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		MEP takes part in EU debate at Leicester Grammar School Friday, 18th February 2011 Last Friday Leicester Grammar School conducted a debate on the motion "This House believes that the benefits of EU membership outweigh the costs". Speaking for the motion was Lib Dem MEP Bill Newton Dunn, while Conservative Roger Helmer MEP spoke against. The event was moderated by Mr. Trevor Allen, the Head of the Sixth Form. The format of the event saw the two East Midlands MEPs introducing themselves, followed by questions from the students and concluding with a vote on whether the high costs of being a member of the EU outweighed the benefits. The motion was lost, with a majority believing that the benefits of EU membership did not outweigh the costs. About half voted NO, about a third voted YES, with the remainder abstaining. A discussion between the politicians and the students on how English was becoming the main language of Europe ensued, which brought about questions regarding employment opportunities across member states. One young lady in the audience asked a very important question: "If most Europeans are learning English and apply for UK jobs, but we'd need to learn a lot of languages to work in continental countries, doesn't that give other Europeans a huge advantage in our job market?" Mr Helmer agreed with the sentiments of the young pupil's question: "This was a very revealing question which highlights yet another problem arising as a direct result of EU membership".