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wikiHow to Debate (British Parliament Style)

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British Parliamentary Debate is a debate done on the spot. This article will cover how to debate in this style and provide some useful tips.


  1. 1
    Organize FOUR teams of TWO people.
  2. 2
    Decide which team gets to get to pick whether it will choose the topic first or the side to argue for. This is generally done by a coin toss and the winner will get preference over choosing the topic or the side. There are two government teams and two opposition teams. You will be versing not only your side's opposition, but also the other government team.
  3. 3
    There are generally 3 topics and 2 sides. The topics are random and the sides are called "government" and "opposition". Government is supporting the topic given and opposition is opposing it. The topic will always request government to argue for a change (argue to change something that currently exists), while opposition will argue against the change. There are TWO teams for government, and there are TWO teams for opposition.
  4. 4
    You and a partner receive your topic around 10 minutes before the debate begins. You have these few minutes to prepare your speeches.
  5. 5
    Points of information can be given to the opposing side when they are speaking. This is in the form of a question, and cannot last more than 15 seconds.
  6. 6
    For every debate, the first and last minute are protected time, where you cannot make any Points of Information.
  7. 7
    First the opening sides debate. There will be two opening teams - the Opening Government and the Opening Opposition.
  8. 8
    One person on side government, called the Prime Minister, speaks first. S/he must define every important term in the topic. S/he must define them carefully, because should s/he introduce fail to do so, side opposition may define those terms in any way that best suits it. (i.e., define the house, define the meaning of the resolution, etc.) Next, the Prime Minister will introduce any contentions (points you wish to use to prove your case) s/he wishes to do. It is imperative that the Prime Minister sets a clear and narrow resolution so that the debate is focused and no too broad. The time limit is generally 5 minutes.
  9. 9
    One person on side opposition, called the Leader of the Opposition, speaks next. S/he must refute (prove incorrect) every contention the Prime Minister just made and introduce any contentions s/he wishes to do so. The time limit is generally 5 minutes.
  10. 10
    One person on side government, called the Deputy Prime Minister, speaks next. S/he must refute every contention the Member of the Opposition just introduced, rebuild (re-prove) the Prime Minister's contentions and introduce any additional contentions s/he wishes to introduce. The time limit is generally 5 minutes.
  11. 11
    One person on side opposition, called the Deputy Leader of the Opposition, speaks next. S/he must refute every contention of side government, rebuild all of side opposition's contentions and introduce any additional contentions s/he wishes to add. Sometimes, it may be against the rules to introduce new contentions in this speech in the last [enter amount here] minutes of the speech. It is also, generally, a good idea to summarize all the points of the opening opposition (the Leader of Opposition and his own points) in this speech, as the Leader of the Opposition is the last person of his side to speak. The time limit is generally 8 minutes.
  12. 12
    The closing sides now debate.
  13. 13
    The Member of Government now speaks. S/he must present an extension to the debate that was done by the opening sides. That is to say, S/he must open a new side about the issue. This is 5 minutes.
  14. 14
    The Member of Opposition now speaks. S/he was to refute the points of the Member of Government, as well as bring in another extension. This is 5 minutes.
  15. 15
    The Government Whip speaks. S/he is to refute the points of the Member of Opposition. Then, s/he has to sum up the debate and crystallize it to some main points. This speaker may not bring in ANY new points/extensions/case studies. This is 5 minutes.
  16. 16
    The Opposition Whip is the last speaker in the debate. S/he will refute, but may not introduce new contentions. Lastly, s/he should summarize all the contentions made by his/her side and possibly provide mention what the debate was mainly about. S/he was to do the same thing as the Government Whip. This is 5 minutes.

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  • Make it clear when you move on to a new point. If you don't, the judge will be confused, thinking you are supporting the last point when you aren't. You may say, "Well that's his/her problem", but it's not. The judge doesn't have to let you win the case. If you make no sense at all, the judge is obviously not going to let you win - just like if you watched an advertisement in a language you didn't speak, would you buy the product?
  • Make it easy for the judge to follow your points. You can always tell the judge what you are going to do before you do it (i.e. I am going to do this. Then I am going to do this. Then I am going to do this.). That way, the judge will know to make some room on his/her paper to take notes on your arguments.
  • Write down the points the opposing side says. You want to refute every point they make. If they make a point that you cannot refute, the judge will assume that you are unable to, and therefore, it is a valid point.
  • If you are side opposition and side government uses very bad definitions, you are allowed you challenge their definition by standing up in the middle of the speech and telling the judge their definitions are unfair. However, should the judge disagree with you, your chances of winning the debate could become very low. A failed challenge can cause your side to lose a lot of points
  • Come up with a strategy. There is strategy in debate as well! For example, one strategy could be to make a ton of contentions to overwhelm your opponents. If you know that a few of them make it through unnoticed by your opponents, the judge will have to consider those contentions as valid points. Just know the possible negative consequences of a strategy as well.
  • Restate your contentions. Not all judges can efficiently write down every point you make. Sometimes, if you have extra time left, it's good to go back and restate your points. In addition, you should add additional reasoning that support your contentions.
  • Watch the judge or whoever decides the outcome of your debate. Don't look at your opponents. Convincing your opponents won't win you the debate - only convincing the judge matters, so why even bother looking at your opponents? Keep eye contact with the judge.
  • Some people say talking for a long time about a point is bad. However, it is actually good. Have you ever seen an advertisement? Would you really care if there was a 2 second long advertisement telling you to buy a product? However, would you listen if it was for 20 seconds? The more you talk about it, the more the judge hears your points. The more the judge hears your points, the more likely the judge will consider them.
  • Even when refuting the opposing side's points, make sure that the refutation is directed towards the Speaker of the House (or the judge).

Article Info

Categories: Debates

In other languages:

Español: debatir (estilo del Parlamento Británico), Português: Debater (Estilo de Parlamento Britânico)


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