Chaos ensues at Cambridge Union as speakers rushed at by Green Party candidate

A Cambridge student and a Reform UK councillor were rushed at by a Green Party candidate during last night’s debate the The Cambridge Union.

Alan Mendoza, a guest speaker from Reform UK, and Alex, a student at King’s, were arguing against the motion “The time has come for a radical British left” when they were approached by Kathryn Fisher.

Kathryn began to rush towards the individuals but was stopped before she could make contact with them.

During the debate, the opposition criticised the extent of immigration in the UK since 1997, referred to ex-Prime Minister Toni Blair as “radical left” and questioned whether lockdowns during the pandemic were a mistake.

Alex, the student speaker, told The Cambridge Tab he was “shamefully heckled, mocked and shouted down in the chamber”.

“For a self-professed bastion of free speech, the union’s double standards defy belief: There was I, with the most hostile of receptions, while [another speaker] was enthusiastically cheered”, he added.

Recalling how “excited” he was at the prospect of joining The Cambridge Union when he first arrived at the university, Alex described his former enthusiasm as full of “naivety” and called his experience at yesterday’s debate “weirdly dystopian”.

Kathryn Fisher, the person who rushed towards Alan and Alex, is a Green Party candidate standing in the upcoming local elections for Petersfield ward.

Though the altercation caused considerable disruption, the debate resumed and the house voted in favour of the proposition.

Lisa*, a student who attended the event, said the debate was “easily the most heated” she had ever witnessed, with many members “gasping, laughing or shaking their heads when Alan was speaking”.

She described how Kathryn Fisher then “stoop up and strode towards him”, adding “it all happened very fast. The room was not quiet again after that point”.

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Another attendee said: “Alan Mendoza’s speech was certainly where it was most hostile. [It] ended with an activist on the other side standing up and looking like they were about to rush him, though they didn’t end up getting that close.

While he did not agree with the opposition’s points, he argued: “Hearing the most out-there opinions is in part what the union is for” and claimed the action “was rude and hurts the spirit of debate”.

Kathryn Fisher has commented: “I refuse to cede ground to people who show more outrage when a woman dares to speak over a man at an elite male-dominated debating club, than when they are faced with the material suffering of marginalised communities all over the world.

“Perhaps the speakers should spare a thought for those in our communities who are not only subjected to heckling, but to physical violence, death threats and discrimination on a daily basis”.

Alan Mendoza said: “It was certainly a rambunctious debate and there was a febrile atmosphere which appeared to be stoked up by some non-student activist agitators. What was most disappointing was the complete failure to engage with the motion itself – whether Britain needed a radical left.

“There isn’t much point in a debate that ignores what it is supposed to be about, but as this is how the radical left usually conducts itself more generally we can’t be too surprised”.

A Cambridge Union spokesperson said: “The union recognises that last night’s debate on the motion ‘This House believes the time has come for a radical British left’ was lively and heated. Some of our members and guests voiced their opinion to both proposition, opposition and floor, speakers through shouting and other vocal expressions of support and discontent – which, by the rules of debating at the union, they are entirely at their liberty to do.

“Our speakers are also be challenged or questioned by ‘points of information’ raised by any member on the floor, a practice which our members are also free to partake in as they see fit. Moreover, it is correct that one of our guests approached Mr Alan Mendoza at the despatch box, but was swiftly escorted back to their seat by a senior member of staff.

“We understand that this debate was perhaps more passionate than some of our guests had expected, but we would like to strongly reassure everyone who visits the Union that – though our debates can be fiery – our chamber will always be a space of safety. Anything that occurred last night that was out of turn was swiftly shut down by our president, Christopher Lorde. Our committee members are held to the highest standards of professional conduct and our standing committee are exceptionally experienced in handling events of this nature”.

Cambridge University, Boris Johnson, Toni Blair and the UK government have been contacted for comment.

Featured image via Kathryn Fisher