TCD and Cadet School students triumph in first semi-final of Irish Times debating competition

Students from Trinity College Dublin and the Army Cadet School have secured places in the final of The Irish Times’ third-level debating competition.

Louise Cullen and Eoin Ryan of Trinity LawSoc won the team leg and will now compete in the final in February.

Student Conall Gallagher from the Cadet School was a hometown winner as he progressed as the top individual speaker in the first semi-final on Thursday.

The semi-final took place at the Cadet School in the Curragh Camp and those involved debated the motion “that this house has hope for the future of disability rights on the island of Ireland”.

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The judging panel included Adam Harris, founder and chief executive of autism charity AsIAm, Amy Crean, an Irish Times Debate individual winner, Daire McMullin, an associate at Arthur Cox and former Irish Times Debate runner-up, and Bernice Harrison, Irish Times journalist and co-host of the In The News podcast.

The debate was chaired by Chikemka Abuchi-Ogbonda, a legal associate and former Irish Times Debate team winner.

The judges held that Ms Cullen and Mr Ryan had the “most realistic interpretation of the legislative context and the systemic barriers facing people with disabilities”.

Mr Gallagher impressed the judges with his “big-picture thinking and his stylistic rhetoric”.

The remaining semi-finals are due to take place over the coming fortnight.

Among the other speakers at Thursday’s semi-final included Kieran Kilbane and Jeremy Cotter-Vazquez of the Cadet School; Jack Cummins and Adrianne Ward of UCD’s L&H and Lorcan O’Brien and Jonathan Kelly of TCD’s Phil.

Individual speakers included Glen Jordan of TU Dublin; Darragh Gorman of UCD’s LawSoc; and Stéphane de Bairéid of UCD’s L&H.

The final of the debate will take place at TU Dublin in February and will be chaired by Chief Justice of Ireland Donal O’Donnell.

The Irish Times Debate is in its 63rd year and is the country’s longest-running third-level debating competition.

Previous winners include broadcaster Marian Finucane, comedian Dara Ó Briain, writer Gerry Stembridge and the late Adrian Hardiman.

Members of the public can attend the debates, with tickets available to book free of charge at irishtimes.com/events

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