BY BEN FINCH
In the Ardoyne area, a policewoman was injured when a block of masonry was thrown from the roof of a shop onto her head. Three officers were shot in the area and petrol and blast bombs were thrown at police. Over eighty officers were injured in the riots and millions of pounds worth of damage done to buildings in the community.

Father Gary Donegan of Holy Cross Church on the Crumlin Road has described the violence as “recreational rioting” and likened it to a theme park due to the age of many involved. It has been claimed that there were some rioters as young as eight years old involved in the disturbances.

So far, most attention has focused on the violence and consequences of the trouble. Very little has been paid to the underlying cause. If at all, it has been decried as dissident republicans hoping to scupper the peace process. Without making excuses for any of those taking part in the riots, if the Orange Order had been told they were not to pass through such areas as the Ardoyne by the Parades Commission, chances are that the high level of violence witnessed would not have happened. For years Orange parades have caused widespread rioting by both sides of the community, often in areas not directly affected by the marching. In any other part of the UK marches such as this would be treated as incitement to religious violence.

Plenty of comments made by students, over Facebook or otherwise, have been made along the lines of “If rioters want to throw petrol bombs and fire a few rounds of a shotgun at the police then the police should be allowed to fire a few rounds or a few petrol bombs back. See if they like it…Get off the streets, stop sponging off the government you don’t even recognise and get a job”. Again, this simply focuses on the effects, ignoring the current difficulty of finding and maintaining work, especially for those brought up in under-privileged areas, where young people are less likely to engage in education, thus seriously reducing their chances of gaining qualifications. A lack of engagement with education does not reflect a lack of desire to work. Also, similar comments do not take into consideration the fact that similar acts of violence and the blatant entrenchment of views were among the major reasons why Northern Ireland needed a peace process in the first place.

Comments such as these may represent a large part of the unionist community in Northern Ireland, but not everyone feels the same way. I have been speaking to students who have said that if the protests were peaceful then they’d join them, and others who have called for the outright banning of the Orange Order. These people did not want to be named. This is the crux of the matter. While the violence may be organised by dissident republicans taking advantage of ill-informed youths, the opportunity was handed to them by the Orange Order marching through areas where, as they very well know, they are not at all welcome.

Trouble also occurred in other areas during the twelfth; cars were set alight in Armagh, in Lurgan the Dublin-bound Enterprise suffered an attempted hijack and police officers were attacked in the Bogside area of Derry. All such incidents occurred in specific areas where parades did not take place. Such acts of violence can only be tenuously linked to the marches and should be condemned as Orange Lodges in these areas respectfully diverted their parades away from hostile areas. This approach needs to be followed in the few places where twelfth celebrations are still contentious.

It is constantly hammered into those studying medicine to treat the underlying cause of an illness rather than the symptoms, otherwise the treatment has no effect. Civil disobedience and uncivil disruption happens for a reason, not for the sake of it. Now that the disturbances have ended and a relatively stable situation has at last developed in the Ardoyne area, rather than concentrating solely on the violence, the cause of the riots needs to be examined and dealt with by both sides.

Union vice-presidents Barry Duffy and Paul Lilly have survived no-confidence motions brought before last night’s special meeting of the student representative council. The Space played host to a vigorous debate over the efficacy of the sabbatical officers, with councillors Damien Corridan and Anne Pauli presenting well-reasoned, well-researched critiques of the work of the ‘Chuckle Brothers’.

BY LORCAN MULLEN AND CONNOR DALY

NOTICE: The comment thread on this post is now closed and no more comments will be moderated.

While a majority of councillors voted in favour of the no-confidence motions, the constitutional threshold of three-quarters was not met. Duffy and Lilly, in conjunction with familiar faces Martin Lilly and Seamus Óg MacGiolla Cheara successfully marshalled the support of their Law/GAA power base, with an unusually large delegation in attendance. Speaker Alex Redpath quipped to councillors, “some of you I’m meeting for the first time.”

Redpath relinquished the chair, alluding to earlier accusations of partisan support for Duffy and Lilly during the performance related pay saga. These allegations led to a similar failed no-confidence vote in Redpath earlier this year. Ryan Cushley took his place, in an effort to avoid the intrusion of “vested interests.”

The VP Education’s hearing came first. Cllr. Pauli opened the debate, citing the behaviour of officers like Duffy as a reason for student political apathy. She stated that Duffy was “taking the mick out of this institution”, deeming his prospective dismissal “no loss to us.” In support, Cllr. Corridan made a powerful case for the council’s duty as a scrutinising body:

“…when the Union is failing its members, council has a duty to step in and do what is morally just…personality alone cannot stop us from discharging our responsibilities.”

Corridan explained that examination of Duffy’s officer reports showed scant evidence of effort; in totting up his claimed hours, the Union Senator could find only 3.6 months of work, at a rough estimate, out of 10 in the job so far.

In response, a pharmacy student defended Duffy, describing him as “professional and diligent” when he needed urgent help over academic hearings. The student also cast Duffy’s response to his troubles in a very positive light compared with last year’s VP Education, Kevin Kelly.

Corridan summed up Duffy’s hearing, urging councillors to “stand up for a strong union, [to] fight for a strong union.”

Lilly’s turn in the firing line came next, and the debate followed along almost identical lines. Lilly, like Duffy, opted to conduct his defence with a bland, endlessly platitudinous reading from a pre-prepared power point presentation. He told councillors that he, like Duffy “had always given my level best.”

In a dramatic moment, a visibly reluctant Laura Hawthorne (VP Community) took to the floor, speaking for the motion. Hawthorne stressed that her stance was not personal, and that “no officer is perfect, but there is a standard to be set.” Hawthorne cited her “inordinate amount of time” working on the International Student Society, apparently Lilly’s biggest achievement of the year, as an example of officers being forced to fill in for the habitually lazy or inept duo. Hawthorne told the council that “you are not asked politely to scrutinise, you are required to scrutinise.”

A secret ballot was then taken, and the results were soon announced, leading to a raucous bout of triumphant clapping from the assembled Law/GAA contingent. These members then walked out en masse, completely uninterested in dealing with the subsequent business of the council. Incoming VP Campaigns Fiona Kidd visibly lost her temper, shouting to the sneering departing councillors: “That says it all!”

After this exodus, council once again slid inexorably into quorate, meaning a number of constitutional amendments could not be properly dealt with.

A visibly tiring council then voted through the officer reports, an impressive policy on the environment and sustainability in the Union, and, after much confused debate, affirmed the President’s reading of the Constitution on the subject of constituencies for the next council elections. Schools will now have a specific seat, in addition to open faculty constituencies. Council also passed a motion condemning the Draft Public Assemblies Bill which attempts, for no apparent reason, to restrict citizens’ rights of assembly with an inordinate amount of prior consultation and permission.

Ever the loyal apprentice, Martin Lilly, brother of Paul, took to the walls of Facebook last night, saying in a number of places, very simply, “we won.”

Students may ask themselves whether they fall under Lilly’s definition of “we”.

Photos from the council meeting can be found at The Gown’s Facebook page.

The Space last night played host to the latest in a series of fractious meetings of the Union’s student representative council. While the prevailing cliché casts students as apolitical layabouts, successive spirited meetings of the body have shown ego clashes and institutional bickering at least to be clearly transcendent of both age and stereotype.

Speaker Alex Redpath addressed councillors’ concerns after the last meeting’s failed vote of no-confidence; votes of no-confidence have been scheduled for VPs Barry Duffy and Paul Lilly at a planned Extraordinary Meeting on May 12th; The Gown’s office suspension was debated and President-Elect Gareth McGreevy’s controversial SUTV plans were reaffirmed.

BY KERRI-ANNE CAMPBELL AND LORCAN MULLEN

Current President Shane Brogan’s extensive overhaul of student-staff consultative committees (SSCCs) and in-school accountability was also passed.

Speaker Redpath told The Gown: “It was a disappointing night… I don’t think anyone would claim that this was an easy Council meeting to chair.”

Redpath faced strong criticism from the floor at the beginning of the night, defending his decision to remain despite a majority Council vote to strip him of the post prior to March’s sabbatical elections. A two-thirds majority is required to oust the Speaker.

Redpath, a second year law student, countered his critics, claiming “a couple of big wins this year”, making it clear that he is “perfectly happy to stand on”.

“With regards to my own resignation, I have made it clear that I will complete my term until the constitutionally mandated number of councillors remove me from office. I owe this not only to myself, but to my successors in this role. A speaker needs this constitutional protection to make the controversial decisions that are demanded of the chair.”

He went on to say, “Two thirds of the Council are required to remove the speaker, which would mean 51 members out of 77. There has never been a record of this many at a Council Meeting this year.”

A palpable sense of frustration only increased with discussion of the absence of vice-presidents Lilly and Duffy. Duffy did not send his apologies. President Brogan informed Council that Lilly cited illness earlier in the day. A number of councillors were confident that the duo had skipped the meeting to attend last night’s GAA formal. Lilly however spoke to The Gown on Facebook after the Council meeting. Post-formal revellers at the Eg on the other hand told The Gown that Lilly and Duffy were “across the street”. Readers may draw their own conclusions.

Concerns about the attitude and work ethic of the two VPs have been a recurrent theme in QUBSU politics this year, and councillors were not long in moving towards respective motions of no-confidence. President Brogan spoke out in unusually strident terms, stating that “some action needs to be taken here and now.”

Ponderous moves towards a confidence vote, led by Ryan Cushley, were unexpectedly derailed by councillor and management board member Anne Pauli, recurrent bête noire of the “Chuckle Brothers.” Pauli’s alternative proposal, the May 12th meeting of the Council, where Duffy and Lilly will learn their fate was passed instead.

Brogan told The Gown that he was “happy with what came from the floor” and confirmed that he had signed the Pauli petition initiating the Extraordinary Meeting process.

Councillor Colin Sloan stated, “It’s good to know that Council has decided to do something about the worst sabb [sabbatical officers] offenders of the year. They seem to be more concerned with working with GAA than the Council.”

Clerk to Council Dominic Doherty stated that this has “impacted upon their status” however, “no apology is not deemed to be a sackable offence”.

Last night, a seemingly stressed Lilly did not wish to make an on-record comment on the proceedings. Brogan confirmed this evening that the VP contacted him regarding his absence from work today, citing a scheduled doctor’s appointment.

In other news:

-A motion proposed by Cllr. Colin Sloan censuring the Union for its actions against The Gown this semester was deferred to the next meeting, pending today’s planned meeting between Brogan, Andrew Dodge and the Gown Trust, led by former Irish Times foreign correspondent Conor O’Clery.

While Sloan and assorted Gownies criticised the SU leadership in emphatic terms, Cllr. Pauli condemned the language of the motion (“an attack on freedom of speech”) as “ridiculous.”

In a separate discussion concerning redevelopment of Union facilities, Brogan told Council that the current Gown office will become a “society storage space”.

-A motion brought by Cathy Corbett and Darren Leckey calling for SUTV’s suspension pending “further research” was defeated.

-VP Paul Courtney dismissed claims from some QUB GAA members, recently aired on a Facebook campaign page, that the current redevelopment of the Dub sporting facilities somehow prejudiced the organisation.

Queen’s Students’ Union have won in two categories at the 2010 Smedia Awards. VP Gareth McGreevy picked up the ‘Website of the Year’ award for the QUBSU website, and ‘Society Publication of the Year’ for the Student Handbook.

BY BRENDAN HUGHES

The 10th annual Oxygen.ie National Student Media Awards took place in the Mansion House in Dublin last night. The awards were dominated by Dublin-based student media, with Dublin City University emerging as the biggest winners, claiming 10 prizes.

President-elect McGreevy missed out on winning ‘Editor of the Year’ for his SU Mag work. The award instead went to University College Dublin.

Other QUB nominees failed to win awards: Cillian de Búrca lost out on ‘Radio DJ of the Year’, and Law Society publication, The Verdict, failed to garner enough public support to win the ‘People’s Choice’ category. McGreevy’s win for the Student Handbook also came at the expense of both SU Mag and The Verdict, being nominated in the same category.

It is reported that some students attending the awards expressed confusion at the final nominations tally. In some instances, students became nominees for categories they hadn’t entered, such as SU Mag’s nomination for ‘Society Publication of the Year’.

A full list of the nominees and winners can be found at the Oxigen.ie website.

A Facebook group has been set up, opposing plans to spend almost £30,000 on SUTV.

Link to Facebook Group

OPINION: SUTV just doesn’t add up

BY BRENDAN HUGHES

The Facebook group, called “QUB SUTV why waste £30,000?”, created by Niall Corry, has gathered a strong following of both supporters and some detractors in its short few days of existence.

SUTV (Students’ Union Television) is the much-mooted communication tool being proposed by the Student’s Union. The project aims to provide students with a high quality filming and editing suite in the Union building from which students may gain broadcasting experience.

However, scepticism of SUTV has been mounting, with the revelation that the plan would cost almost £30,000 to complete. Queen’s Annual Fund, a student contact centre which gives graduate donations towards student projects, have pledged £20,000. The remainder will be directly funded by the Students’ Union if other sources cannot be found.

Early last week, an opinion piece heavily criticising SUTV was published on The Gown website, sparking a surge of debate on the issue. VP Campaigns and President-elect, Gareth McGreevy, who has spear-headed the development of the scheme, expressed a knee-jerk aggravation to the criticisms via his Facebook page.

“Gareth McGreevy thinks you’re damned if you do and you’re damned if you don’t but maybe are better not doing and therefore just get an easy ride! On the other hand looking forward to writing a response piece and showing some people up!” He said.

McGreevy has not submitted a response to the criticisms but, in a slight change of tact, has instead welcomed students to speak to him privately about the issue.

Creator of the Facebook group, Niall Corry, a prominent member of the Queen’s Fencing Club, has encouraged discussion on the topic.

One person said, “Some of the money for the project is being taken from a trust fund I believe donated by former graduates…however even they can’t reach the £30,000 figure then the rest is going to come from student pockets!”

VP Paul Lilly questioned the ethics of the group members.

“Seems like some Raggies can’t handle the fact that SUTV made a successful bid to the Annual Fund. Honestly,” he said.

Another student said, “Queen’s Radio, the SU-Mag, the Verdict and the RAG magazine are all highly undersubscribed…Is the evidence really there to suggest SUTV wouldn’t follow in the same footsteps?”

“By creating SUTV (at huge expense), you are just spreading existing information around more thinly,” he added.

Link to Facebook Group

OPINION: SUTV just doesn’t add up

Adam McGibbon, the recently elected Union vice-president for welfare, is set for a second daunting electoral challenge this semester, successfully landing the Green Party’s nomination for Belfast South in the upcoming UK general elections. Queen’s University is situated in this constituency.

BY LORCAN MULLEN

The current MP, the SDLP’s Alasdair McDonnell, will be defending a slim majority against McGibbon, the UCUNF’s Paula Bradshaw, Sinn Fein’s Alex Maskey and Alliance’s Anna Lo, among others. In 2005, McDonnell won with 10,339 votes. In the 2007 Assembly elections, Green candidate Brenda Cooke secured a tally of 737 votes.

A postgraduate politics student at Queen’s University, McGibbon joined the Green Party in 2007 at the age of 19, becoming the youngest member of the Party’s Executive Committee and is currently the Chairperson of the South Belfast branch. He was elected unanimously at a meeting of the branch, and has already begun canvassing in the area.

Speaking to The Gown, McGibbon insisted that such canvassing, so far confined to non-student areas, had elicited an “excellent response”, with the Greens’ flagship ‘green new deal’ proving popular on the doorsteps. This ‘green new deal’ would see an estimated 38,000 jobs created in the renewable energy sector, with a particular boost for the beleaguered construction trade. Initial investment would go towards home insulation and indigenous forms of power generation, like woodchip farming and burning. McGibbon pointed out that these new blue-collar jobs would be largely immune to outsourcing, the consistent scourge of the North’s ever-faltering economy.

In South Belfast, McGibbon will be pushing a “20 is plenty” speed limit in built up areas, while also supporting free home insulation for any house that needs it. According to the Young Green, the apparent malaise over environmental campaigning after the failed Copenhagen summit, coupled with the murky media hype surrounding leaked emails from the University of East Anglia, has not reached the doorsteps of South Belfast. Rather, “people are more convinced that action has to be taken by them, not just governments.”

Apart from environmental and economic considerations, McGibbon stressed the power of the Greens’ untainted “new” politics, outside the bickering of sectarian division and unsullied from the various recent political scandals at Westminster. He asserted that the Greens are the only party in Stormont who do not accept corporate donations.

When pushed on the charge that his movement is a strictly middle-class pursuit, McGibbon reported a particular warmth from working class constituents when told of the Greens’ absence from the oft-repeated ‘heads in the trough’ behaviour of a large number of incumbent MPs and political leaders.

McGibbon also refuted the argument that a Green vote would increase the chances of the UCUNF (Conservative) candidate defeating Alasdair McDonnell. McDonnell and the SDLP typically vote with Labour at Westminster. He questioned the true progressive impulses of McDonnell, but also the Alliance Party, stating that “they aren’t honest in how they present themselves.”

Most importantly, McGibbon encouraged students to participate in the elections, primarily through registration at their place of study, “where they spend most of their time…let’s talk about cold houses, fuel poverty, student fees.”

With more than 20,000 studying at the university, a significant Union voter-registration drive could well see students dominate the political debate in this constituency for years to come, leveraging votes to commit the MP for South Belfast to policies that are good for students and young people, not just “permanent residents.”

SU President Shane Brogan has defended changes being made to office space in the Union amid tensions with staff and sabbaticals.

BY BRENDAN HUGHES

Brogan insists the changes, which are due to begin next week, will be for the benefit of the Union, creating more free space for students’ use.

“The offices in here aren’t efficient. My current office is about the same size as Peter Gregson’s,” Brogan said.

Currently, as much as half of all student room bookings are held in other Queen’s buildings due to the Union’s lack of space.

It is believed that the office shake-up has caused some tension in SU towers, with several members of staff and elected student officers unhappy with the changes. Some sources have complained that relevant parties were not given enough notice. However, Brogan has hit back at this suggestion, saying that proposals were presented to present Sabbatical officers in January, and have been talked about since June last year.

The office plans will see many Union employees who are currently in private offices move into shared rooms. It is intended that this will make the whole third floor free for students to use. One room on the third floor will be used for ‘hot-desking’ facilities, which will give students who run annual events a base with a phone and computer to work from for the required duration. Computers will also be installed with design packages such as Adobe InDesign, hoping to encourage students to develop high-quality faculty publications.

The biggest structural change sees the wall between the President’s current office and the reception knocked in to create one larger, communal office for Sabbatical officers. SU marketing and entertainments personnel will move into the current Sabbaticals’ office.

From approximately 5pm, the Holylands became rowdier, with the alcohol intake inevitably taking effect. Crowds of revellers gathered outside houses on Rugby Avenue, Agincourt Avenue, Carmel Street, Jerusalem Street and Palestine Street, with Rugby Avenue arguably the worst. Young people took to the middle of Rugby Avenue for a rendition of ‘Rock the Boat’, which then turned into the Irish national anthem. One young man mooned in the middle of the street before being unsuccessfully chased by a police officer.

BY CATHERINE WYLIE

The Gown spoke to a few Belfast natives who had turned up to “see what they could see”. One man said, “It only takes one person. I think something is definitely going to kick off.”

Those gathered in front gardens were visibly drinking, whilst some took to sitting on first floor window sills, or even on roofs. When asked what they thought of how the atmosphere had progressed, one student said, “This is ridiculous.”

VP Campaigns and Communications, Gareth McGreevy, said, “It has been contained with very little violence and rioting. There was an incident earlier in which seven people wearing pyjamas had come up from the Ormeau Road with a Rangers jersey. They were walking down Carmel Street, shouting “Burn it! Burn it!” The students didn’t want them there, and the situation was sorted quickly.”

Many students expressed how good the police had been. One said, “It may have went too far at this stage, but the police have been really nice. I suppose nobody is doing any harm.”

Another student said, “If I was a resident I’d hate it. It’s a bit scary.”

To which her friend replied, “They should confine all the residents to one street just for today!”

For more photos from the day, go to The Gown’s Facebook page.

The Gown has once again been suspended indefinitely from its office in the Students’ Union. The decision was taken unilaterally by Andrew Dodge, the unelected Director of the Students’ Union. The Union has again stopped The Gown from being distributed to students in the Union building.

UPDATE: Statement from The Gown Trust.

Dodge apparently based his decision on concerns over an article in today’s edition of the paper, which explains the paper’s recent spat with the Union. 

A memorandum was presented to Gown management earlier in the year in which the editor was asked to agree to a number of requests. These included the Union seeing all publications before they go to print, that the Union manager or President could sit in on The Gown Trust meetings, and that cold calling on Union staff and sabbaticals was forbidden. The Gown team was presented with the final draft of the memorandum last week. 

The decision to preserve the newspaper’s decades-long independence was included in Editor Catherine Wylie’s front page report in today’s print edition. Wylie said: “At no time in the history of The Gown, has the editorial team allowed Union staff to see issues before they go to print, and this won’t change.” Dodge has reacted to these assertions by renewing the office suspension. 

The Gown has received no information to suggest this substantial assault on free speech in the student body was discussed among, let alone sanctioned by, elected Union officials. President Shane Brogan has been unavailable for comment. 

At no point was The Gown’s previous suspension linked to any conditions regarding acceptance of the Union’s draconian curbs on a free campus press.

UPDATE: Statement from Gown Trust.

Gown have been locked out of their office today after publishing details of the protocol the students’ union was trying to make them sign. 

This shameful action contradicts the University’s Charter and Students’ Union Constitution which states that one of the aims of the Students’ Union is to promote and support “the opportunity of freedom of expression”. 

Gown has been operating as an independent student newspaper for half a century at Queen’s University. 

The Union has been pressurising the editorial staff by threatening to take away their office space if they do not sign a protocol under which they would have to accede to unreasonable demands, such as giving up the right to exclusive use of an office – which has for decades been available to them, a recognition of the key part the paper plays in the life of the university – and providing the Students’ Union sight of all editions before they are made publicly available. 

This would completely erode the independence of the newspaper. 

This action is a blow against freedom of expression for the students at Queens University and strikes at the heart of the universal concept of press freedom. It is totally unacceptable. The editor has the full support of the trust.

The mystery guest to DJ in Mandela Hall this Thursday night is Cool FM star Sonya Mac, it has been revealed.

For days the Union has been encouraging students to guess who will be taking over the reigns from Declan Gallen on Thursday’s ‘Twisted’ club night.

Sonya Mac is scheduled to play ‘Twisted’ Thurdays for a period of four weeks.

Who would you prefer to listen to: Sonya Mac or DJ Deci?

Illustration by Niall Mooney (click to view)

(Click to view all the events)

GAA-law election canvassers sent text messages to students asking for Queen’s Online password details in order to fraudulently register SU election votes, The Gown has learned.

In the Students’ Union elections result, the GAA-law team of candidates dramatically failed to gain student support, winning only one seat.

BY BRENDAN HUGHES

Of the seven positions on offer, the Critchlow ticket swept the board by capturing six of the seven places on the SU executive team. However, Presidential candidate Daniel Critchlow lost out to the law-GAA bloc’s Gareth McGreevy.

The results were announced last night in the Speakeasy Bar to a packed crowd of campaigners, supporters and onlookers. In a record turnout, 4525 students voted in the elections; an 18.9% increase on last year.

Fiona Kidd defeated Stephen Connolly on the first count to win the VP Campaigns and Communications Sabbatical position. The clearly shocked and emotional Kidd thanked her team in her speech.

The VP Education post was won by Nathan Anderson, beating Fionnuala McKenna by around 100 votes.

Adam McGibbon finally won the VP Welfare post, after losing to the resigning Susan Kearney in last year’s election. Greg McLarnon came third, with Aine Ní Cheara placing second.

“I didn’t expect to get this. Thanks so much to all my running mates. Anyone who knows me will tell you I’m a pessimistic person. Congratulations to everybody!” McGibbon said.

It was also second-time-success for Jay Downs, who beat Alex Redpath to win VP Community. Earlier in the year, Redpath won the role of Speaker over Downs in a student council vote. An ecstatic Downs repeatedly punched the air, thanking his team.

A strong Sinn Féin campaign for VP Equality and Diversity candidate Grace Lynch failed to slay competitor Samantha Tan, who became the second ever international student to win an Executive post.

Many were surprised by Niall Bole’s victory in the VP Clubs and Societies category, narrowly winning the post over Niamh McKernan through second and third preference votes. Candidates looked stunned at the final result, with McKernan visibly showing frustration from the stage. Niall ‘Riggs’ McDermot came third.

“Oh dear God! I wasn’t expecting this. Thanks to Sam my girlfriend, I’ve been invisible for the last week. Thanks to everyone and all who voted!” Bole said in his speech.

After the storming success of Critchlow’s team, the Speakeasy crowd gasped as Critchlow himself failed to win the President post and complete the set. Winning candidate and current VP Campaigns Gareth McGreevy was absent from the election result due to commitments at the Waterfront Hall. A visibly intoxicated VP Barry Duffy took to the stage to offer words of thanks on McGreevy’s behalf.

Will team McGreevy triumph over the Critchlow crew? Is pantsless Redpath set for victory, or will Downs make him see red? Maybe it’s finally R.O.N.’s turn to shine? Share your views with us by leaving a comment.

7.30pm – The Speakeasy bar is filling up with candidates, supporters, Gown reporters and onlookers.

The results will be announced in the following order -

VP Campaigns and Communications

VP Education

VP Welfare

VP Community

VP Equality and Diversity

VP Clubs and Societies

President

7.39  Returning officer Dominic Doherty takes to the stage.

Doherty thanks Brian Heading, Lorraine Meneilly, Andrew Gordon, Casper Love, the candidates,.

He says, “This was an election that was run in a very good spirit. At the end of tonight we will have a very good sabbatical team.”

“There was a record turnout of 4525 votes. That puts us in the top percentage of Students’ Unions.”

Result of VP Campaigns and Communications -

Stephen and Fiona arrive hand on hand to the stage. 4525 voted.  18.9% rise on last year.

Winner on first count – FIONA KIDD with 1973 votes. (Stephen Connolly on 1452 votes, 96 votes for re-open nominations)

Fiona – “Thanks very much to Stephen. I never thought I’d be standing up here. Thanks to the team I ran with. I want to thank everybody!”

Result of VP Education -

Winner by approximately 100 votes – NATHAN ANDERSON (Fionnuala McKenna on 1638 votes, 101 votes for re-open nominations)

Nathan – “I would like to thank Fiona for being so full of integrity. I want to give her a round of applause. I want to thank Dominic and Brian…and lots more!”

Result of VP Welfare -

3454 votes cast.

3rd place – Greg McLarnon with 294 votes

2nd place – Aine Ní Cheara with 1308 votes

Winner – ADAM MCGIBBON with 1765 votes

Adam – “I didn’t expect to get this. Thanks so much to all my running mates. Anyone who knows me will tell you I’m a pessimistic person. Congratulations to everybody!”

Result of VP Community -

3509 votes cast.

Winner – JAY DOWNS with 1788 votes

Alex Redpath on 1569 votes.

Jay – “I want to thank the raggies, those from Guthrie house. Thanks everyone so much. I can’t believe it!”

Result of VP Equality and Diversity -

3516 votes cast

Winner – SAMANTHA TAN with 2032 votes

Grace Lynch on 1383 votes.

Samantha – “I can’t wait to work for everyone. Thank you!”

Result of  VP Clubs and Societies -

3561 votes cast.

3rd place – Niall McDermott

2nd place – Niamh McKernan with 1571 votes

Winner – NIALL BOLE with 1781 votes

Niall – “Oh dear God! I wasn’t expecting this. Thanks to Sam my girlfriend, I’ve been invisible for the last week. Thanks to everyone and all who voted!”

Result of President -

3961 votes cast.

winner – GARETH MCGREEVY with 2037 votes (absent due to committments at the Waterfront Hall)

Daniel Critchlow with 1786 votes.

McGreevy has asked Barry Duffy to said a few words of thanks.

The questioning of all election candidates took place today from 1.10pm in the Speakeasy bar. The event was chaired by deputy general manager Dominic Doherty. The event was very poorly attended, with many students in for lunch then leaving during the questions. When the final candidates were called on to the stage, there was merely a scattering of a few candidates’ friends and student journalists.

BY GOWN TEAM

First up were the candidates running for President – Gareth McGreevy and Daniel Critchlow. McGreevy stressed his local roots and deemed his commitment, or “over-commitment”, to be one of his weaknesses/strengths. Continuity was a big issue for McGreevy, and he asked the question, “Why leave business unfinished?” He says that his year as VP Campaigns and Communications means that he “has continuity behind him”. Speaking about sales being down in the Union bars, he lay blame with the aggressive marketing campaigns of rivals such as Rain at the beginning of the year. He claims that a review of services, a business plan and more advertising are all needed. McGreevy was keen to point out the importance of accountability and refuted Critchlow’s claim that those running on his ticket are not a team, but are instead a collection of individuals. McGreevy says that he won’t be working for the university, but will work with them.

Daniel Critchlow stressed the experience he has acquired in the last four years at QUB, with working in the Union bars, involvement in clubs and societies, and sitting on Management Board. He believes that the Union needs a “strong president”, a president that will “take the bull by the horns and be aggressive”. He voiced his hope that he would encourage a seven day university week, and that clubs and societies would meet at weekends. Critchlow, who compared the role of President to the Dark Knight, was keen to point out that current President, Shane Brogan, nominated him and so thinks that he is the candidate to succeed in the presidential race. Critchlow believes that his strength is his ability to make big decisions, on issues like PRP for example, and not sit on the fence. He is adamant that whoever wins this election that next year’s executive needs to be unified, unlike the split executive that we currently have. He says that the executive shouldn’t appease the University, but they shouldn’t encourage “crazy socialism” either. Critchlow says, “When I say I’m going to do something, I’ll do it”.

The presidential candidates were followed by Stephen Connolly and Fiona Kidd, candidates for the Campaigns and Communications post. Connolly reaffirmed his manifesto commitments to establish a central timetable for events and interests, which is simultaneously “central” and “tailored to individual student needs.” He was keen to highlight the absence of media in Kidd’s manifesto, and pointed out his past experience in graphic design, film making, and events organising and promotion. Connolly, who is currently working as a marketing assistant in the Union, promises to create a sense of community that will entice people back to the Union. Kidd has worked as a security guard in the Union and helped at Welcome Week two years in a row. She promises to extend email space and bring Freshers’ Week back under Union control. She cites her ability to talk and her 3 years of professional working experience among her strengths, and was keen to stress how well she knows the Union. Regarding the lack of any mention of media in her manifesto, Kidd said, “I didn’t want to lie in my manifesto. “Design”isn’t the post, it is VP Campaigns and Communications. Word of mouth can be quicker than media.” Both candidates showed their support for The Gown, with Kidd saying, “It is a disgrace that the removal of The Gown from the Union is an issue. I would ensure The Gown would remain in the Union.”

The standard of debate and answers by the Welfare candidates was to a low standard, with McGibbon the only exception. McGibbon was the only candidate who showed any substantive policies or any evidence of meaningful research. He reiterated points made in his manifesto and cited problems in the wider South Belfast area as one of the biggest challenges faced by the VP Welfare in the next academic year. Greg McLarnon stressed that his six years spent at QUB, due to various issues such as ill-health, would make him a good candidate that is able to help people going through similar issues. Aine Ní Cheara’s most plausible idea was to introduce ice cards.

In the section for the Education candidates, Nathan Anderson, who has so far impressed with his knowledge, appeared nervous and got lost in a rambling story in his opening speech. Despite this, he appeared to be confident that his experience and his endorsed policies make him a good candidate for the job. When asked what the biggest challenge would be for VP Education, Anderson said that there would be a number of challenges, such as fees, teaching and minority subjects. He promises to meet with people and hold “surgeries” with various schools. In terms of what he thinks of the current executive, Anderson says he would stand up for PRP and The Gown. Fionnuala McKenna reiterated a lot of what Anderson said, adding, “I would like to be able to come up with lots of ideas and policies”. McKenna thinks the current executive has done “pretty well”.

The GAA-endorsed candidates for the post of VP Clubs and Societies, Niamh McKernan and Niall McDermott, spoke in populist terms about decreasing PEC fees and increasing student involvement. McKernan currently works in the PEC and stressed her links with those who are connected with it, whilst McDermott promises to “make the PEC our PEC”. McKernan highlighted the enjoyment that comes with clubs and societies, while McDermott went further and said that too many people come to QUB and leave with just a degree. Bole, a long-time Union employee, has detailed proposals for financial reform in the running of clubs and societies, promising simplified procedures and more effective training for committee members. Boles’ supporters have highlighted the GAA’s stranglehold on the position, with GAA or GAA-approved candidates occupying the clubs and societies post for the past 14 years.

Grace Lynch was absent from the event today due to having to attend a funeral. However, she sent through a statement which reaffirmed the major points made in her manifesto. Samantha Tan faced questions alone, and as an international student who is passionate about minority groups, she feels she is a good candidate for the job. Having no previous experience of council, Tan argues that this is an advantage as she would be coming to the post with no past grievances and will take a fresh outlook on things.

In the Community hustings, GAA/Law Society/Conservatives and Unionists/Independent candidate Alex Redpath spoke in some detail over his plans for better parking facilities and continuity in Laura Hawthorne’s work in response to the “St. Patrick’s Day riots”. He proposes larger cross-campus events, and measures to increase neighbourliness in the Holylands. In response, Jay Downs cited his wealth of experience in various worthy QUB causes, including RAG and NUS-USI, promising steps towards an SU estate agents, lobbying for a safe tenancy deposit scheme backed by the government, and a newly purchased bus to continue the work of the temporary night bus scheme.

VP Welfare Susan Kearney has resigned from her elected Students’ Union post.

Kearney said that she was “head-hunted” for another job, which will require her to leave her SU role before her term in office formally comes to a close.

“It was too good an opportunity to turn down,” she said.

Susan refused to comment when asked for a response to those who would be critical of her decision to stand down early.

The Sabbatical’s resignation must be formally approved at the next Union Executive Management Committee meeting.

BY BRENDAN HUGHES

The meeting this afternoon was attended by four SU staff: Acting Chief Executive Andrew Dodge, President Shane Brogan, and VPs Susan Kearney and Laura Hawthorne. Brogan mentioned that he had received apologies from the absent staff members.

The written proposal – the only item on the agenda – requested funding for a production of C.S. Lewis’ ‘The Screwtape Letters’.

Among its aims, the project intends to “encourage inter-relations between students from different subject areas” and to “encourage the building of the student community”. The students’ proposal referred to a lack of opportunities for students of all academic disciplines to participate in amateur dramatics.

EMC members questioned why the proposal was not being handled in association with the Drama Society, which already receives funding from the Students’ Union. A list of questions to be emailed to the students involved was compiled, and a final decision was postponed until a later date.

The first twenty people to email us their name and mobile number will receive a voucher! Send your message, with the subject line, “I WANT A CLEMENTS VOUCHER” to info@thegown.org.uk.

Competition closes on Friday 25th September at 12noon. One voucher per person. Vouchers can only be exchanged at Clements in the Students’ Union.