06 Issue 5 Vol 13
News...
News
universe@uhsu.co.uk
because we are newspaper!
NUS Conference
O
ne very cold Tuesday morning 8 sleepy delegates (the ones you elected during the elections this year) dragged their butts out of bed and headed for the 5.00am (yes 5 in the morning) meeting place, outside the Students’ Union. This was followed by a sleepy but pleasant drive to Stansted Airport where we boarded a Ryanair flight to Blackpool where the annual NUS Conference was to be held.
can do to for them or even where it is? Students have said to me that the Students’ Union is rubbish and that it doesn’t meet individual needs, but it does. There are clubs, societies, a housing and lettings service, support and advice on health or course issues, and even a legal service available (just to mention a few!).
lobbying of Parliament for free condoms on prescription, NUS’s ‘No Platform’ Policy, Plagarism and also the much debated NUS Extra.
Everyone’s needs are different and if you (the students) genuinely feel
One of the motions that had caused quite a stir during Regional
All of these motions discussed, torn apart and debated. All issues relevant to student life in and out of university or college.
Picture courtesy of Patrick Link (UCL SU) Three of the delegates had been to conference previously and so were prepared for what was to come, however for the rest of us it was a brand new reality check on the power of NUS and the student movement, as well as what Students’ Unions individually stand for. After many reports about what the NEC had been up to, a few of the NEC members gave their report on one of this years Priority campaigns… Participate! This campaign aimed to enhance the student experience by getting students to engage with their own union. This particular campaign has a place, and that is in the room of every student studying for any course. There are just under 22,000 people that attend our university but how many of them know what UHSU
that you are being missed out then say so: attend our student council where you can raise questions and get things changed! The executive team (a smaller version of the NEC) are representatives of all of you and you should be the ones holding them to account and making sure that they are representing you in the right way, the way you want, as a group or individuals. Conference was all about people standing up and fighting for what they believed in. Union against union, union against NEC, NEC against union. The list goes on - my point is that these people wanted change and most of them got it the way they wanted because they spoke up and won the argument. Debates for and against the boycott of Coca Cola and Constructive Engagement, Fairtrade, a new Priority support campaign for FE colleges, Sexual Health and the
Conferences this year was to be put forward outlining the go ahead for a new NUS Extra Discount card. The business venture put forward by the NEC for a new Extra
debate and with the conclusion that NUS are to go ahead with the idea. The normal discount card (the little green one you may have now) will still be available but if anyone would like more discounts then a small payment of £10.00 can be made to the individuals Students’ Union from September 2006. The Coca Cola motions also caused a stir. There were people campaigning outside the conference hall at all hours ‘Diet, Cherry and Vanilla…. Coca Cola is a killer’. A very catchy tune but it would take a lot more than that for some delegates to vote against the instructions of Constructive Engagement. A motion was also put forward to add to this argument about the need to boycott the soft drinks company, but that too was voted against. The motion for Anti- racism and an amendment about NUS’s ‘No Platform Policy’ was one of the highlights of conference. NUS stand by the policy 110% percent and engage with it to it’s fullest. It outlines that NUS will not stand by anyone that is discriminatory against another human being, and that everyone deserves and has the right to be safe within their union and educational experience. By giving one of these factions (that NUS opposes) the time to speak up and encourage conference to vote for a particular motion about the removal of the ‘No Platform Policy’ the speaker used their two minutes to address the delegates threateningly. NUS gave the person a platform and he wanted us to take it away. Instead he was
“All of these motions discussed, torn apart and debated. All issues relevant to student life in and out of university or college.” discount card caused a lot of debate as some unions were against the idea because they did not feel that paying for the card was acceptable due to increasing personal expenditure and therefore adding to student debt, whereas others saw this as a business venture that would enable NUS to plough more money into individual campaigns and that this would be a new benefit for the students. A lot of heated argument fused this
taken away, escorted out of the building, the motion fell and NUS was able to keep a firm hold on its ‘No Platform Policy’. Conference was not just about motions, there was also the election for the National Executive Committee. If you think that UHSU student elections are a hassle then imagine this on a national level. The manifestos booklet was over 50 pages long, there were 24 (correct me if I’m wrong please)
candidates that ran for Block of twelve and only three for National President. Instead of ten supporting students, these candidates needed to get supporting unions as well as persuading individuals to vote for them on behalf of their union or as part of the NEC. Just like in UHSU elections, there was a chance to talk to the candidates, read their manifestos and listen to their speeches, whilst others were persuaded with a much-needed can of shark or pot noodle! All in all this election was on a much larger scale! The experience of Conference will be one that I will never forget. It had it’s laughs, it’s seriousness but most of all it had energy. Students, sabbaticals and officers standing up for what they believed in and voicing the opinions of the people they were representing. This is what being an officer, a delegate or a sabbatical is all about. Thinking about other people, thinking about the wants and needs of students and being pro-active in order for their university experience to literally be the time of their lives. NUS is an organisation that can only do good for the future of education and for the future of students rights and we as UHSU should be proud to be a part of it. So show us your support too, run in the elections maybe, see yourself as an officer? I hear Part Time Student Media is up for grabs next year……. ! (amongst other positions!) For any more information then please don’t hesitate to contact me…. Sara Wright Part Time Student Media and NUS Conference Delegate 2006 uhsu.media@herts.ac.uk