House Believes that life should mean life

ABOUT THIS WEEK'S MOTION:

This Summer has seen two of Britain's most notorious convicts, Ronny Biggs the great train robber and Abdel Baset Al-Megrahi, the Lockerbie bomber, released from jail on compassionate grounds, owing to ill health.

The decisions to release the men has caused a storm in the media with both the British and Scottish governments facing hostile public opinon at home and abroad. Life, they say, should mean life, even if it means dying in jail.

VENUE:

We will be returning once more to the Harcourt Arms pub for this debate. We have hired out their dining room which, with its comfy sofas, tables and chairs, has consistently proved the perfect venue for our events.

The Harcourt Arms is situated at the end of York Street, just a few minutes walk from Baker Street tube station. See the attached map http://streetmap.co.uk/map.srf?x=527470&y=181663&z=0&sv=w1h+4hx&st=2&pc=w1h+4hx&mapp=map.srf&searchp=ids.srf for directions.

LAST WEEK'S DEBATE:

Last week's debate saw the ultimate showdown between cats and dogs. It was a close contest, but in the end, the dogs won out, albeit with a little help from their friends. By that I am referring to the two dogs (real dogs) who started barking from the downstairs bar throughout the Cats' closing speech, mysteriously going silent when it came to the Dogs to deliver their closing.

Nevertheless, Paul and Furqaan, the distinguished speakers for the Dogs deserve full credit, so congratulations to them. A big thank you also to Kingsley who partnered me on the Cats' side. Finally, well done to Michael who was chairing for the first time.

Helping new people to get involved and throw themselves into debates is what this society is all about, so it was good to see so many new faces last week too.

HOW TO GET INVOLVED:

We need four speakers as usual for this debate, two to speak in favour of the motion and two against. If you would like to speak, then email me at: central.debating@gmail.com and let me know which side you would like to be on. The same applies if you would like to try your hand at chairing.

If you would prefer to simply come along and watch and then grill the speakers in the audience Q&A segment of the debate, I would really appreciate it if you could confirm your attendance, so I can give our hosts an idea of how many people to expect, a condition of them giving us their best room for free.

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simple email me at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Best Wishes

Tony

Next debate: Cats v Dogs

2009-08-07T12:49:00.000-07:00
Date: Thursday 20th August

Time: 7pm

Venue: Harcourt Arms pub W1H 4HX

Motion: This House Believes that cats make better pets than dogs

Tis the season to be silly!

Now that our MPs have gone home for the Summer, depriving our poor old journalists of their daily fix of controversy, scandal and palace intrigue, the nation's silliest and most far-fetched stories embark on a race to the front page.

Greatest hits from previous years include: "Crop Circles - combine harvester or aliens?", "Loch Ness - is there a monster lurking in the deep?", "Victor Meldrew found in space", and this year in the Times no less..."Benson, Britain's best loved Carp. 1984 - 2009"

Here at the Debating Society, we too appreciate the value of letting our hair down every now and then and showing a little 'silly' spirit of our own. So, for our next debate - it's cats vs dogs, the showdown!

We will be returning to the illustrious dining room of the Harcourt Arms where we have held our last four debates now. Located just a few minutes walk away from Baker Street tube station, it is easy to reach from all corners of London. A warm and welcoming venue, it is the perfect place to enjoy a nice drink or two after the debate as we often do.

Result of last debate

In spite of the weather's best efforts, yesterday's debate went ahead as planned and was well attended with a number of people attending for the first time. The motion, 'This House Would legalise assisted suicide' was carried following a truly thought-provoking debate. Both sides were on top form and skillfully made their case to the audience who in turn played their part with a thorough cross examination of each speaker. So, congratulations to Laura Nelson and Kinglsey Nwankwo-Ntah, arguing for the proposition and a big thank you also to Benjamin Gray and Gwyn Redgers of the opposition. I would also like to thank Martin Keary, who I thought did an excellent job as Chair.

Contact

Admission to this debate is free, so all you need to do is turn up on the night if you would like to come. However, if you would like to speak at the debate or join the society, please email me at: central.debating@gmail.com

P.S: this society is open to anyone, so if you know someone who might be interested in coming along to our debates, please feel free to bring them along.

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simple email me at central.debating@gmail.com. Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Best Wishes

Tony

How to propose a motion

2009-08-03T19:52:00.000-07:00
Next debate: This House Would legalise assisted suicide

Date: Thursday, 6th August

Time: 7.00 pm

Venue: Harcourt Arms, York Street W1H 4HX

This week's debating tip is based on a definitive guide to debating provided by British Debate which can be read in full here.

The quality of a debate as a whole often depends largely on the quality of the opening speech, that of the first member of the proposition whose job it is to formally propose and outline a case for the motion. This aim of this tip is to provide a list of key steps to take into consideration when opening a debate.

1) Define the motion:

First thing to remember is that a motion can take one of two forms; a policy that the proposition must promote such as "This House Would withdraw all British troops from Afghanistan"; or simply an idea that they must defend such as "This House Believes the sky is the limit".

Secondly, a motion can be either 'open' or 'closed'. "This House Would withdraw all British troops from Afghanistan" is an example of a closed motion. In this case the speaker would need to outline when troops would be withdrawn and how before explaining their reasons why. "This House Believes the sky is the limit", on the other hand, is an example of an open motion. This is because it could be interpreted in a number of ways such as a debate on space travel or, more figuratively, as a debate on bankers' bonuses for example. In this case, the speaker would need to clearly define their interpretation of the motion right at the start. Also, rather than promoting a specific policy, they would need to explain the concept they were defending.

It should be noted, however, an open motion can just as easily apply to proposing a specific policy ("This House Would protect the right to life") and similarly, a motion defending a concept or idea can be a closed one ("This House Believes that inheritance tax should be abolished").

2) Make your case:

Once you've defined the motion, you need to argue in favour of it. This may sound like a very obvious statement, but in fact it is hugely important. This is because it is quite common for a speaker to think they are constructing an argument when in fact all they are doing is making an assertion.

For example, defending increased expenditure on the NHS because it will provide people with improved access to medical care is an assertion. Making an argument means following a specific line of logic that links your proposal to the benefits you claim to be derived from it. So, you could make a factual argument: statistics show that citizens enjoy a higher life expectancy in countries that spend more money on healthcare. Or, you could make a moral argument: the social contract dictates that the state has a moral obligation to protect the welfare of its citizens. As one of the greatest threats to their person is disease, the government should make increased spending on healthcare a top priority.

There are plenty of other arguments you can make in addition to this, but I won't go through all of them now.

The other crucial aspect of making an argument is identifying a 'need'. So, before arguing that the government should be spending more on healthcare, you would need to explain why current spending levels aren't enough. However, this only really applied to motions where you are proposing an actual policy.

3) Structure your argument:

This is more of a re-iteration of last week's tip, but important enough to repeat here. Structuring your argument properly is important regardless of whether you're speaking first or last. However, it is particularly important when proposing the motion as the argument you make will set the tone for the whole debate.

So, first remember to introduce your argument by quickly explaining to the audience or judges what you plan to tell them and in what order. Next, define you motion and explain what it is you're proposing. By then, your first minute of time (remember you only have five to make the whole speech) should have elapsed, so begin to make your case. In the middle three minutes, you should illustrate your main arguments and then use your last minute of time to summarise everything you've said.

A good idea for structuring your individual arguments is to place each of them into seperate categories which you can list when introducing your speech. So, you could divide an argument for increased spending on the NHS into the factual, the moral, and the political for example. Only add a fourth category if you think you can fit it in without compromising your other arguments.

Finally, it is also a good idea to very briefly explain to the audience what your partner will talk to them about after you - again just list the categories. Just planning which issues each of you will address before the debate is a good way of ensuring you have every conceivable angle covered once you actually get started.

That's it for now, but check out our links for more useful tips and examples or contact me at central.debating@gmail.com if you have any further questions.

Our next debate is this Thursday, beginning at 7pm. We will be debating whether or not assisted suicide should be legalised. If you would like to come, then feel free just to turn up on the night. Remember, admission is free of charge, so if you know anyone else who might be interested in this event, bring them along - the more the merrier.

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simple email me at central.debating@gmail.com. Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Best Wishes

Tony

Next debate: Thursday 6th August - This House Would legalise assisted suicide

2009-07-30T11:49:00.000-07:00
Date: Thursday 6th August 2009

Time: 7pm - 9pm

Venue: Harcourt Arms pub, York Street, W1H 4HX

Motion: This House Would legalise assisted suicide

Join us at the Harcourt Arms pub in Baker Street for what is sure to be one of our most heated debates yet. Admission is free and anyone is welcome to speak - all you need is an opinion.

Also, if you know anyone who you think would be interested in this debate, bring them along too.

BACKGROUND

Following the historic ruling handed down by the House of Lords, calling on the government to clarify when a person will and will not be prosecuted for assisting the suicide of another, this age old debate has been re-ignited.

VENUE

For this debate, we have again hired out a private room in the Harcourt Arms, a cosy little pub near Baker Street with a nice beer garden for anyone interested in having a drink with us afterwards.

HOW TO GET INVOLVED

Once more, we are looking for four speakers to make the case for and against legalising assisted suicide. No experience is required to speak, just the desire to take on a new challenge.

If you'd rather just watch the debate though, then come along and see how it all works. We encourage our audience to get involved too and put their questions and comments to the speakers before voting to decide the winner.

CONTACT

If you would like to come to next week's debate, feel free to just turn up on the night. However, if you would like to speak at the debate, then please email me at: central.debating@gmail.com

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simple email me at central.debating@gmail.com. Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Best Wishes

Tony

Debating society update and upcoming events

2009-07-26T11:09:00.000-07:00
Latest update:

Congratulations to Jason Maude and Jordan Anderson who deservedly won out in last Thursday's debate, defeating the motion to colonise the Moon.

A big thank you also, however, to Laura Nelson who joined me in proposing the motion, making an impressive and impassioned defence of human space exploration. Laura is the Chair of the Camden Speakers' Club with whom we hope to build a frutiful and lasting relationship.

I reserve my biggest thanks though to you the members, who once again turned out in numbers, raising the bar of the debate with your insightful questions and comments.

Upcoming debates:

Coming soon is our 'silly season' debate. Now that our MPs have returned home for the Summer, leaving the nation's journalists with nothing to write, anything can make the front pages.

So, I would like you to submit the most whimsical and ridiculous motions you can think of and one of them will be selected for our 'silly season' debate which will take place on Thursday 20th August.

Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simple email me at central.debating@gmail.com. Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

That's all for now. The motion for our next debate will be announced later this week.

Best Wishes

Tony

2009-07-19T13:33:00.000-07:00
Next Debate: Thursday 23rd July 2009 - 7pm - 10pm - The Harcourt Arms, York St W1H 4HX - This House Would colonise the Moon

A Beginner's guide to debating - part 2

Preparing your speech before a debate is one thing, delivering it is another. Here are a few quick tips on how to make things easier for yourself.

1) Notes: Too many pages of notes are as bad as bringing a script with you. They bombard with you with pieces of information that individually may be very useful, but thrown together in several pages at once can become incomprehensible. Keep notes down to one page max if you can.

2) Timekeeping: Can't stress this point enough. You have only five minutes to make your case in which you will be expected to make several compelling points. While each person has to work out their own way of structuring their argument in accordance with what suits them best, breaking up your speech into specific time segments can help. This is particularly important considering that only the first and last minutes of your speech are 'protected', i.e. when the opposing team are not allowed to interrupt you with their quesitions. Below is an example:

- 1st minute: Say what you're going to say. Introduce your argument by defining the proposal (if you're speaking first) or rebutting the opposition's previous points and telling your audience how many points you plan to make and what they are.

- 2nd, 3rd and 4th minutes: Say it. This is your time to make your substantive points and deal with any questions from the opposition. Remember you don't have to take any questions and indeed your opponents will try and slip you up and distract and delay you with their questions. However, if you do take one of their questions and deal with it well, you will score extra points with the judges/audience.

-Final minute: Say what you've said. Nobody else can interrupt you during this minute, so don't worry if your substantive points run over a little bit. Just make sure you leave some time to summarise your argument to hammer home the most important points and remind your audience why they should support you. However, if you find yourself running out of time before you've finished making your entire argument, don't cut it short just to make your summary. Better to get all your main points out there while you can and use your closing speech to summarise properly.

3) Stuttering and stammering: This is a sensitive issue for many people, including yours truly who struggled with a speech impediment during those fateful teenage years at school that even now has not completely disappeared. Speaking in public for the first time can seem daunting and the resulting nerves can send speech impediments into over-drive. If you feel this happening to you, my advice is simple: take a second to breathe and calm yourself down until you're able to think clearly about what you plan to say next. If this doesn't always work, don't despair. As important as speaking style is, judges and audiences respect the courage it takes to get up there and speak in front of your peers and will always give you the benefit of the doubt.

4) The Ladies and Gentlemen rule: The most common problem faced by public speakers is ummming and ahhhing. One of the first pearls of wisdom I received when I started debating at university was to fill any gap in my speech (any time I drew a blank in other words) by addressing my audience i.e. "Ladies and gentlemen, I want to talk to you about...secondly, ladies and gentlemen". You can always tell a person who joined a debating society at university by the number of times they use the phrase, but it is an effective rule of thumb to work by, just as long as you don't start saying it at the beginning of every sentence.

That's it for now. More to follow next week. Hopefully we'll get a few other members to contribute their thoughts to as there are many gifted speakers in the society whose advice I have often found to be invaluable in the past.

Tony

Debating society special next Thursday - anyone welcome

2009-07-17T07:14:00.000-07:00
Date: Thursday 23rd July 2009

Time: 7-10pm

Venue: Harcourt Arms, York Street W1h 4HX (5-10 min walk from Baker Street tube station)

Motion: This House Would colonise the Moon

Next Thursday we will be holding a special debate to mark the 40th anniversary of the historic Moon landing. I also thought we could enjoy the Summer evenings while they're still here with some dinner and drinks after the debate and justify it as the celebration of our own -and no less significant in my eyes - 1/4 year anniversary.

VENUE

We have been welcomed back to the Harcourt Arms in York Street (a 5-10 minute walk from Baker Street Tube) where we have reserved their dining room, perfect for both our debate and some food and drink afterwards. The debate remains totally free of charge for anyone who wants to attend, but you will need to buy your own food and drink if you choose to stay with us after the debate (we're nice but not that nice I'm afraid).

BACKGROUND OF THE MOTION

As the world celebrates arguably one of mankind's greatest ever achievements in history, we look to the future and ask what next?

In any event, the 'Space Race' is back with the US, Russia, India and China all planning to send manned missions to the Moon in the foreseeable future. We ask to what end?

A permanent base on the moon has long been muted as a ideal means of furthering our exploration of space, but is now the time? Indeed, will there ever be a good time when we have so many problems right here on Earth that require our urgent attention?

LAST WEEK'S DEBATE

Last week saw another great debate and again a big thanks are in order to my fellow speakers for that night: Michael, Jenni and Claire. Jenni and Michael, who opposed the motion to hold the Iraq inquiry in private, won out in the end, but it was close - they won by only vote. Unfortunately due to a slightly lower than usual turnout, it was the only vote going, but well done all the same.

Thank you also to Kaashif who made his debut chairing the debate. He did a fantastic job and I encourage anyone else who would like to get involved, but not necessarily speak, to do the same.

CONTACT

If you would like to come to our special debate and social on Thursday, please do let me know. It really helps me to reassure the landlords, who give us use of their private rooms for free, if I can tell them how many people to expect before the event actually takes place.

If you would like to speak or chair, send me a message at central.debating@gmail.com. We're looking for four speakers as ever. As much as I enjoy speaking, this society is about you and I would really like to get more of you speaking, so you can see for yourselves how easy and rewarding it is.

If you need anything on the day like directions etc, then feel free to call me on 0777 565 7712

JOINING THE DEBATING SOCIETY

Membership of the debating society is free to all as is attendance of all debates. This society is about encouraging ordinary people to find the confidence to express themeselves freely in public, so only members are allowed to speak at our debates. All you have to do to join is come along to one of our debates and add yourselves to our mailing list. Alternatively, you can just email me and I'll add you that way.

Keep an eye on the blog for updates and general advice on debating...

Tony

INTERESTING LINKS:

1) Debatewise.com - Is space travel a waste of money? - http://debatewise.com/debates/137-space-exploration-is-a-waste-of-money

2) Reuters News - Joint Russian EU mission to the moon - http://www.reuters.com/article/scienceNews/idUSL1481372220080514?feedType=RSS&feedName=scienceNews&rpc=22&sp=true

3) BBC News - China Moon mission - http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/7506715.stm

4) New Scientist - Barack Obama backs NASA return mission to the Moon - http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn16676-obama-backs-moon-return-in-nasa-budget.html

5) BBC News - India Moon Mission - http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/7679818.stm

6) Cosmos Magazine - Stephen Hawking on colonising the Moon - http://www.cosmosmagazine.com/news/350/stephen-hawking-endorses-colonisation-moon

7) USA today - Should humans return to the Moon? - http://www.usatoday.com/tech/science/space/2009-07-16-nasamoon_N.htm

8) Guardian - Buzz Aldrin on returning to the Moon - http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/2009/jul/16/buzz-aldrin-moon-mars-space

9) New Scientist - NASA plans for Moon colony - http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn10724-timetable-for-moon-colony-announced.html

10) Daily Telegraph - Space Race is waste of money - http://www.telegraph.co.uk/comment/personal-view/4807506/The-space-race-is-a-pointless-waste-of-money.html

11) Coalition for space exploration - http://www.spacecoalition.com/

12) Forbes - The cost of space exploration - http://www.forbes.com/2009/07/16/apollo-moon-landing-anniversary-opinions-contributors-cost-money.html

13) Phyorg.com - The case for unmanned space exploration - http://www.physorg.com/news8442.html

14) Physorg.com - The case for manned space exploration - http://www.physorg.com/news8479.html

A beginner's guide to debating - part I

2009-07-04T04:01:00.000-07:00
Several members of the society have asked me to write up some tips on debating to help beginners find their feet a bit more easily and more experienced debaters to brush up a little themselves. So, I thought the best way to approach this was to write about my biggest concerns when I first started debating and the few words of wisdom that got me through.

Part I: Never write a script

The first debate I ever spoke in, as a wet behind the ears first year at Nottingham University, was about re-introducing national service (I think) in Britain. I prepared a lengthy speech which I nervously read for the duration of my five minutes. It was the dullest five minutes of the night. I simply rattled off my points in monotone, never able to take any questions because I dared not deviate from my piece of paper.

In other words, the biggest problem with reading from a script in a debate is that you pigeon-hole yourself into a certain position before the contest has even started. You can never fully anticipate what the other side will throw at you, so you will inevitably have to think on your feet, particularly when you're opposing a motion. If you go into the debate appreciating this, you'll do fine, but go in with a script and you won't be able to effectively respond to anything. Also, odds are that your speech will be slightly too short or too long either leaving you with nothing to say for your last minute or having to suddenly speed up at the end just to fit everything in.

Rather, the key to debating is what pop sociologist Malcolm Gladwell calls 'structured spontaneity'. When preparing for a debate, don't let yourself be overwhelmed by all the available information on the subject, just try and get the jist of the argument. Similarly, don't write out everything you plan to say word for word, but note down the key points you want to make and then maybe a couple of very short bullet points for each of them to keep you on the right track as you're speaking. This should be enough to ensure you always know what you're going talk about once you're up there without the burden of trying to memorise 'your lines' or going off on an improptu tangent.

This applies just as much if you're on the oppostion, preparing your responses to the other side as you listen to them outlining their defence of the motion. Don't try and write down their actual words, just the points they are making. If they're any good, they will have outlined every point they plan to make right from the start which ultimately benefits you just as much the audience. It can also be helpful to write any rebuttals to individual points on a seperate piece of paper, so you can deal with them first before going into your main arguments.

Ultimately, the best form of preparation is to keep reading newspapers and blogs etc and constantly update your general knowledge. Considering that pretty much every member of the debating society joined up primarily because of their healthy interest in current affairs, most of you probably do this already, so you're really as well prepared for any debate that comes along as you can ever be. While channeling all this knowledge into a spontaneous five minute speech can seem like a daunting challenge, you'll soon realise that all you need are a few basic notes and a little self-belief. It is a skill that anyone can learn, but one that can only be learnt by doing and that's what we're all about.

So, come along and have a go at our next debate, the details of which are listed below. We still have a few speaking slots available and membership is entirely free of charge. Just come along on the day and if you feel like joining, leave us your email address so we can contact you about all future debates and debating tips.

When: Wednesday, 8th July 2009

Where: Harcourt Arms pub, York Street W1H 4HX (5 mins walk from Baker Street tube)

Time: 7.30pm - 9.00pm

Motion: This House Would hold the Iraq war inquiry behind closed doors

Next Debate - Wednesday 8th July - This House Would hold Iraq war inquiry in private

2009-06-30T17:47:00.000-07:00
When: Wednesday, 8th July 2009

Where: Harcourt Arms pub, York Street W1H 4HX (5 mins walk from Baker Street tube)

Time: 7.30pm - 9.00pm

Motion: This House Would hold the Iraq war inquiry behind closed doors

For the 6th Meeting of the Central London Debating society we will be returning to the delightful Harcourt Arms pub in Baker Street to debate the Iraq inquiry.

After announcing that an inquiry into the Iraq war would finally be held, Gordon Brown was forced into a embarrassing U-turn as the country reacted to his proposal that it be held in private with scorn.

We ask if he was right in the first place and should he have stuck to his guns.

As ever, we are looking for two speakers on each side of the debate and preferably some fresh faces so we can give our newest members a chance to shine.

Once more we have hired out the illustrious upstairs dining room of the Harcourt Arms which also hosted our last debate. Consensus was that it was one of our best venues yet, so am very glad to have secured it again. Hopefully this time I'll have a chance to sample their famous beer garden too.

The debate is free to attend and the society free to join. All friends are welcome and if you know someone else who might be interested in coming along, then bring them too.

Further details along with a few tips explaining how debating works and how to make your argument count will be posted here in due course.

If you would like to attend the debate, feel free just to turn up on the day, but if you would like to speak or have any questions about the debating society, then please email me any time at: central.debating@gmail.com

Tony

A victory for democracy and upcoming debates

2009-06-29T06:56:00.000-07:00
Our last debate saw the debating society pass its first motion as the House decided that democracy was indeed the best form of government. The event also saw our highest turnout yet as 20 people made it to the Harcourt Arms in York Street.

The opposition made a good go of it -especially the dashing second speaker who recently set up a debating society in central London (ahem)- but unfortunately, the audience did not share their enthusiasm for General Franco and Augusto Pinochet.

A big thank you to my fellow opposition speaker Jordan Anderson who was very much plunged right in the deep end after only agreeing to speak literally minutes before the start of the debate.

A hearty congratulations also to our victorious speakers, Tim Aker and Michael Worthington who won out with a convincing majority of the audience vote.

Our next debate is set to take place next Thursday 9th July. No motion has been set yet, so if you have an idea for our next debate, please let me know - all suggestions are welcome. You can contact me at central.debating@gmail.com

Best Wishes

Tony

Next Debate: This House Believes that democracy is the best form of government

2009-06-19T05:35:00.000-07:00
Motion This House Believes that democracy is the best form of government

When: Thursday, 25th June 2009

Where: The Harcourt Arms (upstairs dining room), Harcourt Street W1H 4HX - nearest tube: Baker Street

Time: 7pm - 9pm

Dear all,

A motion such as this, submitted by one of our own members this time, needs no introduction I suspect. However, there are a few important details about this week's debate I need to include.

From this week onwards, we will be offering a brief class outlining everything you need to know about debating including rules and terminology along with tips on how to make a powerful and convincing argument.

The class this week, will take place half an hour before the debate itself begins. Although aimed predominantly at the society's beginners, the class is open to everyone. Like te debate itself, it is free of charge.

This week we will be welcomed by the Harcourt Arms, a quaint Swedish pub round the corner from Baker Street tube station. We have hired out their luxurious upstairs dining room and for anyone staying for a few drinks afterwards, they have a really nice garden too.

I hope you can all make it as keeping our debates free to all depends on retaining the good will of our host pubs and keeping them happy depends on getting as many people as possible along to each event.

For those interested in coming along to the class, we'll be starting at 7pm with the debate itself starting prmptly at 7.30pm. Please let me know in advance so I can make sure I get there early to meet you all.

For any of you who need directions to the pub, just head down Baker Street and turn right at York Street and the pub is at the end of the road. (see attached map for details)

If you would like to speak in the debate, please let me know. We already have one confirmed speaker for this debate, but we still need three more.

If you have any questions or need anything else, please do not hesitate to call me (Tony) on 0777 565 7712 or email me at central.debating@gmail.com

If you have any friends who you think might be interested, then please bring them along - the more the merrier.

Best Wishes

Tony

Score draw leaves no clear verdict on nukes

2009-06-12T13:44:00.000-07:00
Wednesday's tube strike turned out to be a blessing in disguise for those who made it to the debate at the Savoy Tup.

Even though only four people made it out, we were treated to a one on one debate on the pros and cons of nuclear weapons.

In the absence of our normal audience, we spent the Q&A session evaluating each speaker delivering the kind of feedbackon their speeches that I would really like to see become a more common feature of our debates.

At the end, we each gave our opinion of who we thought made the stronger case, technically making it our first draw, but I'm inclined to call this debate more of a training exercise for our speakers, but still a truly enthralling debate nonetheless.

I'm yet to settle on a venue for the next debate, but I intend to hold it on the 25th June meaning our next meeting will return to its usual Thursday slot. Should the debate have to be held on a Wednesday again, for whatever reason, I will be sure to notify you all as soon as possible.

Next debate - This House Believes that the world would be safer without nuclear weapons

2009-06-02T17:58:00.000-07:00
Date: Wednesday 10th June 2009

Time: 7.30pm - 9.30pm

Location: Savoy Tup, 2 Savoy Street W2CR 0BA

Contact: Tony Koutsoumbos on central.debating@gmail.com or 0777 565 7712

It's that time again. The Central London Debating society is holding its next debate next Wednesday and this time it's nuclear weapons on the agenda. The event, as always, is free of charge and open to all.

Since coming to power, President Barack Obama has been expressing his determination to rid the world of nuclear weapons, reviving an international disarmament treaty with Russia.

Yet just last week the world once again held its breath after N. Korea tested its most powerful nuclear device yet. Similarly, Iran continues to attract the ire of the international community with its own nuclear programme.

So, is total nuclear disarmament the only way to save the world from itself or are atomic weapons along with the doctrine of Mutually Assured Destruction vital to our self defence and the prevention of another global war?

You decide.

If you're interested in speaking on this motion, please email central.debating@gmail.com with a request to speak. This society is here first and foremost to give people unaccustomed to speaking in public on issues they care about the confidence to do so. All you need is an opinion.

This House Would (not) boycott all major parties at the European elections

2009-05-29T02:51:00.000-07:00
Last night we held our first debate as the Central London Debating Society at the Savoy Tup.

The motion was 'This House Would Boycott all major parties at the European elections'.

Following a hotly contested debate, which I was privileged to also take part in with three excellent speakers, the audience voted to oppose the motion.

Nevertheless, a big thank you to my fellow speakers, Michael Worthington, Jason Maude and Patrick Sullivan, as well as our esteemed guest Chair Martin Orchard, for a thoroughly informative and entertaining debate.

While we had a comfortable attendance of 12 people in total for this debate, I was particularly delighted to see so many new faces last night. It's good to know that we are gradually expanding our reach as apparently details of last night's debate were being circulated as far away as Aberystwyth university.

The next debate will take place in two weeks' time on Thursday 11th June, most likely at the same venue and at the same time, but I will post details in due course. In the meantime, if you have any suggestions on how to make this a bigger and better society whether it's an idea for a motion, a prospective new venue or a means of promoting the society to the wider public, please do let me know.

You can post ideas on our Facebook group page or you can send them to central.debating@gmail.com

That's it for now.

Thank you all again