The Scottish Government is consulting on a bill to reform higher education governance. UCU Scotland wants to see: Elected chairs of governing bodies Governing bodies to be more representative and to include trade union and student representation An agreed definition of academic freedom to protect all academic and related staff

Democracy - the leadership debates help the electorate to decide who to vote for, It is our general election not the parties and they need to realise that we elect them and they are here to serve us. The support levels of different parties are changing as are voting intentions and we should have the democratic right tot hear all the leaders explain their policies.

Education on Mental health is vital. To end the stigma and to help children understand and cope if they are suffering with this illness.

GIVE YOUNG PEOPLE A REASON TO VOTE AGAIN What is the point of voting if you live in a Tory / Lib Dem./ Labour stronghold. My vote is wasted unless I do tactiful voting. I want my vote to count, otherwise there is no point in voting at all. I've waited years for this change to happen, I've listened to broken promises of leading parties, I'm tired of waiting. These days , with new available communications through internet I've discovered like minded people all facing the same dilemma, why should we vote any more if we are not counted. Hence the apathy in people turning up to vote.

Following public opposition in May, the government has revised its regulations for the privatisation of children's social services. Now, companies (such as Serco, G4S, KPMG) only need to set up a "not-for-profit" subsidiary. This will not show any profit as the parent company will charge the subsidiary at a cost which it determines. The government says this is about innovation, but local authorities do not require outsourcing and private companies to be given contracts to generate innovation. There are experienced experts with all local authorities who do the work for the good of the children and not to make profit. Outsourced services often cut costs and make profits by employing fewer staff or less-qualified workers. Some councils might see this as a solution to the government's drastic funding cuts and in fact the government can direct local authorities to cease providing the services. This privatisation has to be stopped for the sake of all the children and families who need support and protection.

The Chagos archipelago is situated in the Indian Ocean, mid-way between India and Africa. Some 2,000 people lived on the archipelago, the majority on the largest island of Diego Garcia. Their ancestry on the islands went back to the 18th century. During the 1960s and 1970s British governments, both Labour and Tory, tricked and expelled the entire population of the Chagos, a British colonial dependency, so that Diego Garcia, the main island of their homeland, could be given to the United States as the site for a military base. This act of mass kidnapping by the British government was carried out in high secrecy, along with the conspiracy that preceded it. The last islander was deported in 1973. The 'deportation or forcible transfer of a population...a crime against humanity', is according to the words of Article 7 of the Statute of the International Criminal Court. These displaced people still in Mauritius and the Seychelles continue to suffer in poverty to this day and continue to exist in sadness, longing to return to their homeland. Many have died in misery, living in the hope of going home. In 2002, travelling with their new British passports, many of the Chagossians began to arrive in Britain, to bring their campaign to London and to escape the poverty of Mauritius. All of them wanted to return to the Chagos Islands rather than be in England. It is estimated that more than 2,000 Chagossians now live on the margins of UK society mainly in the town of Crawley, with a smaller community in Manchester. In both places they struggle to reconstruct their lives. Meanwhile dozens of jobs on Diego Garcia are being advertised in the Philippines, including posts for electricians, cashiers, mechanics, stock clerks, janitors, welders, firefighters, engineers and massage therapists. There have been no reports of these jobs being advertised in Mauritius, the Seychelles or the UK, where most of the Chagossian community live. We can’t help but wonder why.they have not been given priority for these positions in their own land. Since being illegally evicted, very few Chagossians have been able to get jobs at the foreign base in their homeland despite many trying. The hope is that the islanders be allowed to return to their islands as soon as possible before more of them die in a British imposed exile, never to see their homeland again.

Not only will TTIP effect our NHS and democracy nationally, TTIP will have significant implications for local public services. It will open up access to central and local government services to be bought up by big corporations. Measures by Lewisham Council which are designed to promote local employment, foster environmental protection or protect public health could be challenged in the extra-judicial trade tribunals, whose decisions are unchallengeable and made by trade lawyers, not judges. Lewisham is opposed to the TTIP, defending basic public services for solidarity and social redistribution.

Political involvement of the People is key in any democracy and it is a disgrace that after such an amazing upsurge in political involvement, seeing 80% of Scots put to use their right to vote, the response is to punish people for their input. If we want politics to be FAIR and represent ALL of our society then we need EVERYONE'S input and their is no way that will happen if people are punished for making their voice heard. I want my vote NO STRINGS ATTACHED!

It's great to see that Ofcom have involved The English Greens however, their failure to involve the SNP who are currently the UK’s third largest political party with over 93,000 members and even more importantly are the ONLY political party in the UK to hold a Majority Government, This alone you would think entitles the SNP to be heard by all UK voters. Unfortunately NOT.... In Ofcom's failure to contact the SNP in their consultation ahead of the General Election also represents a failure of democracy in the UK, Ofcom needs to recognise that the SNP hold a majority government and are the UK’s third largest political party and involving them in Broadcast of Political Debates is key to ensuring fair media coverage in the run up to the 2015 May 7th General Election.. Ofcom must show the voters of the UK that by including the SNP they are showing that they are unbiased and plan democratic coverage of the run up to Broadcast of Political Debates in the 2015 General Election that will determine the future of the UK, By excluding the SNP, Ofcom are denying fair representation which is a democratic right and should be considered as bias media coverage by denying every UK viewer the right to decide what is right or what is wrong for their country during these Broadcast of Political Debates. LEND SNP YOUR SIGNATURE... LET'S TOGETHER HELP GET THEIR VOICES HEARD BY ALL UK VOTERS.....THEN DECIDE WHAT'S BEST FOR THE UK.. AUSTERITY, POVERTY, FOODBANKS, ZERO HR CONTRACTS MUST END.... SAVE THE NHS.. A LIVING WAGE IS A RIGHT FOR ALL UK CITIZENS... PLEASE SUPPORT OUR CAUSE AND SIGN...THANK YOU IN ADVANCE FOR LENDING YOUR SUPPORT.

Ofcom’s decision means the Greens would not be allowed election broadcasts on eight major TV and radio stations despite having overtaken Nick Clegg’s Lib Dems in the polls.

This is important because we are democratic, aren't we? 79% of the general public believe the leader of the Green Party should be invited to debate, found in a poll by ICM Unlimited. Currently, 81% disagree with Ofcom's statement that UKIP is a major political party, but the Greens aren't. Younger populations must not be alienated from the processes that will decide their future. http://www.icmunlimited.com/media-centre/polls/4-in-5-greens-should-be-part-of-leader-debates http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/poll/2015/jan/08/ofcom-ukip-greens-major-party http://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/__data/assets/electoral_commission_pdf_file/0019/16093/youngpplvoting_6597-6188__E__N__S__W__.pdf

For too long the political views of young people in the United Kingdom have been swept aside, not only by the so called 'major parties' but also by the mainstream British Media. Recent polls show that the Green Party of England and Wales, in the run up to the 2015 General Election, are polling at the same level as the Liberal Democrats who are themselves considered one of the major parties. To add insult to injury OFCOM have decided to upgrade the status of UKIP to major party, giving them more television time, more radio time and more opportunity. Quite frankly the decision taken by OFCOM to not grant 'Major Party' status to the Green Party is symbolic of two things. The first, that they are stuck in the past, unwilling to listen to the views of young people, not dissimilar to the current government. Secondly, that OFCOM as an organisation are more worried about viewing rates, and consider the controversial politics of UKIP to be better for viewing statistics. Both of these facts are unavoidable and unacceptable and we would call upon the UK OFCOM to reconsider its decision and upgrade The Green Party of England and Wales to Major Party status for the 2015 General Election.