THE former host of Question Time is presenting a special debate as part of Essex University's input into a festival of social science.

Esteemed journalist and Essex honorary graduate David Dimbleby is chairing the debate on November 10 which will be held on Zoom.

David Dimbleby Presents: Who Needs Experts Anyway? is named after an infamous Michael Gove quote and feature discussion from leading academics.

The main topics will be the US election, Covid-19 and Brexit.

The event is free but peopled need to register on the university's Festival of Social Science webpage.

The university take parts in the Economics and Social Research Council Festival of Social Science each year with this term's being entirely digital because of coronavirus.

Prof John Preston, deputy dean for the faculty of social sciences, said: “This year’s Festival of Social Science has been impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic but we were determined to engage with the general public to demonstrate the world-leading contribution of our research.

"We would warmly invite members of the general public to attend the debate with our experts, to submit questions to the panel, and to watch the short film that we have produced as part of the festival.”