East Surrey MP, Sam Gyimah, attended Warlingham School's Democracy Fair on Friday 26th November to meet with students and discuss their views on a range of important political issues. The fair was intended to give students from all years a positive experience of engaging with democracy and its ideals, whilst also providing a welcome platform for students to highlight their advocacy and representation skills. Mr Gyimah was asked to give his opinion on a number of issues - including, amongst others, voting systems, the power of lobbying groups, and the reasons for having democracy itself - and was asked to indicate whether he was for or against each particular proposal.

With over 30 stalls at the Democracy Fair, each subject could only receive the briefest discussion, but what came through strongly was the sense of deep thought that had been put Members of the new 'Funds 4 Youngz' committee Sam Gyimah MP attends Democracy Fair at Warlingham School in by the students on each and every subject.

Mr Gyimah commented: "It's clear from the final pitches that all the students have shown considerable research skills in coming to a distinct position on their particular subject. They've coupled this with good project management, teamwork and an ability to get their points across in an articulate and persuasive manner. I was thoroughly impressed all round".

Not only were the students able to debate and discuss these issues with their local MP, the projects also counted towards the completion of a sizable chunk of their GCSE Citizenship coursework.

Mr Gyimah said: "Whether it was debating the place of the internet in a democracy, the role of the EU and UN in global politics, or giving the vote to 16 year olds, all the students presented serious, well-thought out arguments which gave one food for thought. Real debate and dialogue is what engages people, and these students have got some great ideas to work through the big questions we're facing at the moment".