19th June 2001

Update 27th June

The National Executive Committee of the National Union of Students has stirred up a hornets nest in decided what cuts it will make in the face of a £300,000 shortfall this year. The National Treasurer, Helen Aspell, had predicted a shortfall of just £29,000, but £300,000 of cuts are now planned. An emergency executive committee meeting was called on Monday 11th June, and despite not inviting the entire executive, a raft of undemocratic measures were pushed through. Leadership picked NEC members who would be invited, and allowed both current officers and officers elect (their replacements) to vote in the meeting. NUS Women's officer Kat Fletcher was not invited, despite the proposal at the meeting to close the NUS women's unit.

The cuts, which will come into effect for the oncoming academic year include;

-Stopping sending materials and mailings to "less active students unions" (defined as those who do not come to conferences) setting in motion a vicious circle that will see many FE and smaller HE unions disenfranchised and NUS financially ruined. Though of course NUS will still charge these unions affiliation fees for nothing more than the right to use the NUS logo on their students' cards.

-Abolishing the NUS Women's Unit, removing its two staff and instead creating a general Equalities Unit with the same number of staff but now to support all four liberation campaigns, in direct contravention of LGB Campaign Policy, NUS Women's Campaign Policy and policy set at NUS Conference, the 'Sovereign Body' of NUS

-Introducing compulsory staff redundancies, while refusing to review upper management structures and directors pay. Not only is this an attack on the workers in NUS but also it will directly affect the level of support unions receive on a day-to-day level.

-Charging students unions increased fees for attending NUS training events.

-The leadership also threatened further money-savers including making unions pay for accommodation and food at Annual Conference, cut backs on liberation campaign conferences and reduced opportunity for NEC members to visit colleges

Vicki Austin, NUS LGB officer said;
"The meeting was held in an undemocratic way, the NEC members present were at the end locked in the room by one of the national directors to prevent the meeting being disrupted and ensuring the measures were railroaded through. When the black students officer raise queries about the differential effects upon black students he was told to stop being 'paranoid' by Owain James, the national president. When it was suggested that the issues be discussed at the next NEC meeting already planned for 3 weeks time, to allow opportunities for people to read the papers (which were over 30 pages long), and put in alternative proposals the leadership accused us of time wasting. The liberation officers (LGB, Women's, SWD & Black students officers) were not consulted on any of the proposals, and the creation of an equalities unit is neither what we asked for nor what we want as our needs are all different and require differently skilled staff, and staff with time and dedication to our individual campaigns. The NEC leadership were jubilant in their assault on democracy, autonomy and the liberation campaigns, and at some times sneering ' you have seven votes and we have the rest so why don't you shut up'."

The National Executive has so far refused to open the books to scrutiny by member unions, and many of the NEC members do not have access to them. Although it is likely that cuts to student union funding from universities and colleges has impacted on NUS, it is impossible to know if this crisis is real or manufactured. Student Unionists have been angered by the fact that core services which the union has a direct mandate to provide through this years' conferences were cut, whilst not once in over 30 pages were 'more reasonable' cutbacks proposed. On Sunday 17th June, concerned officers met at ULU, and formed a 'Save Our Union' campaign. In a joint statement being circulated to unions around the country, it says;
"Instead the money should be saved by cutting back on the junkets, freebies and wastage; glossy print runs, expensive hotel accommodation at whim for some NEC members, the NEC 'clothing allowance', the NUS Annual Reception (free piss up) and the unnecessary red tape. The leadership of NUS want to protect their own well-feathered nests at the expense of our members and our union. At this years annual conference women and LGB delegates faced a barrage of sexism and bigotry, from insults on conference floor to physical attack. Coupled with the fact that the BNP have just received over 15% of the vote in the General Election in Oldham, our national union has never been more in need of active liberation campaigns to challenge this prejudice. Instead of giving support and resources, the leadership have responded by, in their own words, 'de-prioritising liberation.'"

The demands are:
-No attacks on the democracy or inclusively of Annual Conference
-Mailings and materials to be sent to all unions who pay affiliation fees
-No compulsory staff redundancies
-Immediate re-instatement of the Women's unit
-Dedicated staff support for all of the Liberation campaigns
-That the NEC produces transparent finances available to all member unions
-An end to the perks and freebies enjoyed by some NEC members

NUS NEC further angered members by calling off a National Council meeting, which would have had to debate and ratify the proposals if it had gone ahead. The meeting was called inquorate before many delegates had even arrived, despite Owain James and Ben Monks (National Secretary) that they were on trains, on their way down. Delegates were originally told that the meeting would be informal but that there would be no minutes taken, despite protests. After 10 minutes we were told that the meeting would not go ahead after all. Helen Aspell (National Treasurer), Owain James and Ben Monks left immediately and failed to answer many of the questions put to them by the LGB students, Black students and women students who had turned up to defend their campaigns. The only defence offered was from Geraint Hopkins, National Treasurer elect who said that NUS couldn't afford to support all of the liberation campaigns. This was although they could afford to fly people down from Scotland for a meeting called inquorate whilst people were still travelling, and embark on ventures like the ITM internet deal, NSLP, Stadia and Partnerships for Progression.

Daniel Murphy of the NUS LGB liberation campaign said
"What a crock of shit, they (NUS) can still afford a poxy Ents department and the million or so staff working there, they can still afford plush hotels whenever they go anywhere and they can still afford to have fancy dinners for MP's who wouldn't know a real student if it bit them on the arse. Their sheer arrogance is amazing"

Carli Harper-Penman, NUS LGB officer (elect) said;
"Frankly, the figures that Helen (Aspell) came up with at the last NEC meeting were pure fiction. By her own admission they were 'guestimates' and based on what they thought would happen, not on a trend, fact, or certainty. There is money available from other sources but the leadership are trying to use divide and conquer tactics with the liberation campaigns. I would really like to hear what other people think about all of this, because I genuinely believe that this is one of the most serious attacks on the liberation campaigns and on democracy that NUS has launched in recent history.

To join the Save our Union mailing group, contact Sacha Ismail

Guardian Article

To join the Save our Union mailing group, contact Sacha Ismail
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