Dilara Gencer won out again today making the case that we should indeed report on the private lives of politicians: there is nothing so wrong with the status quo that necessitates this change – that should ban the reporting on the private lives of politicians. Though the Opening Proposition team of Sourish Chanda and Ruby Wang began to make a good case, but the harms that are being done to politicians is as nothing as the benefit for the overall population, the voters, who are the main stakeholder in this debate. We should indeed know if our politicians are hanging around with racists, misogynists and other ne’er’-do-wells. We chose our politicians based on their characters, and for good reason. Whether the constant reporting on ‘gossip’ is harming politics generally, and therefore the voter in the long term, was touched one – but not enough: the proposition lost. Our next competition is the Cambridge University School Debate Competition in March. Next week’s motion will be –‘This House would introduce shame punishments for minor offences.’

 

Mr Ahern & Mr Murphy