Student Unions (Hansard, 1 December 1992)

§ Mr. Peter Bottomley
To ask the Secretary of State for Education what information he has as to the major users of those student union funds received from public sources, including(a) the cost of sabbatical officers and (b) support for students' societies in institutions of higher education.

§ Mr. Forman
Student unions' funds derive from a variety of sources: notably profits on their trading activities, and grant from their parent institutions, paid out of funds deriving from a mix of public and private sources. A survey undertaken by the Department in 1988 identified the principal services provided by campus unions: these include representation of students; welfare; sports; catering and refreshments; shopping; travel and insurance; and support for student societies. No information is available centrally on the breakdown of unions' expenditure on these activities, or on the employment of sabbatical officers.

§ Mr. Peter Bottomley
To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will circulate to all student unions details of the recent High Court ban on the university of Greenwich students union from political campaigning.

§ Mr. Forman
This would be premature, since the transcript of the court case is not yet available. When it is, I shall consider the implications of this case.

§ Mr. Peter Bottomley
To ask the Secretary of State for Education what is the legal status of a student union.

§ Mr. Forman
In England and Wales, as a general rule student unions in further and higher education institutions are established by or under their institution's charter or articles of government.

§ Mr. Peter Bottomley
To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will audit the use of funds of student unions to discover the extent of illegal spending.

§ Mr. Forman
The auditing of student unions' use of funds is a matter for the educational institution concerned. The short survey of student unions, carried out by the Department and published in September 1989, found that over 75 per cent. of unions' accounts were subject to approval by the institution. Among the issues addressed in the current consultations initiated by the Department is whether any improvement in financial accountability is required.

§ Mr. Peter Bottomley
To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will make it his policy to apply charities law on political campaigning to student unions.

§ Mr. Forman
A significant proportion of local student unions are already charities and subject to charities law. Responsibility for taking legal action to ensure that a charity's activities conform to its charitable objects rests with the Attorney-General, who issued guidance on this to student unions in 1983.

§ Mr. Peter Bottomley
To ask the Secretary of State for Education on what basis student unions receive public and members' funding.

§ Mr. Forman
Student unions are financed from block grant from their institutions. The Department's survey of 121W student unions, published in 1989, found that half were dependent on this grant for 90 per cent. or more of their non-trading expenditure. The amount and the method of determining grant vary between institutions. In higher education, the grant is paid out of general funds which come from a variety of public and private sources. In further education, the usual pattern is for the block grant to be funded at least in part from an element within the student registration fee. In most institutions student union income from individual members is not substantial, relating to small amounts from associate or live members.

§ Mr. Peter Bottomley
To ask the Secretary of State for Education who is liable for repaying illegal spending by student unions.

§ Mr. Forman
Where a student union's funds are used for purposes which are not within its objects, officers of the student union are potentially at personal risk to a claim that they have been party to a breach of trust, and liable to make good any loss.

§ Mr. Peter Bottomley
To ask the Secretary of State for Education what estimate he has made of the number of sabbatical officers funded by student unions in each year since 1964 and the range of payments to sabbatical officers in student unions.

§ Mr. Forman
No estimate has been made centrally of the number of sabbatical officers funded by student unions or the range of payments to such officers.

§ Mr. Peter Bottomley
To ask the Secretary of State for Education what is his policy on permitting student unions to influence public opinion and to affiliate to other organisations so as to promote non-charitable purposes or charitable purposes other than those of the student union.

§ Mr. Forman
The Government have initiated consultations on membership of campus unions and the National Union of Students; freedom of speech; and the use of public funds by campus unions and the National Union of Students. In the light of the consultations, the Government are now considering proposals for action. The extent to which student unions influence public opinion and affiliate to other organisations in order to promote activities that could be regarded as outside their legitimate concerns is being considered within this framework.