Birmingham Commonwealth Association annual inter-university/college Commonwealth debate in partnership with the University of Birmingham and Birmingham City University -26 March 2025
‘Arguing for or against a debate topic can be straightforward when you’re passionate about the subject or have strong evidence to back your stance’ says Keith Stokes-Smith, Chairman of the Birmingham Commonwealth Assoc. ‘It’s also easier when the topic has clear pros and cons.
But it can get tricky when the subject is nuanced, controversial, or unfamiliar. In those cases, understanding the judging criteria, anticipating counterarguments, and maintaining a calm demeaner become essential skills.’
So how did team University of Birmingham and Birmingham City University do when they came to debate the motion “The Relevance of the Commonwealth in the 21st Century: Is the Commonwealth still a significant and influential organization in today’s global landscape?”
Birmingham City University won the toss as to which team spoke first choosing to speak after the University of Birmingham team , the later speaking against the motion and Birmingham City University for it.
Both teams stressed the words ‘significant’ and ‘influential’ one way or the other for or against the motion as applicable. ‘A really good level of debate ensued,’ said Keith.
‘Depending upon the nature of the debate, they can be won or lost on how persuasive you are in your arguments rather than accuracy and evidence-based reasoning.
A tough call for the judges with University of Birmingham being declared the winners.
‘Can I thank both University of Birmingham and Birmingham City University and their team members for the amount of effort they put into participating. It required a lot of research by both teams in order to put forward their case also having to do so within the debating rules required of them. Well done team University of Birmingham and Birmingham City University,‘ said Keith.
Commenting upon the event held at the University of Birmingham, Andréa Edwards, Director of Global Relations and Research University of Birmingham, and Chair of the BCA Education Group said “ We were delighted to partner with the Birmingham Commonwealth Association to host their 2025 Annual Commonwealth Debate. The event was a terrific opportunity for students from the University of Birmingham and Birmingham City University to test their debating and public speaking skills, and everyone enjoyed a lively and insightful debate on the significance and influence of the Commonwealth. It was a very closely fought debate. My congratulations to the University of Birmingham as the winning team, but also Birmingham City University for fielding an excellent team and for supporting the event. I look forward to the rematch in 2026.”
Feedback from the winning team:
Cameron:
‘I was really thankful that all those hours of research and practice paid off. Through this experience I was able to learn so much about the Commonwealth; its history, its members and new initiatives.’
James:
‘I was really happy with our victory. It felt like our hard work had paid off and I’d learnt loads about the CW along the way. The experience itself was great fun and I’m grateful that I was chosen to be a part of it!’
Meera:
‘I was thrilled that my team and I won. It felt amazing to reap the rewards of our team effort and I personally learned a lot about the CW, especially regarding their charter and initiatives that they embark on for the good of CW members. The debating experience pushed me to absorb as much material as possible in the given time and the competition itself is a memory I will forever treasure.’
Jonothan:
‘I was so proud of the team and glad that everyone’s hard work paid off. It helped widen my knowledge of the commonwealth through a more critical lense and it was a great experience and I hope for more people to experience it.’
Photographs
Winning team in action
With the judges far left and far right and centre and Andrea Edwards, (2nd from right) Director of Global Relations and Research, University of Birmingham
The Winning shield- 2nd year running for University of Birmingham
Opposing team receiving their certificates with Judges far right, left and centre
Judge and Chairman of the Birmingham Commonwealth Assoc thanking UoB student Joshua Pegus for running the debate.
