Liam Burns (NUS president)

Liam Burns
55th President of the National Union of Students
In office
1 July 2011 – 30 June 2013
Preceded byAaron Porter
Succeeded byToni Pearce
Personal details
Born (1984-12-27) 27 December 1984 (age 39)
NationalityBritish
Political partyLabour Party[1]
ResidenceLondon
Alma materHeriot-Watt University
OccupationCEO Scouts Canada
NUS President Liam Burns

Liam Burns is a former president of the National Union of Students in the United Kingdom. He took office on 1 July 2011, succeeding outgoing president Aaron Porter. Burns stood for NUS President as an independent but is a member of the Labour Party.[1]

Career

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Burns studied physics at Heriot-Watt University before being elected as Vice-President [Education & Welfare] (2006–2007) and subsequently President (2007–2008) of the university's Students' Association.[2] While at Heriot Watt he was a member of the rowing club [3]

He went on to serve as NUS Scotland's Deputy President from 2008 to 2009 and as the organisation's President in 2009–2010 and again in 2010–2011, before being elected as NUS President in 2011.[4][5]

Burns, who supported the idea of a graduate tax to finance education in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, was re-elected by delegates at NUS National Conference in April 2012 after running on a manifesto criticising government cuts to education.[6][7]

After leaving the NUS in 2013, Burns has worked with The Scout Association, most recently as Chief Programme Officer.[7][8]

He became the Executive Commissioner and Chief Executive Officer of Scouts Canada in May 2023.[9]

References

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  1. ^ a b Morgan, John (13 April 2011). "Liam Burns elected as next NUS president". Times Higher Education. Retrieved 13 June 2022.
  2. ^ "Speaker bios". HEFCE. Retrieved 30 December 2014.
  3. ^ "Pluto Magazine".
  4. ^ "Liam Burns - NUS President". NUS Connect. Retrieved 30 August 2012.
  5. ^ NUS President election: Interview with Liam Burns | Left Futures
  6. ^ "NUS re-elects Burns and calls for Willetts to resign". 25 April 2012.
  7. ^ a b "Leaders are too timid and torn to fight, says Burns". THE. 20 June 2013. Retrieved 30 December 2014.
  8. ^ Rees, Sarah (6 May 2020). "Liam Burns: 'Scouts is about developing skills for life, offline and online'". Nominet. Retrieved 13 June 2022.
  9. ^ "Focusing on Youth and Supporting Volunteers | Scouts Canada". www.scouts.ca. Retrieved 3 May 2023.
Political offices
Preceded by
Aaron Porter (2010–2011)
President of the
National Union of Students

2011–2013
Succeeded by
Toni Pearce (2013–2015)