Retrospective account of the debate held on 13 November 2025. The article is filed under its archive date.
On 13 November 2025, I took part in the Light Foundation’s public debate at Burnley Boys and Girls Club, alongside Adnan Hussain MP and Gordon Birtwistle, the former Liberal Democrat MP for Burnley.
The evening’s question was Is Britain better off because of immigration? It was held in the club’s function room at Barden Playing Fields, on Barden Lane, and co-hosted by Adam Kelwick and Skander Bakhat.
Bringing the discussion to Burnley
The panel brought together a Reform UK county councillor, Blackburn’s independent MP and a former MP for the town. The meeting formed part of Light Foundation’s programme of public discussions around the country.
In its account of the evening, the foundation described an audience that included councillors, academics, health professionals and local residents. The discussion gave people the opportunity to put a range of questions about immigration to the panel and hear responses from speakers with different political views.
Photos from the evening
Photographs and event poster: Light Foundation. Select an image to view it larger.
More from the series
Explore the other Light Foundation debates in Preston with Adnan Hussain and Matthew Brown and Blackburn with Adnan Hussain and Elaine Whittingham.
