“Of course leafleting is the evil you have to do to get in, but I’m saving that until I absolutely have to.”
Ahead of tonight’s husting event in the Interval, Dave Hurst spoke to the shefbase about his environmental policies and why you should vote for him as their next Union President.
SB: Thank you for taking time to speak to the shefbase. So what inspired you to run for president?
DH: Well I think it was the candidates from last year. I’ve always been passionate about student issues and I’ve always been quite opinionated but it always seemed like there was not a distinct choice each year between the candidates, whereas I’m running my campaign upon real policies. It just seemed like everyone was standing for the same reasons and no-one ever seemed very passionate about these issues which is why I’m standing.
SB: You mentioned that candidates of previous years have all campaigned for the same policy, but your own environmental policies are similar, if not the same. Why is yours any different, and why do you think you can implement them?
I think it’s in the way of tackling them; lobbying the university about education facilities or lobbying the council about recycling. I do not think the union did as much as it could have; there is a lot of waste in our communities, 25,000 students go here and I just feel that increasing internal recycling is one of the border issues. I think it’s great that we have the recycling facilities at the Arts Tower but I think the union could lobby further. I think in terms of the community, the [city] council appreciates our presence, I’m sure, making my policy viable with the role of the president as a representative of the 25,000 students. I think that is what makes my policies different from every other year.
SB: What in particular will you be lobbying the City Council for?
Recycling on our doorsteps. At the moment, we only have paper and card so I want glass, tin and plastic too. It is implemented in most small towns and especially when Sheffield is proud of its green credentials I think we can be doing more than we currently are. We have our bin in our house and within one week it was overflowing and this will be repeated by the other 50,000 when you include those at Hallam.
SB: Another of your policies is to extend sports for everybody, how will you go about this?
Well at the heart of the problem is the elitism that I see behind most of the sports teams, I feel that it is everyone’s money and everyone should benefit from it. Not all the sports teams are like this, there are some that if you are not in the first team you are not allowed to train and that is what I am trying to tackle. I am interested in activities because I feel activities are those that do not exclude anyone. It maybe a problem of funding, which is why I want to achieve value for money. I would not mind playing some of the sports but I do not want to play it too seriously but I feel I, like everyone else, should be getting something out of it as well.
SB: What about the potential merger of the activities and sport officers?
Well I think it is good that there is a discussion about it but for me neither of the three options are brilliant. I don’t wish to share my opinion on where I’ll vote on the issue but that’s why I have put policies in, so if it does happen we know what I will be representing and show that activities are being catered for whatever happens.
SB: What exactly does your policy for ‘events for all’ entail?
What I say ‘nights for all’ it doesn’t mean emo nights or rock nights. What I mean by that is that is events for minority students, non-alcohol nights and other events like that. I do not see any reason why, either weekly or fortnightly, the Raynor Lounge can be separately booked for that. I think we should at least try to engage all students so that more of the student population are using the facilities. On one of the union nights a pint of Coke costs £2 which I think is a disgrace when it is cheaper to buy a pint of alcohol.
SB: Another of your policies is to make the union more transparent. How will you achieve that?
Well it is things like the financial statements, things that are not publicly available and to get a copy of it you have to put pressure on people. I think that by putting such documents online we can show the union in a better light, and people can see whereabouts their money is spent. Everyone’s asking ‘what’s wrong with the union?’ but no-one knows because no-one has been told the facts. It is a non-profit organisation so it should be showing its members how it spends its money and they should have a say in that without having to go to student council.
SB: Were you surprised at the low voter turnout for the union council elections?
I think it was an absolute disgrace when some people were getting elected on three votes. I think the reason no-one voted was because no-one knew who they [candidates] were or how to contact them and so as soon as they were elected they were off on their own.
SB: So with the election being split into two parts, do you think there is the risk of an even lower voter turnout?
No, but I do feel it will be detrimental to those people who are running afterwards. As you’ve seen in previous elections, after the first two-three weeks everyone has grown tired of it and I feel bad for them [candidates] that are to run afterwards when lectures have resumed. I think that will really hurt the quality of the candidates that will be elected in the other half. If we had had this referendum back in December we could have avoided this two-tier system and everyone could have gone for it at the same time. I think this is also the reason why there are fewer candidates this year; last year there were eight, this year there are four [for president] because the whole election has been overshadowed by this referendum.
SB: So why should students vote for you?
I think that I am a breath of fresh air, something different. I am a genuine character and I am passionate in what I believe in. I swear that I’m not just doing this for the CV; I’m really fed up of that kind of person who does it for that reason. I hope it comes through in my policies. I cannot guarantee we can get the council on board but I think we must at least try.
SB: Describe yourself in three words:
Genuine, honest and approachable.
Dave Hurst was speaking to Andrew Burgess
