Of Cleaning and Immigration

Over the last few weeks Felix has been investigating the problems affecting students in halls in regards to cleaning. This has been an ongoing issue that is effecting hundreds of students, something that could also have an effect on their study life as well. We look forward to hearing a response from the Campus Services department in regards to the changes they have made to the contract, in terms of how binding the contract is, why the communication with students has not been optimal, and how they plan to operate the cleaning services over the coming months. If you have been affected by the changes to the cleaning rota and would like to share your opinions (be they positive, negative, or neutral), please do not hesitate to get in touch with Felix via the Editor’s email address (felix@imperial.ac.uk). This week also saw the third Union Council meeting of the year (Tuesday), in which the Council members heard back from the working party that had been creating the Union’s official stance against the bill. The working party was run by Marissa Lewis (Deputy President Welfare), who also organised this week’s Sexual Health and Guidance (SHAG) Week events. After the discussions in the previous Council meeting, many members were keen to read the working party’s report and go to a vote. When the votes were cast it transpired that all but three members of Council approved of the paper, while the remaining three abstained. Union President David Goldsmith was tasked with leading the Union’s response to the billl, with the aim of removing the possibility of international students being charged for using the NHS, and also stopping the section of the bill that would make landlords pay a fine for not checking the immigration status of their tenants (something many have been afraid would cause international students problems when it came to looking for accommodation).