This petition was submitted during the 2015–2017 Conservative government
Rejected petition Petition to have live TV debates ahead of 2017 'Snap' General Election
Theresa May's aides have insisted that she will not take part in TV election debates for the upcoming 'Snap election', which she has called. Live debates will force candidates to engage with issues considered central to the diverse needs and wants of the electorate.
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Political debates are educational. Debates provide candidates with the opportunity to inform the electorate, summarise major policy positions and provide opponents with the chance to critique/challenge the Prime Minister and other candidate's policy positions.
TV debates have become one of the most influential factors in British political campaigns, according to a Panelbase survey 38% of people were influenced by the TV debates, 23% by TV news coverage and 10% by party political broadcasts.
This petition was rejected
Why was this petition rejected?
It’s about something that the UK Government or Parliament is not directly responsible for.
A decision about whether to host a televised debate of this kind would be the responsibility of the broadcasters, not the Government or Parliament.
A decision about whether to take part in any televised debate would be for Theresa May to make as leader of the Conservative party, not as the Prime Minister. We can only accept petitions about the Prime Minister’s actions as part of the Government, not as the leader of a political party.
We only reject petitions that don’t meet the petition standards.