The Beaver (TB): Why are you running?
LP: I want to run purely on a focus on mental health and student well-being. So it’s very close to me and it’s something I think could be done a lot better.
TB: What is the biggest obstacle to a happier student experience.
LP: Biggest obstacle, for me – I talked about this in the first Hustings – I feel it’s to do with a term called disconnection. I think it’s down to three main things. Disconnection from yourself, your values. Disconnection from your degree or job. And disconnection from your friends or peers. Those three are incredibly difficult in how you experience university life.
And I look at all three and I think if you feel like you’re not being yourself or your degree isn’t for you, you can really find yourself in a very difficult position. I think there needs to be a support system. Because obviously the LSE is a very difficult place to be. We should actually support students.
TB: Many students believe the SU has a problem of bureaucratic overreach, do you agree with this assessment?
LP: I feel like it’s slightly convoluted. It surrounds itself with excessive policies and excessive mandates on things.
I think what the SU can do is filter down what it presents. I was saying at Hustings – I’ve never been in a position like that before – everything I was hearing was “we can do a summer ball, we can do this and that.” It’s like you know what? I don’t know how that’s solving anything. You’re just surrounding yourself with more people, but it’s not going to solve anything you’re feeling yourself. And I think the SU often overlooks this and I think it is something crucial to address.
TB: That kind of leads into the next question. How much of the GenSec job should be events planning versus reform?
LP: Where LSE sits now, I think totally about reform and how it looks at the students. That’s something I think is hugely important.
It’s expected that you be sociable. It’s expected that you have to engage your degree. And if one of them can’t upkeep, you’re off it.
What happens next? You’re on a waiting list for 5 to 6 weeks just to get an initial counselling meeting. Let’s reduce it down to 2 to 3 days. It’s much easier.
TB: What is your strategy to win?
LP: Look, I’m here to advocate a policy. One single policy. I’m not here to change the whole SU. This is something I thought would be incredibly helpful. Because at the end of the day, I want to leave LSE as a happier place than when I joined it. So I hope people will resonate with that.
TB: Let me, then, rephrase that question in a more applicable way. What would you consider a success?
LP: A more efficient specialised caring counselling system. Effectively one where I go to student well being and have my issues addressed directly. I don’t have to speak to my academic advisor just to get help. I can just go there.
