sixth-form debating competition
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INTRODUCTION Today, more than half of 18- to 30-year-olds go into higher education, reaching a famous target set by Tony Blair 20 years previously when he was prime minister [source: Independent]. The Tony Blair Institute (a think tank set up by Blair) has published a report arguing that this number should be even higher: 70 …
Continue reading “Skills Gap: too many people are going to university”
Revised May 2022 INTRODUCTION The issue of social egg freezing has increasingly appeared in the news over the past decade as technological advances, celebrity endorsement and corporate cooperation make the procedure more widely known and available. In the UK, the issue has received particular attention as campaigners successfully lobbied for the time limit on egg …
INTRODUCTION Arguably, climate change, and the environmental problems that will occur as a result, are the most pressing issues that humankind faces. The outcome of the COP21 climate talks in Paris in 2015 was hailed as a momentous deal, in which countries pledged, among other things, to cap emissions, and seek to limit temperature rises …
Continue reading “Technological progress will not solve society’s environmental issues”
INTRODUCTION In May 2021, the government introduced the Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Bill. The bill strengthens the legal duties on higher education providers in England to protect and promote freedom of speech and academic freedom [Ref: Department for Education]. The impetus for such measures is the belief that ‘cancel culture’ is undermining free speech within …
Continue reading “The government should impose a duty of support for free speech in universities”
INTRODUCTION On 8 January 2021, Twitter permanently suspended the account of the former president, Donald J Trump. Although this final decision was provoked by Trump’s tweets before the riot at the Capitol building two days before, he had already been in trouble with social media companies for a variety of messages, particularly those loudly claiming …
Continue reading “Tech companies should act to stop online misinformation”
Updated: March 2021 INTRODUCTION In June 2020, in a response to the Black Lives Matter protests and the toppling by protestors of a statue of Edward Colston [Ref: BBC], the Mayor of London set up the Commission for Diversity in the Public Realm [ref: Wikipedia]. The aim of this commission is to ensure London’s monuments, plaques …
Continue reading “Monuments to controversial historical figures should remain”
INTRODUCTION The UK government is planning to reduce the amount it spends on foreign aid [Ref: UK Government]. Prior to the decision, the foreign aid budget stood at 0.7% of gross national income (GNI), the amount targeted by the UN [Ref: United Nations]. Following the announcement, including news that there would be cuts to aid …
Continue reading “The UK should reduce its foreign aid budget”
INTRODUCTION Government policies in response to the Covid-19 pandemic have reignited interest in the idea of a universal basic income (UBI). [Ref: France 24] The UK government has paid millions of workers 80 per cent of their wages when they are unable to work due to government-imposed restrictions. Yet this still left millions more people …
Continue reading “Universal basic income is not a solution to our social and economic problems”
This topic guide builds on a thread of Twitter posts by Adam Wagner, a barrister at Doughty Street Chambers and Visiting Professor of Law at Goldsmiths University. For the purposes of this debate, the term ‘vaccine passport’ means some form of immunity certificate, for use both domestically and for international travel. INTRODUCTION Almost as soon …
INTRODUCTION In December 2020, a group of former rugby players – including Steve Thompson, a World Cup winner with England in 2003 – sent a pre-action letter to World Rugby, the Rugby Football Union and Welsh Rugby Union, suing them for failing to take protective action against the risks caused by concussion [Ref: BBC Sport]. It …
Continue reading “We should accept the risk inherent in contact sports”