Derek debates this friday in Oxford

The Oxfordshire Branch of the European Movement is organising an "Any Questions" evening for European Parliament candidates in Oxford this Friday. Sparks are expected to fly as candidates from five political parties compete for support in this Open Public meeting, answering questions from the audience which they have no notice of.

Keeping order will be the branch president, Lord Hurd of Westwell. Douglas Hurd was Conservative MP for Witney and British Foreign Secretary for many years, and is a well-known supporter of the European Union.

The members of the panel will be:
Richard Ashworth MEP (Conservative)
Catherine Bearder (Lib Dem)
Philip Vander Elst (UKIP)
Dr Derek Wall (Green Party)
Labour have promised that they will be providing a "heavyweight" to participate in the event, but have yet to provide a name.

The meeting starts at 7.30 p.m. in the Maison Francaise, Norham Road in North Oxford.

For further information, please contact the chairman of the Oxfordshire Branch, Alan Armitage, on 07799-892385 or oxford92@aol.com

ends...

Notes:

The European Movement was founded in 1948 by Winston Churchill, as a membership organisation helping to promote the unification of Europe through provision of education and information. It is non party-political, and now operates across the 27 member states of the European Union. The Oxfordshire Branch provides speakers to schools and other educational institutions in the county, and holds public meetings typically four times a year. Recent speakers have included Lord Kinnock, Chris Huhne MP, James Elles MEP and Prof Kalypso Nicolaidis (Director of the European Studies Centre of Oxford University).

Richard Ashworth was elected to the European Parliament in June 2004 to represent the South East of England (he was also a candidate in 1999). He was a dairy farmer in East Sussex for over thirty years and during this time operated his own dairy business. He is currently a member of the European Parliament's committee on budgets and is Conservative Spokesman in this area, his secondary committee is employment.

Catherine Bearder is an Oxford resident, has served as an Oxfordshire County councillor and a Cherwell District Councillor, and has stood as a parliamentary candidate in both Banbury and Henley constituencies. Having travelled the world studying conservation issues with her husband Simon, a professor at Oxford Brookes University, Catherine puts prime emphasis on tackling climate change.She is number two on the Liberal Democrats' list for the South East in the June elections.

Philip Vander Elst is a freelance writer and lecturer, and author of a recent Bruges Group paper on The Principles of British Foreign Policy. He is the No.4 UKIP MEP candidate for the South East Region.

Dr Derek Wall is an experienced Green political campaigner, published author and journalist. He was Male Principal Speaker of the Green Party of England and Wales. He describes himself as an eco-socialist and stresses the importance of combining electoral politics and non-violent direct action (NVDA) to effect change.