Bradley’s first term

Andrew Bradley has spoken on his achievements throughout this term in an interview with the _Boar_.

On his assessment of the term, Bradley said, “I think we’ve done a good job as a team. We’ve always managed to stand up for students on issues like car parking, transport and tuition fees. I’ve probably challenged the university more times in one term than Tommo [the previous union president] did in one year.”

He pointed to tangible achievements, such as Sumaiya Khaku, the education officer, getting a prayer hall on the Gibbet Hill campus. “People forget the day to day work that goes on. For example, when the lift in the union was out of order, we were able to give free entry to wheelchair users for events”.

On a bigger scale, he said, “We’ve been representing students on a national level. For example, I went to London and went to a conference where Peter Mandelson answered my question on fees and funding”

Bradley talked of the challenges he had come up against this term. “The fact that the job is only for twelve months is a bit of a challenge. It takes about a term to get going. For him, “undoubtedly” one of the biggest challenges was the cuts being made by the university.

“The current economic climate means there is no money for anything so we have to look for improvements which don’t cost money”.

Bradley spoke out against accommodation price hikes. He said, “A summary of the 2009-10 student experience is paying more, for less. We are lobbying accommodation to be built that is affordable to students and which have common rooms”.

He directed students to the union website’s Great Accommodation Rip Off campaign. This is designed to draw the university’s attention to students wanting more reasonably priced accommodation. “We want halls, not Hiltons”, said Bradley.

When asked about the new union building, Bradley was adamant that the building would be finished for January. He said, “It’s looking really good. I can’t tell you how excited I am for it. Students are going to love it the minute it is opened. The Atrium [a feature of the new building] is such a striking feature cutting into the heart of campus.”

Tuition fees have been a controversial subject in the past term, the catalyst being the University’s Chancellor, Richard Lambert, co-authoring a controversial report on funding. In response, Bradley said, “I think the other vice chancellors who made Richard Lambert the face of the CBI report are cowardly. However, we are still on the case for tuition fees.” He continued, “The NUS is being really strong on MPs.

“Any MP who does not come out against rises in tuition fees, we will target them at the next general election. There are some MPs out there who are hanging on by a thread to their seats. For example, our very own James Plaskitt is holding on with a majority of just 266. I am meeting up with him to discuss this issue and hopefully we will get some results.”

When asked about what he was doing do improve local public transport, Bradley said that he was still working on the issue. “We are meeting with Stagecoach and Travel Coventry, who have been fairly receptive. They have put on extra buses because we have told them that the service is not good enough. So the situation has been improved but not resolved.

“To be honest, I think there should be a train station on campus. However, I’m not sure if I’d trust British Rail enough to do it well.”

Unfortunately, it appears that microwaves in the union are an idea gone astray. When questioned about them, Bradley was elusive. “We haven’t forgotten about it, and we are still sticking with the issue for next term!.”

Warwick student opinion on Andrew Bradley’s first one hundred days has been varied. One third year Engineering student told the Boar, “I have literally no idea who Bradley is. I’ve never seen him around campus and never saw him before he was elected, either. Surely the point of being Union president is to make yourself known and available to students at all times? There is no way Andrew has done that. At least Tommo was a constant presence last year – you could hardly miss him!” This point is, evidently, against Bradley’s manifesto promise that he “wants to re-engage students and sabbs and encourage everyone to get involved and be part of it.”

However, a first year English and French student commented, “Andrew Bradley seems really nice, actually – really friendly. I would definitely not be afraid to approach him if I had an issue with the Union. That’s a great comfort for a fresher, still settling in at Warwick.”

On the topic of Bradley’s proposals for the Union upon entering the Presidential position, opinion amongst the student body is – perhaps unsurprisingly – also mixed. One second year Politics undergraduate asked, “Where are the microwaves on campus that were promised? I live in the absolute south of Leamington Spa and it is no joke having to take a bus for up to an hour every day just so I can cook my dinner. I really feel that it’s an unnecessary inconvenience – if Andrew Bradley had given us the microwaves, we’d have more time to focus on our studies and not waste vast amounts of time having issues with food.”

Bradley, however, has spoken extensively over the health and safety issues concerning these cooking facilities but promises the students that something will be done to help the situation soon.

Criticism has also been made about the guarantee of more tills open at Costcutters – the campus supermarket – at busy times; a number of students complained to the Boar that they were forced to queue for ‘obscene’ amounts of time. According to one postgraduate History student, “The situation is ridiculous. One day, I had to queue for twenty minutes; these kinds of issues, I am sure, are not what Andrew Bradley envisioned for his presidency but they occurring regardless and I want to know what he’s doing about it. He’s a really kind person, but I’m not entirely sure he can claim to have fulfilled his manifesto promises – but, after, all as they say, ‘the night is young’ and he’s still got two terms to complete his pledges to the student body. I wish him luck and am sure he’s more than capable of doing well in his position.”