On the morning of November 23, 2018, the Department of English and International Studies (DEIS) invited Simon Lightfoot of the School of Politics and International Studies at the University of Leeds to give a lecture in the conference room of the administration building on Shahe Campus. The lecture, themed  “Britain’s role in the world after Brexit”, was hosted by Professor Shi Yi, Dean of the Department.

Dr. Simon Lightfoot is the Deputy Director of the Faculty of Education, Social Sciences and Law at the University of Leeds, and also a senior professor at the School of Political and International Studies. As a professor, he received the Distinguished Lecture Award from the Political Research Association and was recently awarded the prestigious British National Teaching Researcher Award.

During the lecture, Professor Lightfoot not only analyzed the main causes of Brexit in detail and the main obstacles in the Brexit negotiations, but also explored several possible relations in trade, foreign affairs and development assistance between the UK and other developing countries. Meanwhile, he pointed out the impact of Brexit on the future domestic politics of the UK. In the Q&A session, Professor Lightfoot interacted with the audience on topics such as voters’ psychology in the referendum and the Brexit negotiations.

After the lecture, Prof. Lightfoot and the teachers of DEIS introduced the undergraduate exchange program at Leeds to the students of the Class for Diplomatic Translation and Interpreting and answered their questions concerning study and life at Leeds.