Blundering NUS won’t demonstrate against £9k fees…because protesters don’t have the right paperwork
Then what are you for?
Harry ShukmanFloundering NUS chiefs have withdrawn their support for the upcoming free education demo – because they’re tripping up on red tape.
Anxious union bigwigs will not back the national demonstration this November 19th, saying they won’t pay for public liability insurance and are worried about safety.
Furious protesters organising the demo have criticised student leaders for “washing their hands” and leaving them alone to put together a 10,000-strong march in two week’s time.
Last year’s free education demo in London
NUS boss Toni Pearce claimed she pulled out at the last minute because she wasn’t confident the demo would be accessible to everyone, “in particular disabled students”.
She said: “It is clear that there are inadequate measures in place to mitigate against significant risks in line with our advice posing an unacceptable level of risk.
“We do not believe there is sufficient time between now and the demonstration for these risks to be mitigated.”
NUS Prez Toni Pearce
Toni, 24, added: “There is no public liability insurance in place.”
Incensed activists hit back that the NUS is drowning in bureaucracy and deliberately focusing on petty issues.
Deborah Hermanns of the National Campaign Against Fees and Cuts, coordinating the march said: “The NUS full-time leaders were looking for a reason to support from the demonstration.
“They were never comfortable with this. From a bureaucratic point of view they wanted to make it safer for themselves because they think this demonstration is risky.
“They said they couldn’t get public liability insurance but for previous protests in the capital they didn’t have it anyway.
“They’re washing their hands of us.”
This comes just as clueless apparatchiks at Bath Union withdrew their support for the demo despite an 86 per cent vote in favour of it.
Over 10,000 students are expected to turn up for the 19th November March from London’s Mallet Street to Parliament Square calling for free education.