Students nationwide urge National to be Rational

Students around the country are urging National to be ‘rational’ and stop supporting ACT’s Bill to end universal membership of student’s associations. Rallies were scheduled to coincide with an originally scheduled Member’s Day in Parliament when the Bill was due to be debated further.

“Students’ associations are vital community institutions, and are important in ensuring a fair deal for students, quality teaching, and a great student experience. ACT’s Bill is set to undermine and devastate everything good that these institutions do. The Bill will remove the right of students to ensure that there is a mandated student representative organisation on their campus,” says NZUSA co-President Max Hardy.

“National should look at ways to strengthen associations and their work, but instead National is supporting an ACT Party Bill that will do the opposite,” says Hardy.

“Students care about the quality of their education, the services they receive, and the independent representation they need and deserve. If passed, this Bill will wreck services for students on campus, take the heart out of student life, undermine an independent representative voice, and downgrade the quality of NZ’s tertiary education system,” says NZUSA co-President David Do.

“Students are urging National to listen to the 98 per cent of submissions opposing the Bill and put forward a better alternative to ACT’s Bill. Lets work together on what students want, not what ACT wants,” concludes Do.