Date and time: Wednesday 14 October, 15:00-16:00 GMT + 1 / UK time; 16:00-17:00 CET
Speakers: Hana Kapetanovic (Lead Researcher, Demos); Chris Shaw (Clerk, Home Affairs Committee, UK House of Commons & IPEN Executive Team)
Chair: Matt Ringer (Director of Participation, Chamber and Participation Team, UK House of Commons and IPEN Executive Team)
Details: This IPEN seminar will report back on a 2 year project which was originally shared with IPEN members as an idea at a Deliberative Check-in back in December 2024.
In the context of a very polarised debate in the UK on immigration the Home Affairs Committee sought to sponsor an informed and honest public debate on the subject – the first of its kind.
The result was Your Voice on Immigration: three carefully choreographed and facilitated deliberative workshops, in different parts of the country, involving 90 people, who met to discuss some key questions posed by the Committee on preferences and principles governing work-based immigration.
This seminar will explain how this was done; explore the difficulties of doing deliberation on an emotive and polarising subject; and set out how the results might influence policy making. It will also cover how parliaments can partner with external organisations – in this case, Demos – to deliver high quality deliberative processes.
This will be followed by a Q&A and further discussion on any aspect of the process itself and the politics behind it.
For advance information, the summary report and technical report can be found at Your Voice on Immigration – Committees – UK Parliament .
Photo credit: UK House of Commons