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Seven tips for winning a debate with seven people

International debate coach Jason Vit has come up with seven tips for winning the seven-way TV election debate proposed by David Cameron.

1. Remember you need to stand out. Debates are much more difficult with seven people, rather than two.

2. Make your points quickly and well, first time round. You can't repeat yourself with so many others involved.

3. Focus on key themes, not detail.

4. Accept you don't have time to deal with every point that crops up.

5. Be fair to everyone. If one person is attacked by six, they will become a sympathetic victim who dominates the post-debate conversation.

6. Avoid being ‘grouped’ with other speakers. Don't let anyone dismiss you as ‘part of the establishment’, ‘on the fringes’, and so on.

7. Be confident about what you believe in. In a debate as crowded as this, you can only win by being good yourself, not by undermining everybody else.

This clip is from Up All Night on Friday 6 March 2015.

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