Sam Perlo-Freeman speaks as third proposition in the Debating Chamber on Thursday 14th March, 8:00pm
This IS the Presidential debate, the motion of which is proposed by the outgoing Union President. With so many high-profile guest speakers, it is guaranteed to be a highly-charged and timely debate with some fascinating speeches.
The British Arms Industry may lead the way commercially, but it is not without controversy. £12bn worth of arms exports flowed from Britain in 2022 alone. Some of this export has been the subject of more positive news, such as those to Ukraine. But there are many who believe the British Arms Industry have serious questions to answer. Britain’s exports to states such as Saudi Arabia and Israel has been under growing scrutiny. The exports to Saudi Arabia have been of particular concern in recent years, with human rights groups strongly protesting the UK government’s sales and determination that human rights violations in Yemen were “isolated incidents”. Should the continuing production, sale and profiting from these weapons be deemed a warcrime and should those responsible face jail time? Or are we demonising an industry, that whilst perhaps unsavoury, is necessary to our national defence and are we misusing the language of war crimes for political ends?
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