June
Mary Lane proposed the motion that "Friendship is the most important thing in life” asserting that true friends are essential for a happy life and while they may not always be with you, they are present in every stage of our existence. She argued that adults need people who share their interests and outlook. These individuals act as an unbiased confidant for safely sharing intimate thoughts and opinions as well as providing trusted support when needed. She also considered that friendship is dependent on mutual politeness and tact which is not always present in families.
Opposer Helen Rees agreed that good friends are essential, just not the most important. She contended that family bonds are crucial relationships in life claiming that they provide a constancy as they are always with us and we can always turn to them in times of need. She maintained that humans need to know and understand their family links as our family members provide us with our next of kin and, they are given priority in health and legal settings. We also invariably leave our assets to them.
Following many varied comments from the floor, the motion was carried by 7 votes to 2 with 2 abstentions.
May
Unfortunately the planned debate had to be cancelled as one of the speakers was unwell. Instead a range of topical issues were discussed including shoplifting, illegal migrants, elections, and the politics of Farage and Trump.
April
The motion for the April debate was "Voting should be compulsory for all adults". Both speakers agreed that it would not be easy to implement this in the UK without additional structural changes being made to the electoral system. However, proposer Chris Lane stated that since most voters were, on average, older and more well off, party politics were pitched to attract their support. As a result younger and poorer people were less inclined to take part in elections feeling they were irrelevant to them. He considered that if people were made to vote, policies could become less exclusive and this in turn, would ensure less extremism and more continuity between governments.
Opposer Barry Mills argued that legislating in this way could be divisive and threatening if people had to choose between political parties that did not represent their views. He considered that it would make voting a numbers game for its own sake rather than improving the quality of votes. He felt that encouraging national pride would be a more preferrable path to take as it could provoke a passion to participate.
Following a wide range of thoughtful comments from the floor, the motion was carried by a narrow margin - 9 for 7 against and 2 abstentions.
March 2025
Sixteen people attended the March debate about issues of topical interest. Understandably, most time was spent discussing the Russia/Ukraine war and the effect that the American led peace talks were having, including whether Trump has a specific rationale and if he is really making America great again. Other items covered were should parents be allowed to smack their children and do current lifestyles mean we are becoming disengaged with reality. Opinions shared were sensitively considered, informative and interesting and despite the serious nature of the topics, were also the source of some laughter.
February 2025
Clive Hill proposed that "A1 does more good than bad" Opposer Jean Cheek. The debate provoked much discussion before a vote was taken. Six voted for the motion with 1 against and 3 abstentions.