Towering challenges ahead for NUS (reprint from Roar magazine, KCLSU)

Faced with National President Gemma Tumelty’s admission of an NUS “not fit for purpose”, delegates voted overwhelmingly to change the way our national union takes decisions and uses its dwindling resources.

In her opening speech, Tumelty urged delegates – including the twelve from King’s – to unite around core principles and modernise structures for the 21st century in a frank appraisal of NUS described by delegates as ‘brave’ and ‘inspiring’. Tumelty was later re-elected as National President without any serious opposition.

MODERATION PREVAILS

However, the conference was not without controversy. The heated debate was often polarised, with supporters of groups like Student Respect promoting a return to on-the-ground student activism such as sit-in protests and marches on the streets against a self-styled ‘moderate, progressive’ grouping of Labour Students, Independents and pragmatists. While many delegates did not identify with a political party grouping (some donning ‘Not for politics, just for students’ T-shirts), the thumping support for reform motions and a concentration on issues that affected ordinary hard-working students indicated – in this reporter’s opinion – an end to the domination of NUS by the political far left.

FINANCIAL APOCALYPSE?

It was, however, not all good news. Despite their nose-diving finances, changes to affiliation fee structure were agreed by delegates mean that KCLSU (as with all other constituent members) will now pay less to be a part of NUS. Though this means NUS is now more financially attractive, it is has been described by some as “odd” when in 2006, NUS had outstanding immediate debts of close to £1 million with a negative cash flow of just over £850,000. This has been branded a shambles, especially considering the introduction of the £10 NUS Extra discount card in 2006, which was heralded as the only solution to the spiralling finances. However, a promise to cut over £300,000 in waste to balance this year’s budget managed to convince a slim majority of delegates to approve the new financial arrangements.

NEW POLICY

Apart from finances and procedural debates, the bulk of Conference discussions centred around four zones of debate, each reflecting a different area of NUS’ work. In the ‘Education’ zone, delegates re-affirmed their support for ‘targeted’ student grants aimed at the most needy, in a move away from the ‘grants for all’ slogan of previous years. During the ‘Welfare’ debate, a tense discussion surrounded the definition of anti-semitism, with the majority of Jewish students supporting a definition from the European Monitoring Centre for Racism and Xenophobia. Opponents , including controversial University of Manchester SU General Secretary Rob Owe n, claimed the definition would stifle ‘legitimate criticism of Israel’, but the motion was steamrollered through by an emotional speech from Sam Lebens of NUS. In addition to the NUS reform motion, the ‘Strong & Active Unions’ session saw support for better, new discounts to be investigated for the paid-for ‘NUS Extra’ discount card. As the final zone up for discussion, the ‘Society & Citizenship’ debate was severely curtailed due to over-running debates in previous areas, but several measures to help climate-change were passed.

Additionally, the ‘no-platform’ policy against racists and fascists is now enshrined in the governing documents of NUS. This means that members of fascist groups like the BNP will not be invited to NUS events and members of NUS’ leadership will refuse to engage with them on a political platform.

WIN SOME, LOSE SOME

While KCLSU positions on many issues were often described as ‘right-wing’ by supporters of Student Respect, all policy that our delegates promoted or opposed was ultimately agreed with by other delegates. Unfortunately, there were some upsets for the team: Daryn McCombe (KCLSU President) who ran for a part-time position on the Block of 12 lost his election by a mere handful of votes. Seph Gillin (Student Trustee) also lost his election for a minor committee.

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INFO: What is NUS Annual Conference?

The three-day conference, held in Blackpool, is the climax of the year for many student politicians. Around 1,000 delegates from NUS’ 700+ constituent members attend the event, which is the primary opportunity to shape and direct national policy and campaigns. Major office holders and the ‘Block of 12’ non-specific executive members are also elected, forming the new National Executive Committee (NEC).

INFO: What is NUS?

The National Union of Students is the national representative body for 98% of students in the UK, with around 5.2 million members. The NUS is the first point of contact for government on student opinion and they provide training and support for students union officers across the UK. NUS Services Ltd is the national bulk-purchasing arm, which negotiates better prices on goods including alcohol that are then sold in student union outlets.

INFO: Key motions

Education: Financial and emotional support for medical students. Postgraduate Funding.
Welfare: Anti-racism; anti-ban on religious dress. Fairer TV licensing arrangements.
Society & Citizenship: Climate Change; pro-carbon neutral movement.
Strong & Active Unions: NUS Reform. New and better discounts for ‘NUS Extra’.

INFO: RESULTS
President - Gemma Tumelty (re-elected)
Vice President (Welfare) - Ama Uzowuru
Vice President (Education) - Wes Streeting (re-elected)
Vice President (Further Education) - Beth Walker
National Secretary – Stephen Brown (re-elected)
National Treasurer – Dave Lewis