The Sussex Conversations: The EU Referendum - in or out?
Michael Farthing opened the debate by explaining that the University had surveyed its staff and students on the EU referendum. He announced that 82% of the staff and students who had completed the survey were in favour of Britain remaining in the EU.
The debate was chaired by journalist Sarah Montague, who started by asking why so few young people were predicted to vote in the referendum, and what the University of Sussex's Students' Union was doing to make sure the student voice was heard.
Abraham Baldry, President of the Students' Union, responded that the University of Sussex's culture was one of "critical thinking and engaging with political issues". He noted that many Sussex students had voted in the general election, but added that young people generally felt disengaged with politics.
Graham Stringer MP argued that there was a lack of democracy in how the EU functioned, which was causing disengagement and the growth of extreme right- and left-wing parties across Europe.
He also suggested that a large part of the EU was 'an economic basket case' as a result of the introduction of the Euro.
Writer and broadcaster Ekow Eshun replied that if Britain left the EU, "workers are more likely to be exploited. That’s not an attractive proposition to a young person.”
He also stated that leaving the EU would be sending a clear signal that Britain was "shut for business", and added that Europe would be better equipped to handle the refugee crisis if countries worked closely together.
Jonathan Faull, Director of the European Commission's Task Force for Strategic Issues related to the UK Referendum, agreed with Eshun that the refugee crisis couldn't be resolved by individual countries - it was "a global problem needing a global solution."
Faull, a Sussex alumnus, also stressed the uncertainty Britain would face if it left the EU, at one point telling Montague that there was "no plan" for what would happen following a vote to leave.
Helena Morrissey CBE, an investment banker and campaigner for more women in leadership roles, was firmly in favour of leaving the EU.
Morrissey believes that British citizens could retain their employment rights and other benefits while benefiting from greater democracy if they voted to leave the union. Leaving wouldn't have to be a stormy divorce, she claimed; rather, it could be "a conscious uncoupling."
However, she thought that the Leave campaign had an image problem as it had become associated with an "anti-immigration, protectionist and ‘Little England’ view."
Lucy Thomas, Deputy Director of Britain Stronger in Europe, argued that leaving the union would damage the UK's universities: "The UK is the recipient of a large amount of research and development funding from the EU, and that is contingent on us making contributions to the EU budget.”
She also challenged the view that young people's voices were not being heard in the EU referendum debate, commenting that "Students are getting involved. They do want to take part. We had 250 events last weekend right across the country.”
Lastly, the panel considered what life would be like for Britons following a vote to leave. Stringer and Morrissey thought that Britain would be free to renegotiate its ties with the continent, and could also increase the amount it traded with the rest of the world.
Norway came up frequently as an example of a country on the fringes of Europe. Some of the panellists thought Britain could model itself on the nordic nation, while Eshun disagreed: "I don’t see Norway leading the world. I don’t see that as a centre of culture.”
