Ballot begins for UCU

Voting gets underway this month for the first sole general secretary of the new University and College Union, created last June by the merger of the AUT and NATFHE further and higher education unions.

The 120,000 members will have a choice of three candidates. One is current joint general secretary Sally Hunt, who was previously the general secretary of the AUT. The other two are the UCU national head of equality and employment rights, Roger Kline, who was formerly universities negotiator with NATFHE, and lay member Peter Jones, a lecturer. The ballot closes on 7 March.

* _Broadcast and entertainment union BECTU is also setting in train a general secretary election, following the death of Roger Bolton. Nominations close on 2 February and if a ballot is necessary it will be concluded in April.