Debate and how does it differ from other forms of direct communication

Deputy Leader of the Opposition

(second speaker of the opening opposition, HEA)

Like the second Speaker of the Government, you should have your colleague's back. Do not walk away from the opposition's case, even if you think it is broken. Fix it, but don't introduce changes to the original bill. A good tactic would be to spend twice as much time as your partner to rebut the Government's position, and then spend the rest of your speech exposing your team's case.

Remember, your team's position must be formulated in such a way that it itself refutes the Government's case. Therefore, simply by developing your line of opposition, you will already be refuting the Government's case. If you keep this in mind, it will help you avoid the pit that many Opposition speakers dig for themselves by starting to carefully refute point by point all of the arguments laid out by the Government. There is a misconception that the Opposition should only refute and should not provide their own constructive arguments or address additional aspects of the debate taking place. Sure, people will get away with it from time to time, but current trends in debate judging condemn such a game. Of course, it is easier to simply prove the inconsistency of the Government's stated position, without really contributing to the ongoing debate on one's part. But constructive Opposition always looks better than mere Opposition working only for the benefit of the Opposition side. This applies in parliamentary debates just as it does in most other areas of real life.