The Secretary of the Oxford Union, Amelia Harvey, has resigned her post. She will be replaced by the first member of the Standing Committee, Spencer Cohen.
Her resignation comes a few months after Harvey assumed the position in March for the duration of Trinity term. Harvey cited “personal reasons” as the cause for her decision, in a letter seen by only her and the President, Genevieve Athis.
Speaking to Cherwell, Amelia Harvey stated: “I have resigned due to a combination of personal reasons and external pressures. As the Secretary does not work with their campaign team and instead works with the team elected in the previous term, it can be very isolating and difficult to develop a positive working relationship with the other officers.
“Given my personal circumstances and experience thus far, resigning was the best option for me.”
Cherwell understands her departure has come amidst rumours of tense relationships between committee members and that Harvey had been the subject of bullying, according to sources close to the ex-secretary. In response, Athis told Cherwell: “The reasons which she gave to me are private and for her to disclose.
“We take bullying extremely seriously at the Union and there is an official complaints process if someone wishes to take action against another member.
“Personally, I feel that myself and the Secretary had a good working relationship and I wish her the best of luck in the future.”
Harvey, a graduate student at Kellogg college, had previously served as Access Officer in Hilary term. Harvey was elected as Secretary came as a member of the “Together” Slate, who took all four officerships in the Hilary Term Election, awarding victories to Brendan McGrath, Mahi Joshi, and Shining Zhao.
The print version of this article claimed that Rai Saad Khan had won an election in Hilary Term as a member of the “Together” Slate. In fact, the individual who won this election was Mahi Joshi.
