László Molnárfi
Figures obtained by Irish Student Left Online reveal that Trinity College Dublin’s Student Union (TCDSU) has spent 122,055 € on their annual “Class Rep Training” from 2015 until 2019, when due to Covid-19 the event was moved online and incurred little to no costs.
The cost breakdown provided by the TCDSU reveal that the Union pays for accommodation, two lunches, one evening meal, two tea/coffee breaks, printed materials, security and a “DJ”.
By far the most expensive item is the hotel, which is booked for a different location every year – Bray, Sligo, Athlone, Mayo and Kildare respectively for the above-mentioned years.
At first Council of 2021-2022 held online in September, class representative for Senior Fresh Political Science, Philosophy, Sociology and Economics (PPES) László Molnárfi brought a discussion item on the issue. He said that for the future, when Covid-19 abates, the Union should review the costs of the training, which he considers „excessive”, especially „keeping in mind that Repeal The 8th cost the Union 20,000€” and that thus „our money could be better used for campaigns”.
According to the minutes, the response to his comments were mixed, with USC Representative Yannick Gloster saying that socializing is important to the role of class representatives and that the weekend in question is one of the reasons why the Union’s representative structure functions well and is more advanced than that of any other Irish University.
TCDSU’s Education Officer, Bev Genockey, said at the meeting that this year, no costs were incurred due to class representative training being moved online, suggesting that reform is possibly supported by the Sabbatical Officers. At the time of publication, Trinity Fox is still waiting for an official comment on the issue by the Sababtical Team.
A student talking to this newspaper suggested the training venue could be limited to Dublin, the length of the evening cut to one day and not held „in a fancy hotel”. Re-forming the training has been a contentious question within student politics at Trinity, and is often touted as a solution to the Union’s recurring deficit problem. As of November 2020, from where the latest data is available, the Union is 49,000 € in deficit.
The data on the cost and location of the trainings could not be readily found in the Union’s annual financial statements, however, its Sabbatical Team provided the data. Last year, the Graduate Students’ Union (GSU) was critizied for not holding training for its representatives. This year, they are planning to book a lecture hall on-campus, bring in activists from accross Ireland which will cost them around 1,000 € for a one-day event, which will be topped by another training later in the year.
In the past, class representative training has been the center of controversy. In 2009, it was held in the four-star Carlton Hotel, where those present had a “big party” with “everyone getting shitfaced”, causing damage worth of 3,000€ or so to the place, with the Union having to foot the bill using what is essentially the students’ money, coming from the third-level contribution fee, which funds student unions and associations.