University of Manchester bailiffs 'drag' students striking over soaring rent prices from halls

22 March 2023, 23:35

Footage has emerged appearing to show University of Manchester bailiffs dragging students striking over soaring rent prices from halls.

The university sent in "dozens of private bailiffs" to physically evict students who "occupied" the Simon Building while striking over their rent.

Clips shared on social media showed students being picked up and dragged from the building, in a move which was labelled by campaigners as "disgraceful".

The students leading the movement said: "Shame on @OfficialUoM that they would rather do this than consider basic demands for affordable rent."

However, the university said despite it regretting having to take such extreme measures, the strike "has been going on for a significant amount of time" and "caused ongoing disruption".

Read more: 'Hand on heart, I did not lie to you': Boris comes out swinging in bid to save career before MPs pass judgement

Read more: RMT suspends rail strikes scheduled for March 30 and April 1

Around 350 students are understood to have cancelled their rent payments in January, demanding a 30 per cent reduction for halls.

They also called for a three-year rent freeze and a 30 per cent refund on the rent they had already paid for the start of the academic year.

They argued they were struggling to buy food amid the rocketing cost of living.

Occupiers said: “The University has made it clear that they would rather drag their students out of a building than listen to our concerns.

"The cost of living crisis isn’t going anywhere and neither are we. Occupations are only one of many tactics, and this eviction will not slow down our campaign one bit."

A University of Manchester spokesman said: "This morning officers of the High Court attended the Simon Building to enforce a court order, on a small group of students who had been illegally occupying rooms there since 13 February 2023."

He said it followed "multiple requests to those occupying the building to leave", with court hearing papers having been served on March 15.

"The court granted the university a possession order on Monday, and copies of the order were served to the occupiers."

He added: "We very much regret having to do this, but the situation has been going on for a significant amount of time and has caused ongoing disruption to students and the people who work in the building."

It comes after students protested over "extremely high" rents at the university in November 2020.

Students claimed there was a lack of support during the Covid pandemic.