Baroness Williams of Crosby, better known simply as Shirley Williams, will be giving the annual Alcuin Lecture this Tuesday, November 17, in Lecture Room LG19 at the Law Faculty. She will be speaking about the destiny of the post-Lisbon Treaty European Union.

Baroness Williams first became an MP in 1964, and is most famous for her work as a founding member of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), beginning in 1981 when she was elected the SDP's first MP.

Although she lost her seat in Parliament in 1983, Baroness Williams has remained vocal in the national and international media, frequently appearing on politics programmes such as 'Question Time'. She was one of four panellists on the edition of 'Any Questions?' broadcast in Cambridge last month as part of the Festival of Ideas.

Williams earned a life peerage in 1993, and was Leader of the Liberal Democrats in the House of Lords for three years, from 2001 to 2004.

The Alcuin Lectures, named after Charlemagne's advisor Alcuin of York, were established in 1999 and their theme is the relationship between Britain and Europe.