SU21 - Callum Dann for President

I remember quite candidly the first time I felt a true sense of injustice. I was 14 in high school and was getting a detention for saying the word ‘bugger’ – a swear word, apparently.

Furious, I marched my way to another teacher demanding they support me in this great affront. Alas, I was turfed out and told I had no right to appeal a teacher’s decision. I protested by not turning up and had the detention struck from the record.

My first success and a lesson well learned: never give in.

Here I am, nearly six years later, running to be President of the Student Union to again fight the injustices facing us students. Still with the same steel determination to fight as 14-year-old me, I want to change things for the better.

Hopefully some of you reading this will already know me. Either through my role as a Residential Assistant in BT9 or my rather dramatic first year in BT1. Or, it could be through the Mind Your Mood committee. You might just know me through the grape vine or through my course. Whatever the case, hi, I am Callum Dann and I am running to be your next President.

It is quite hard to write about yourself in an opinion piece. Why do people care about me? More importantly, why should people care about me? Who is going to read this? Am I even interesting enough to write 700 words about? Well, if you have decided to read this - thank you. I have tried to write as if I was reading from a student’s perspective who was not running for office.

I want to spend the majority of this on the most important part: policy. What am I going to do for you if you elect me on March 1 to 4. I have an extensive manifesto on my Twitter and Facebook (@CallumForQUBSU) that I would love for you to check out. As I only have 700 words, I will expand on my top three priorities. I have focussed my policies around realism: what I could actually achieve, things that will help immediately.

As your President, I would put welfare and wellbeing at the front of all we do. I know accessibility to services can be tough, so I would introduce a welfare van that can travel across campus, accommodations, city centre, the Holy Lands and other locations across Belfast. The van would provide pop-up wellbeing services which are free to access and do not require appointments. You are never alone and as a Student Union, I want to make we are here for you when you need us the most.

Also, as your next President, I would establish the Queen’s Certified Landlord Scheme (QCLS). This scheme is unique and would help you find private landlords who are ethical, student friendly and law-abiding. Private landlords would be rated by the SU, and those who pass tough assessment would be put onto the QCLS and advertised to students. Those who do not qualify for QCLS will be lobbied to improve their standards and not take advantage of us students.

My third priority is COVID. Queen’s have been issuing out fines and suspension without chance of appeal, causing severe panic and anxiety to us students. As President, I would demand a seat on the university’s highest executive board so I could hold them to account and challenge the Covid regulations which are callous. While these are my priorities, I have policies covering other areas such as disability access, postgraduate proofreading services, TA pay and abolishing circuit laundry in accommodation.

I want to dedicate my last 100 words to why you should vote me. Unlike other candidates, I have spent the last year in accommodation and studying – understanding the unique hardships us students are facing. I have lived, eaten and slept student life and issues the past year. Being a volunteer RA has been the greatest job of my life and I hope I can use those skills as President. As my high school teachers said to a young rebel Callum, “If anyone can, Callum Dann can.”

Vote Callum Dann, the student’s man.

To see all the candidates running for this position, visit the QUB SU Website.