There are various types of universty style debating but the basic premise is known as 'Parliamentary' (as opposed to one-on-one styles, such as Lincoln-Douglas, or Cross-Examination). This means that in each debate, there is a government and an opposition, who speak in turn, delivering timed speeches.

In Canadian Parliamentary style (CP), there is one team composed of two people representing each side. In British Parliamentary style (BP), which is used at the World Championships, there are two teams of two people on both sides. But the basic rules are the same--like in a Westminster parliament, there must be a motion before the house, and both sides deliver speeches in sequence, and try to convince the house (in our case, the judges) to support or defeat the motion that stands before it.

In the real Commons, essentially any sitting member can propose a motion. However, in parliamentary debate, the government team alone is responsible for proposing the motion (sometimes called a 'case') to be debated. Government teams can propose pure principled cases, pure model cases, or a blend of the two. There are no rules about what is a 'right' or a 'wrong' case, although knowing whether the debate should center mostly on principle or pragmatics may affect the way the debate evolves and what kind of arguments the debaters will employ.

So, as in a Westminster parliament, the goal of the debate is to convince enough members of the house to support one's side of the motion. Whoever does so wins the debate. In university debating, there will always be a panel of judges (or sometimes only a single judge) who represent the 'house' vote and decide the winner.

Some examples of motions/resolutions

  • This House Would Grant An Amnesty To All Illegal Immigrants Currently In The United States
  • That This House Believes That The Catholic Church Should Allow The Use Of Condoms In The Fight Against HIV/AIDS In Africa
  • That This House Believes The West Should End Military Cooperation With Pakistan Until It Holds Free Presidential Elections
  • This House Would Prohibit Women Over The Age Of 45 Years From Undergoing Assisted Human Reproduction
  • This House Would Give Japan A Permanent Seat On The United Nations Security Council
  • This House Would Not Allow Intelligent Design To Be Included In The School Science Curriculum
  • This House Would Recognise A Legally Enforceable Right To A Minimum Standard Of Living
  • This House Supports The Creation Of An Independent State For The Iraqi Kurds