January SUGM

This months Student’s Union General Meeting (UGM) proved little better then the equally ill-fated AGM meeting last term. Despite 103 people initially turning up, meeting the minimum quorum for policy to be passed, numbers dropped as the meeting went on, reducing figures to 86 before the second motion. Since the constitution states that a quorum of 100 or over students is required to pass student union policy, any motions that were carried during the meeting could not be passed in any official capacity. This makes the 4th UGM in a row that has failed to meet quorum. Their were 4 motions tabled at this terms UGM, one for a Darts board in Dylans or D2, one for changes to the constitution regarding Clubs & Societies leadership qualifications, one regarding the bulk student spam mail and one regarding fylering just outside the Uni gates. The one most people were eager to debate on was motion two, proposed by both the Christian and Islamic societies, which proposed that the
SU constitution is amended to allow the freedom of a society to elect leaders who adhere to that society’s aims and core values. This proved a very controversial point, as opposers within the Students Union itself felt that this went against the “equal opportunities” principle that the union upholds. After some back-and-forth, the motion was eventually passed with a majority of 54 -32. The motion to put a stop to all the junk mail wasn’t as popular as people reckoned, falling with only 10 people voting for it. The final motion, to do something about the fylerers outside the uni gates, was passed 32 – 0, after being amended to add the inclusion of a bin. However, due to the fact that the flyerers are outside University property, it remains to be seen what action the union can actually take. The two passed motions will be brought up again at the next UGM, to make sure the students are happy with their choice, and to try and pass them officially with a Quorum.

By Joe Robinson