Matt Cowley

Hi there, I’d be happy to support any students who wanted to change the food selection at Stag’s. I’d like to incorporate a review of the food provision offered in Union outlets as part of my “Your Voice, Your Choice” consultations, so rest assured that I’d give you the opportunity to have your say on the quality of pizza at Stag’s and work to make sure that your suggestions get acted on!

This question was also asked to Shanelle Webb, Emily Dawes, Lii Mohamed, Tom PethickAnswered by Matt on 19/02/18 11:29

Hi there, in essence the scrutiny committee aims to add another layer of more intimate one-to-one scrutiny that Senate doesn't provide, in my opinion. Senate would retain its scrutiny role and still be a vital part of scrutinising Sabbs, but it could also return to being a little more policy-focussed with the Scrutiny Committee supplementing its scrutiny role to provide that extra level of accountability.

This question was also only asked to MattAnswered by Matt on 19/02/18 21:10

Good question! I think it would obviously depend on the circumstances - time of year, whether a by-election is viable or not, etc. - but I'd want to talk to other Unions that have recalled Sabbs before and take best practices from them.

This question was also only asked to MattAnswered by Matt on 19/02/18 21:30

Hi there, so I'd have to talk to the Students' Union about the specifics of whether it was taken out as a lump-sum or whether it was deducted from the £21,000 pa salary across the year, but I'd be happy with either approach. As for the second half of your question, simply: no, it's not buying votes at all. It's saying that the salary of £21,000 per year for a Union President is a lot of money in a context of decreasing Union funding and funding for societies, and that the best way for me to show that I'm serious about wanting to find more money for societies is to put my money where my mouth is and say that my salary is a good first place to source some extra money.

This question was also only asked to MattAnswered by Matt on 19/02/18 21:45

£20,000 might be above average for SU Presidents nationally but it’s £1,000 below the average for Southampton Sabbs and gives away £1,000 more than any of my opponents have promised to. A £2,500 giveaway would be wonderful and I did consider trying to give away more, but unfortunately it just wouldn’t have been financially sustainable for me personally to give away more than the £1,000, and I didn’t want to promise anything I wasn’t sure I could deliver.

This question was also only asked to MattAnswered by Matt on 20/02/18 15:08

Hi there, I think it is important to remember that sexual consent is about protecting everyone, regardless of their gender. Raising awareness about sexual consent is not about demonising men or generalising them into an enemy, it's about ensuring that no-one gets sexually assaulted. As for the second half of your question about men's issues being represented, I think it's important that SUSU is a place where everyone can be heard and the Union I would lead would be one where all issues could be raised and addressed.

This question was also asked to Shanelle Webb, Emily Dawes, Lii Mohamed, Tom PethickAnswered by Matt on 21/02/18 22:34

To answer 1), I want to introduce a whole new range of policies that make Sabbatical Officers (and student leaders) much more accountable to the students who voted for them. This includes new processes like the ability to recall Sabbs and student leaders who aren't doing their jobs; new events like President's Question Time where students can hold me to account; and new structures like the Scrutiny Committee which holds Sabbs to account on a more individual basis. I'm also looking at other means of holding officers to account and this will be one of the things covered by a "Your Voice, Your Choice" consultation, where I'll actively seek students' input on how they want Sabbs to be held to account. As for Union staff, I'm loathe to give you a concrete answer without knowing the HR processes that already exist. As for 2), I am very aware of the "clique" in SUSU. In my time at Southampton, I have seen the divide between those who understand how SUSU works and are embedded into the Union, and those who are not. The problem is that SUSU tries to engage those who aren't engaged using the experiences of those in the "clique" - what I want to do is go and talk to those who aren't engaged with SUSU and find new ways to communicate information to and get feedback from them. It's vital that we change the culture of SUSU from being a Union which expects students to come to it to engage and be heard, into one where it goes to all students to find out what they want.

This question was also asked to Shanelle Webb, Emily Dawes, Lii Mohamed, Tom PethickAnswered by Matt on 25/02/18 11:06

Hi there, this has come up a lot so thanks for giving me the opportunity to answer it here! I’m fully committed to making this process as fair as possible, so I’d want to look into ways to ensure this. Right now, my idea would be for the Union to run the campaigns for each idea, have the ideas anonymised as far as possible, and prevent societies directly campaigning on them. I think that would enable a fair and engaging process where the best project for students was chosen, rather than simply allowing big societies to dominate it.

This question was also only asked to MattAnswered by Matt on 27/02/18 15:50