Trevor Loudon's New Zeal blog has moved to

TrevorLoudon.com

redirecting you there now

Friday, August 21, 2009

Student Union Racket Nearing End?

Good on you Sir Roger!

Is the left's main training ground about to be dealt to?

From the ACT Party website.

VSM Bill Will Set Students Free

The drawing of my Education (Freedom of Association) Members Bill is the first step in liberating students from the flawed and out-dated law that forces them to join their local student association and steals their right to make their own decisions, ACT New Zealand MP Sir Roger Douglas said today.

"Student associations are one of only a few organisations in New Zealand that can compel membership and it is students who have paid the price," Sir Roger said.

"For instance, forcing students to join and pay its fees provides associations with a guaranteed stream of income – resulting in a seeming lack of accountability to properly manage the pool of money this income creates. This has been seen in the numerous cases of mis-management that has occurred at student associations around the country.

"Further, student associations purport to represent the views and desires of the wider student body – yet most are dominated by a small minority of student politicians who prefer to push their own agenda and promote their own views rather than those of the majority."

ACT has long campaigned to right this wrong, with my Bill having previously been in the ballot under the name of my colleague Hon Heather Roy in the last Parliamentary term.

"We allow students to choose what university or polytechnic they attend, and what papers to take; it’s time we gave them the freedom to choose whether or not to join their local student association rather than forcing them to pay a union fee if they want to study," Sir Roger said.

Hear, hear!

4 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

"Is the left's main training ground about to be dealt to?"

You're about 20 years behind the game on this one, Trev.

Most of the left gave up on student associations decades ago. Only the truly dull and incompetent still waste their time there, and these are by no means all leftists.

Cheers

Sam Buchanan

9:48 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

most students gave up on student unions. the dull and incompetent lefties using coerced funds to further there own careers and ideology remain.

6:56 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Didn't Aaron Keown use coerced funds to further his own careers and ideology whilst cutting his teeth in student politics whilst at CPIT?

RTL

9:00 AM  
Blogger MZL said...

as a general, doesn't ACT consistently do better in student elections then in real ones? you may be biting the hand that feeds you (wink, wink), but Sam Buchanan is right - the last time student unions were really Left-Wing and had any real power was about the same time when people actually listened to what Douglas said

11:42 AM  

Post a Comment

Subscribe to Post Comments [Atom]

<< Home