UEA SU brands £30,000 student party fines ‘disproportionate’ and ‘life-altering’

UEA’s Students’ Union have released a statement about the three students who were fined £30,000 for hosting a house party on Saturday, calling the fines “life-altering”. The three women who hosted the party, one aged 19 and two aged 20, will have “no right to appeal” which the SU has branded “disproportionate”.

“We condemn the actions of the students who attended this party; it is not acceptable for anyone to flout government regulations and put the safety of others at risk,” a spokesperson told ITV News Anglia.

“We understand that this is a difficult year for students as they’re not able to experience university life as they ordinarily would. However, these rules are in place to keep people safe, and students, like everyone else, have a responsibility to protect their local community.

“Students are not exempt from the law, but we believe the life-altering fine of £10,000 with no right of appeal for the hosts is disproportionate and would caution the university to bear this in mind during their own investigation.”

UEA also released a statement. A spokesperson confirmed that the university “fully support” the action taken by the police.

They said: “We fully support the actions of the police. Students, like everyone else, have to adhere to the law and where there is a breach of the rules they should expect to face the same consequences as others in the community.

“We have issued regular reminders about following the rules to all students both on and off campus and in addition to the police action we will also be looking into this matter and taking appropriate action. In the vast majority of cases our students are behaving responsibly.”