Nurse students may lose voice at congress

Thousands of nursing students could be deprived of their influence at RCN Congress in plans put to the organisation's council this month.

Ben Mott, RCN student member of council, criticised the draft plans contained in the Congress Voting Review at a meeting earlier this month.

The plans contain two options for calculating voting arrangements at congress designed to make congress more representative of the membership at large. Mr Mott said: 'This deprives 34,000 student members of their vote at congress.'

He said that students would be reduced to a watching and listening role – which would prevent them from exercise any influence on congress decisions.

'When you take votes away from the student group at congress you start to demoralise the Association of Nursing Students. I can't believe that such an oversight is allowed to get through to the final version of the report,' he said.

He added that the proposals threaten the future of the ANS because it would stop them opting to join the organisation.

'I worry about the future of the ANS if this stands,' he warned.