• Spent Monday writing speeches, leaflets, dealing with ‘disasters’ such as having done the photocopying wrong so we have to start again, gathering and briefing a team of helpers for the next few days, collecting t shirts and stickers, and playing the traditional game of meeting all the traditional NUS factions. Then despite my best resolve stayed up far too late, not that it mattered anyhow because as ever I couldn’t sleep and ended up with just a couple of hours of kip.

• Conference. I don’t want to go into great depth as to the details and minutia of conference as I’m sure you can find reports from a wide range of sources. There are a few things I want to say. Congratulations to all who won their elections and thank you to every one who supported me in my bid for re-election, having scraped through last year by 2 votes after rounds and rounds of transfers I was overwhelmed by my vote this year. I’m proud that we’ve stated our position for free education rather than targeted grants and I’m even more proud that we restated our stance on a woman’s right to choose, many have criticised myself and other women on the NEC for literally standing up for what we believe in, but when you feel as passionately about an issue as we did on that it’s only right that you take a stand. I have to mention the resignation of three of our committee members, whilst I’d like to do nothing more than defend both myself and the organisation I represent I feel it’s crucial that I or any other member of the NEC do nothing that would cause potential damage to the full investigation of these complaints that we will be conducting. I will say that NUS is committed to equality and tolerance within it’s own structures and the wider world and we will be doing everything we can to ensure that all students feel they can take part in their National Union. The last day of conference was generally a nightmare for me with a variety of people screaming at me for a variety of different issues, and if there is one thing we have to change it’s the culture where it is acceptable to scream aggressive and intolerant abuse at any member of conference floor.

• Spent Friday and Saturday asleep, pretty much all of the time

• Prepared a key note speech for Monday

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