News Year 11 Debaters Argue Their Point 20.01.2023

On Thursday 19 January, Year 11 students Antara and Franny shrugged off the cares of the practice examinations and went into battle as our team in the English-Speaking Union (ESU) Schools’ Mace second round.  There were a few last minute technical hitches when the debate had to move online, but nevertheless, Antara and Franny acquitted themselves with their customary aplomb.  The opposition rather squirrelled the motion, so they had to rapidly think on their feet to correct the course of the debate and oppose the motion that ‘this House would use proportional representation in UK national elections.’  They made expert use of recent examples of PR not working in other European countries and gave substantive argument about why this system would not benefit the local constituency or the fight against extremism.  In the end, whilst they conclusively won their debate, they missed the cut to the regional final by one mark, and to a team with a Team England speaker.  They did a fantastic job and we are very proud of their excellent work.