Sixteen schools contest Society's regional finals

Annual debating competition focuses on 1707 Union and its consequences

News, 12 March 2007

The regional finals of the Law Society of Scotland's annual debating tournament will take place this week and next.

Just 16 of over 120 teams who took to the floor at the start of the Donald Dewar Memorial Debating Tournament are through to the finals, which will take place in Dundee, Aberdeen, Edinburgh and Glasgow.

The venues (Dundee City Chambers, Aberdeen Town House, the National Galleries of Scotland and Glasgow University Union) have been provided through the "A Union for a’ that" schools education project which marks the 300th anniversary of the Union of Parliaments.

Each final will be preceded by workshops provided by the project for the successful teams and their school friends at the host venue. The workshops aim to promote an understanding of the historical events and political debate surrounding the Union in 1707 and their relationship to the present.

The impromptu debates of the evening will be announced to teams one hour in advance of the start of the first debate, and will continue the theme of the workshops, centring on issues relating to the union or democracy.

Neil Stevenson, Deputy Director of Education and Training at the Society, said: “We were delighted to be asked to be part of the "Union for a' that" project. 1707 is a very important date in the history of Scotland, the repercussions of which are still discussed at length today.

“All 16 teams who have made it through to this stage of the competition have done extremely well and I’m looking forward to the two impromptu debates each night. The pupils only have one hour to prepare and as there are no supporting resources, they rely on the power of their own minds to prepare. They always rise to the challenge.”