Students’ Union VPs Paul Lilly and Barry Duffy could tonight be out of a job as student councillors vote on whether to prematurely oust the pair from elected office.

- NEWS: Hot air rises to fever pitch as Council gets testy

BY BRENDAN HUGHES

Following the absence of VPs Paul Lilly and Barry Duffy from last fortnight’s Student Council meeting, disgruntled councillors signed a petition, scheduling an extraordinary meeting and votes of no-confidence against the two VPs.

In a further signal of discontent amongst the Sabbatical officers, the petition was also signed by current SU officers – President Shane Brogan and VP Laura Hawthorne – as well as incoming VPs Jay Downs, Fiona Kidd and Nathan Anderson.

The forthcoming meeting marks the second and third votes of no confidence to take place this year, as Council Speaker Alex Redpath faced a similar challenge some months ago.

The no-confidence motions require three quarters of the Council members to be upheld.

The motions will take place under a secret ballot, in accordance with the Union’s constitution, increasing the potential of public supporters of Duff-Lilly to disown them. If the motion is passed, the student officers will have the right to appeal to the Standing Committee of the University Senate.

Councillors have frequently expressed concerns about the attitude and work ethic of the two VPs. The officers however remain popular on the ground, providing what many students see as a personable image to the Union, acting as a foil to the reclusive Brogan.

SU Deputy General Manager, Dominic Doherty, highlighted the unique nature of the event, saying, “I don’t recall a meeting for this purpose having ever taken place.” Doherty met speaker Redpath this week to discuss the format of the proceedings. Doherty previously expressed his eagerness to allow the VPs to have a chance to summarise their positions, giving added opportunity to respond to allegations made against them.

File notes from last week’s Executive Management Committee meeting suggest that VP Lilly challenged President Brogan on signing the petition against him. Alex Redpath, who was also present at the meeting, expressed a view that it reflected poorly on EMC members to be signing such petitions against their colleagues.

VPs Barry Duffy and Paul Lilly remain tight-lipped ahead of this evening’s potential exile from office. It is expected however that the duo’s law and GAA pals, both councillors and non-councillors, will be out in force to show support, making the required three quarters majority difficult to achieve.

Following the extraordinary meeting, the Annual Business Meeting of Council will take place.

This evening’s meetings will take place tonight from 6pm in The Space, and are open for all to attend. However, if you can’t tear yourself away from the books, The Gown will be tweeting the latest updates on the proceedings as they happen.