BREAKING: CUSU passes motion for NUS referendum

Following an utterly shambolic and nearly 5 hour long CUSU council, it has been decided that Cambridge will be having a referendum on NUS affiliation. 

36 votes for, 10 against.

The referendum managed to attain the required two-thirds majority.

The referendum will be held between the 17th and 20th of May.

After much debate the ‘gag’ rule was removed from the motion, meaning that CUSU Sabbatical Officers will be able to take sides in the referendum.

The motion for a referendum was brought forward by Jack May and seconded by Adam Crafton  following the election of Malia Bouattia as President of the NUS. Malia has faced severe criticism for making allegedly anti-semitic remarks including describing Birmingham University as a ‘zionist outpost’ and declaring that the government’s anti-terror Prevent strategy was the ‘result of the Zionist lobby’.

This will come as good news to JSOC who wholeheartedly supported to motion for the referendum, stating that ““In light of the election of Malia Bouattia, whose rhetoric has disturbed many of our members, a referendum will allow Cambridge University students to decide whether they wish to be represented by the NUS.”

The vote on TCS’s budget has been delayed until next week on the grounds that the meeting had passed the four and a half mark.

If the nature of the ‘debate’ at CUSU council is anything to go by, this should be one hell of a referendum. 

Catch up with everything that went down in the extensive liveblog here.