Debate Format British Parliamentary
In bp there are two sides or benches in a debate.
Debate format british parliamentary. Each speaker gives a speech of up to five minutes sometimes longer seven minute speeches might be requested. British parliamentary style debate is a major form of academic debate that originated in liverpool in the mid 1800s. In british parliamentary debate there are different kinds of motions. British parliamentary debate format this is a popular format in the uk and is used by many university run competitions.
There are eight speakers in this format. Two teams of two people on each side. British parliamentary debate format page 4 of 8 the following sections briefly describe the speeches given by each of the eight speakers listed in the previous table. The format or rules of the game there are many different styles of debating around the world us parliamentary australs even the dutch do it differently but the one that concerns us here is british parliamentary debating or bp for short.
It is the style used at the annual world universities debating championship wudc. Our amendments have been few and minor. If you understand the difference between these motions you understand how you should create arguments and how the roles of the speakers change. Some people refer to bp as worlds or wudc format each round of debate focuses on a different motion topic.
This is generally done by a coin toss and the winner will get preference over choosing the topic or the. The rules and structure of a debate the format that the uk predominantly debates in is british parliamentary bp. This is the standard form used at university level and differs radically from the. The government or proposition versus the opposition who must either support or oppose a given motion.
British parliamentary bp debate british parliamentary debate or bp is the most popular style of intercollegiate debating in the world. The british parliamentary format for novices with very many thanks to the adjudication team from the de la salle university wudc 2012 for this document. Decide which team gets to get to pick a topic or side. Prime minister the debate begins with a seven minute speech by the prime minister.
This briefing is designed for those who have never debated before in the british parliamen tary format or require clarification as to the basic rules. It has gained wide support across countries in europe africa asia oceania and north and south america it is the official style of the world universities debating championship wudc. This article will cover how to debate in this style and provide some useful tips.