THE CASES for leaving and remaining in the European Union will be made in earnest next weekend in Sheepscombe.

In a representative divide of opinion within the party, two Conservatives will be going head to head to convince a captive audience of which way to vote in the EU referendum.

Stroud MP Neil Carmichael, chair of the Education Select Committee and long-time Europhile will put forward his argument for staying in the 27-member bloc.

While Patrick Nicolls, ex Conservative MP for Teignbridge in Devon, will speak in favour of leaving the EU.

Each speaker will be given 15 mins to present their case and then there will be a Q&A session from the floor.

The event will be held at Sheepscombe Village Hall at 11.30am on Saturday, March 19.

All are welcome, regardless of their politics. The cross-party event has been organised by the Stroud Conservative Party.

Britain will go to the polls in what is being described as the biggest political decision of a generation on May 7.

The question put to the electorate will be: Should the United Kingdom remain a member of the European Union or leave the European Union?

In a recent poll by the SNJ, which was completed by over 200 readers, 71 per cent voted to leave.

Another 23 per cent chose to stay and 5 per cent had not yet decided.

Patrick Nicholls was the Conservative MP for Teignbridge between 1983 and 2001.