Debate motions from 2011

THW positively discriminate for women in the armed forces

1

THW introduce a salary cap for European footballers

2

THB The state should financially support newspapers

3

THW only hire disabled actors to play disabled characters

4

THW abolish JobBridge

5

THW set a cap on pay for all chief executives and other high level employees of chartities.

6

THW abolish geographical constituencies and hold only national elections

7

THW allow people to sell their organs.

8

THW give social welfare in the form of vouchers.

9

THW abolish all laws prohibiting cruelty to animals

10

THW allow parents to remove their children from sex education classes.

11

THBT news outlets should not have shown images of Gaddafi's corpse

12

THW dismantle power sharing in the North and elect the Stormont Assembly by PR STV

13

THW ban the use, in schools, of literature that reinforces traditional gender roles.

14

THW Not outsource the running of hospitals to private companies.

15

THW allow police to temporarily suspend social networking sites in the interest of restoring law and order

16

THW publicly fund research into paranormal phenomena

17

THW Occupy Dame Street

18

THW impose a moratorium on home foreclosures

19

THW prohibit the release of previously unpublished artistic works, after the death of the creator, author or musician

20

TH regrets the popularity of the Twilight series

21

THW Would Reintroduce Hard Labour in Prisons

22

THW not lie to its children about Santa Claus

23

THB that it is in the interests of women's equality to campaign against maternity leave.

24

THW require internet subscribers to opt in in order to be able to view pornorgraphic websites

25

That military officers should be allowed to publicly criticise the government

26

This House would allow the defendants that belong to a minority group to choose to be judged by a jury composed exclusively of other members of their same minority group.

27

THW (assuming the technology existed) implant irremovable tracking chips in its citizens

28

THBT Trade Unions do more harm than good for workers

29

THBT destruction of private property is a legitimate tool for environmental campaigners

30

THW End All State Funding For The Arts

31

This house believes that national sporting teams should reflect the diversity of the national population

1

This house believes that all states have a right to nuclear weapons

2

This house believes that governments should not provide benefits on the basis of marital status

3

This house believes that central banks should set limits on government spending

4

This House would prioritise asylum Seekers who have engaged in armed struggle against oppressive regimes

5

This House would allow teachers unions the right to strike

6

This House would require individuals to reveal their actual identity when communicating on the internet

7

This house believes that the southern african development community (SADC) should pursue political union

8

This house believes that social movements should use the courts rather than the legislature to advance social change

9

This House would buy countries votes in international organizations

Open_Octos

This house believes that courts should not enforce wills that discriminate on the basis of race

Open_Quarters

This house opposes organised religion

Open_Semis

This House would invade Zimbabwe

Open_Final

This house supports a one state solution for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict

EFL_Semis

This House would give more votes to the poor

EFL_Final

This house believes that domestic courts should try foreign nationals who commit war crimes abroad

ESL_Quarters

This House would prefer that the children of racial minorities be adopted by parents of that race

ESL_Semis

This house believes that the courts should break up consistently dominant political parties

ESL_Final

This House would buy local

Masters_1

This house prefers a philosopher King to a tyrannical democracy

Masters_Final

THW cut all foreign aid in times of recession

1

TH is Disgusted by 'Toddlers and Tiaras' and other Child Beauty Pagants

2

THB it's High Time the Monarchy was Abolished

3

THB Manchester City and Teams of their Ilk are Ruining Football

4

THW give Extra Leaving Cert Points for Extra Curricular Activities

5

THW use Military Force to Remove Kim Jong Il from Power Immediately

6

THB that Barack Obama's Presidency has been a Success

7

THW Abolish the Minimum Wage

8

THB it's Abhorrent for Western Countries to Employ Doctors from the Third World

9

THW Introduce Mandatory Paternity Leave

10

THB Norris was/is the Right Choice for President of Ireland

11

THB Wireless Internet Access Should be a Right not a Privilege

12

THW Force People to take a Mandatory Civics Test before Voting in National Elections/Referendas

13

THB the IOC Should Ban Drug Cheats for Life

14

TH Regrets the Demise of the Green Party

15

THW Remove all Catholic Control of Public Education by the End of the School Year

16

THW make voting a use it or lose it right

0

THBT state has an obligation to fund the arts

1

THBT all countries' education systems should focus on the teaching of English

2

THW allow abortion only in the case of both parents' consent

3

THBT the European experiment has failed

4

THBT media in liberal Western democracies is not independent and free

5

THW give every citizen a positive and a negative vote in elections

6

TH supports the implementation of a global Robin Hood tax

7

TH regrets the undemocratic election of Italy's and Greece's president

8

THBT the EU should make Serbian membership conditional upon Serbia's acceptance of gay rights

9

THBT newly democratised Arab countries should not allow religious parties to participate in elections

10

This House Would offer dictators immunity in return for leaving power

Round 1 (prepared)

This House Would allow free distribution of music on the internet

Round 2 (impromptu)

This House Believes That Universal Primary Education is a misallocation of resources for the developing world

Round 3 (prepared)

This House Would make voting in national elections mandatory

Round 4 (impromptu)

This House Would legalise the sale of human organs

Round 5 (prepared)

This House Would stop sending humans into space

Round 6 (impromptu)

This House Believes That women can only achieve equality under a secular system of government

Round 7 (prepared)

This House Would penalise sporting teams for the poor behaviour of their fans

Round 8 (impromptu)

TH supports free immigration

Quarterfinals (impromptu)

This House Believes That every region should have the right to independent statehood if a majority of its members wish

Semifinals (impromptu)

This House Believes That autocracy is doomed in the age of Facebook

Grand Final (prepared)

THW give harsher punishments to those who commit crimes during riots

1

THW have minimum quotas for different ethnic groups living in public housing estates

2

THBT serving military generals should be prohibited from talking to the Media

3

THBT the Indian Government Should Ban marriage between Members of the Same Caste

4

THW create a free market for the sale of babies

5

THW allow constituents to recall their elected representatives

ESL_Semis

THBT the countries of former Yugoslavia should create a common history curriculum and textbooks

ESL_Final

THBT Mexico Should Legalise the Sale, Production and Transit of all Drugs

Open_Quarters

THW end all subsidies for small farms

Open_Semis

TH regrets the extra judicial killing of Colonel Gaddafi

Open_Final

THBT sexual education classes in schools should teach techniques or pure sexual gratification (including but not limited to ...list follows)

1

THBT in developing countries aid organisations should be banned from religious proselytyzing

2

THW suspend trade unions and labour protection laws in times of economic crisis

3

THBT Israel should Materially Support Arab Pro-Democratic Movements

4

THW place a special tax on successful artists in order to fund new and developing artists

5

THBT the LBGT movement should not support Gay Pride marches

ESL_Semis

THBT the leaders of big world corporations should be democratically chosen by national elections

ESL_Final

THBT international law should allow states which accept refugees to sue the states they come from for compensation.

Open_Quarters

THW establish brothels on military bases

Open_Semis

THW establish geographical zones in which the sale, possession, and use of drugs is legal

Open_Final

THW allow family members to forcibly commit proven alcoholics and drug addicts to rehabilitation clinics

1

THBT all research organizations should institute codes of conduct that forbid the creation of strong Artificial Intelligence (Info slide: A 'Weak' Artificial Intelligence is only capable of solving narrowly defined problems. A 'Strong' AI is capable of all the same kinds of intellectual tasks as human beings. A Strong AI would be able to reason, plan, learn, adapt, and communicate in natural language. Researchers at major universities have made significant progress towards the creation of Strong AI.)

2

THW provide financial assistance to inner city communities to prevent gentrification

3

THBT China should make extracting a full apology for Japan's war crimes a top strategic priority

4

THBT feminism should not campaign against polygamy in poor countries

5

THW take the children of the Amish into care

ESL_Semis

THB that it is morally legitimate for Occupy Movement to use violence to undermine capitalist institutions

ESL_Final

THW consider the use of conscripts a war crime

Open_Quarters

TH regrets the rise of a distinct African American culture

Open_Semis

THW break Google's search monopoly

Open_Final

This House believes that the media should show the full horror of war

1

This House approves of "hacktivism" against misbehaving corporations.

2

THW give transnational EU citizenship to Roma.

3

THBT there will be no peace in the Middle East without an independent Palestine.

4

THBT war criminals should be put on trial in their home countries.

5

THBT states should guarantee legally enforceable socio-economic rights.

6

HBT Greece should go bankrupt

Open_Quarters

THBT companies should be held liable in their home countries for environmental damage in other countries

Open_Semis

THBT the feminist movement should seek a ban on pornography

Open_Final

THW ban the payment of ransoms

1

THW force elected politicians and their families to use only public health and education services

2

THW mandate the use of condoms in porn

3

THW prosecute violent fouls in sports as criminal assault

4

Actually, THW rather see one innocent man go to jail than a 100 guilty men walk free

5

THBT natural resources should belong to the world and not to any individual country

6

THBT a universal minimum standard of education is a prerequisite for democracy

Open_Semis

THBT consent is not a source of moral legitimacy

Open_Final

THB the police should not create perp walks.

1

THW teach boys those aspects of subjects which are thought to be most interesting to them, such as military history.

2

THW require all newspapers to be constituted as cooperatives, owned and run by journalists.

3

Insofar as it is cost effective, THBT authorities should routinely gather and access as much information, including private and personal information, that may conceivably be useful in solving or preventing crime, as possible.

4

THW punish NHS workers who do not blow the whistle on malpractice, corruption or negligence, of which they know, as if they had carried out the act themselves.

5

This house believes it is illegitimate for governments to prevent any peaceful protest in public space.

Novice_Final

This house would not prosecute people living below the poverty line for purely acquisitive crime.

Open_Semis

This house believes that the media should not use the phrase 'big society' uncritically.

Open_Final

THW Remove all State Funding from RTE

1

THB if Josef Mengele had Discovered a Cure for Cancer, it'd be morally Acceptable to use it

2

THW Remove Equal State Suffrage in the United States Senate

3

TH Supports 'The Right to be Forgotten' (in relation to internet privacy)

4

THB Enda Kenny's first 9 months as Taoiseach have been a success

5

THW Allow Organised Fight Clubs

6

THW Introduce Sex-Affirmative Action for Corporate Executives

7

THW Abolish Libel

8

THBT all bail-out packages should be approved by a popular referendum in the recipient party

1

THBT the Arab League should impose an oil embargo on the EU until the EU member states lift their ban on the Islamic Veil

2

THBT it would be better if Sinn Fein took their seats (in the UK parliament)

3

THBT Virginia Tech should remember Seung-Hui Cho, the shooter, along with his victims in its memorials … and launch 33 balloons

4

THW allow defendants in criminal trials to ask the judge to be acquitted on the grounds that the law they broke was unjust, and would instruct all juries to take this defense into account

5

THBT the State should have no role in the recognition of marriage

Novice_Final

THBT the State should give everyone an equal salary, paid for by the government, even if they are unemployed

Open_Semis

THW refuse war veterans the right to vote

Open_Final

THW ban child beauty pageants

1

THBT Israel should unilaterally preemptively strike Iran

2

THBT individuals should be required by governments to invest a defined portion of their salary for their retirement

3

THW forcibly remove the homeless from the streets and place them in mental institutions or rehabilitation

4

THW consign the European Union to the dustbin of history

5

THS comprehensive parental leave paid for by employers

6

THW camp out in solidarity with the "Occupy" protestors

Open_Semi

THBT newly democratised Arab nations should not allow religious parties to run for office

Open_Final

THBT EU membership should not be determined on the basis of geographic criteria

1

THBT media company owners have the right to influence the nature of news

2

THBT China should abolish the "Gaokao" in favour of allowing universities to establish their own (admission) criteria

3

THBT during riots it is legitimate for governments to deny access to social networks

4

THBT a Chinese Marshall Plan should be initiated to save the Euro

Open_Quarters

THW demand international corporations operating in China to uphold the same environmental standards required in their home country

Open_Semis

THBT Mandarin should be taught as the primary second language in all EU schools

Open_Final

THBT there should be no limit on self-defence against violent crimes

1

THW ban parades and demonstrations that could incite a violent response

2

THBT the UN should offer large bounties for the capture of pirates and the destruction of pirate ships

3

THW ban all religions from actively seeking conversions

4

THBT America and the EU should cease all financial, political and military aid to both Israel and the Palestinian Authority until they reach a peace deal

5

THW ban political parties that propagate racism and xenophobia

Open_Semis

THBT even in an oppressive state, citizens should not turn to violence as a means of opposition

Open_Final

THW outsource the capture of elusive criminals to bounty-hunters.

1

THBT Ireland should create constituencies, elected by people who emigrate from Ireland

2

THW grant aboriginal peoples copyrights over depictions of their culture.

3

THW allow the families of dead people to sue for libel on their behalf

4

THBT it is legitimate for politicians to lie to the electorate about their real views.

5

THW grant minors the right to euthanasia regardless of parental consent.

Open_Semis

Regardless of the relative efficiency of various economic systems, THBT meritocracy is a just way of allocating resources.

Open_Final

THBT the USA should stop its military support of Taiwan

1

THBT the state has a duty to provide free, unlimited and uncensored access to the Internet at every home

2

THW legalise all forms of hatespeech

3

THW still pronounce a verdict for civil cases which have been settled out of court

4

THBT each country has a duty to limit population growth

5

You are the commander of an Israeli submarine in the Persian Gulf. It is the day after Israel was annihilated in a surprise Iranian nuclear attack: THW not use Israel's second strike capabilities

Open_Semis

THW halt all state-sponsored efforts to integrate immigrants into society

Open_Final

THBT American political parties should hold their primaries nation-wide on one day

1

THBT immigration is a good solution to counter an aging population

2

THW nationalise the banking sector

3

(In 2050 scientists have localised the gen that causes paedophilic tendencies. The gen can be surgically removed/"turned off" without major impact) THW require everyone with the gen to undergo surgery, even if they have never been convicted of a crime

4