Democracy Threatened As New Term Starts at Staffordshire University
Press Release :
18 September 2007
Staffordshire University has recently upheld the policy of its Students Union, which bans all political parties from the university campus, and has banned political groups, including Conservative Future, the youth branch of the Conservative Party from its Freshers Week.
Staffordshire Area Chairman, Owen Meredith said,
“This is an insult to democracy! For many students, the start of university life is a time to explore new ideas, Staffordshire University is preventing students from having the opportunity to explore their political values and preventing informed political choice.”
Mr Meredith, who stood as the Conservative candidate for Keele in last May’s local elections pointed out,
“In the coming years, every student who is registered in the UK will have the opportunity to vote for the Government, as well as local councillors and members of the European Parliament. All students over the age of 18 could also stand for election. But the ban imposed by Staffordshire University may force many students to make uninformed choices about where to cast their vote, or worse still not to vote at all.”
Staffordshire Conservative Future has been trying to access students for the past 2 years, but have been continuously turned away by the University and Students Union, who were only able to confirm an official position last Friday. With a general election rumoured to be just months away, the Conservatives have taken up the challenge and are fighting to get this “anti-democratic and irresponsible ban” lifted. Members of Staffordshire CF will be standing at the gates of the Stafford Campus on Tuesday, and Stoke campus on Friday, handing out leaflets to students to inform them of the ban and encourage them to sign a petition calling on Vice Chancellor Prof. Christine King to revoke the ban. The petition is available online at: www.petitiononline.com/staffs/petition.html
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