Skip to content
Scroll to the top of the page

News Article

Student Parliament 1 Recap

newsStudent Exec

By Lottie Eastwood

What is Student Parliament?

Parliament is a safe space where students can voice their thoughts and opinions.  Each session discusses several issues and includes reports from the student executives. Members of Parliament may make a formal proposal called a motion. The motion will assess a particular action, a current issue faced by students at the university. Members of Parliament may debate the motion and then the chair puts the question or proposal to a vote.

Who attends Parliament?

Student non-executive representatives from across the university’s faculties of the Business School, Engineering, Humanities and Social Sciences, and Science. The student executives (Student President, VP Community, VP Education, VP Inclusion, VP Sport, and VP Welfare) also attend Parliament to give reports on their role and various projects which they may be working on. Students may attend parliament as guests to partake in discussion and to get an idea of what the various roles entail, as well as to gain an understanding of what goes on behind the scenes.

Student Executive Reports

Student President Eva Curran

Strategic alliance framework is a project which has just been signed off, this is a collaborative effort between the Strath Union student executives and the university executives.

A poignant topic brought up by Eva is a policy by Student Parliament in 2020 ‘Boycott, divestment, and sanctions.’ This motion has to do with the illegal occupation of Palestinian territories by the State of Israel. This sparked a thought-provoking debate and raised many recommendations and concerns relating to the topic.

VP Education Charlie Wilson

Charlie has been working alongside PGR reps to gain insight on how they can feel more included and represented.

VP Sport Molly McHugh

Molly has been working hard to refine Sports Union governance, where the Sports Union fits with the university and Strath Union.

She is looking to introduce a sports club ranking system with help from Society Execs to understand best practice.

VP Welfare Rachael Okoh

Rachael is running a housing campaign to aid students in finding accommodation and housing which is suitable for students. The campaign strives to ensure that housing is seen as a priority and a legitimate personal circumstance.

Further Updates from Your Representatives

One of the motions discussed ‘Transition campus catering to 100% plant-based' sparked much discussion. The ‘Plant-Based University Campaign’ believes that more must be done by Strath Union towards being a sustainable organisation.

The campaign proposes:                                                     

  • ‘Strath Union should support the transition to 100% plant-based catering’                                                         
  • ‘For Strath Union owned outlets to be 100% plant-based by 2025’                                                                     
  • ‘For Strath Union event catering to be 100% plant-based by 2025’                                                                     
  • ‘For these changes to be in writing and embedded within the university climate strategy’
  • ‘Strath Union should lobby the University of Strathclyde to facilitate a necessary plant-based transition.’

What is your opinion on this topic?  A committee is being set up to look at this proposal you can apply to be a part of here

Contact Details for Your Student Representatives

Who are your student executives?

The Student Executives are 6 full-time paid staff members of Strath Union, who campaign for their respective positions and are elected by the student body. The Student Executives represent the student body across all areas as follows:

President Eva Curran

VP Community Justyna Kardasz

VP Education Charlie Wilson

VP Inclusion Yu-Chu (Kathy) Doong

VP Sport Molly McHugh

VP Welfare Rachael Okoh

Who are your non-executives?

Student non-executives are those who have been elected to represent students across the university, from all faculties Business School, Engineering, Humanities and Social Sciences and Science at the university and Undergraduate and Postgraduate stages of study.

You can contact your relevant representative on the Strath Union website via email address.

There are also inclusion reps who represent students of various backgrounds including a Women's Rep, BAME Rep, LGBT+ Rep, and International Students' Rep.