In Wednesday’s Prime Minister’s Questions, Theresa May argued that self-censorship in universities curtailed freedom of speech and could negatively impact Britain’s overall economic and social success.

May declared, “We want our universities not just to be places of learning but to be places where there can be open debate which is challenged and people can get involved in that. I think everybody is finding this concept of safe spaces quite extraordinary, frankly. We want to see that innovation of thought [is] taking place in our universities. That’s how we develop as a country, as a society and as an economy.”

The Prime Minister spoke in answer to a question from Victoria Atkins, the Conservative MP for Louth and Horncastle, who declared that freedom of speech was a “fundamental British value” undermined by university ‘safe spaces’, “where a sense of righteous entitlement by a minority of students that mean that their wish not to be offended shuts down debate.”

‘Safe spaces’, as defined by the Safe Space Network, are places where “anyone can relax and be able to fully express, without fear of being made to feel uncomfortable, unwelcome, or unsafe on account of biological sex, race/ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, cultural background, religious affiliation, age, or physical or mental ability.”

May’s comments come amid fierce and ongoing debate among academics, politicians and students about limits on the right to free speech on campus.

In December last year academics such as Frank Furedi, professor of sociology at the University of Canterbury, and Joanna Williams, education editor at Spiked, criticised criticised the “small but vocal minority of student activists” arguing for universities to become “safe spaces” in the Telegraph. They warned of attempts in universities to “immunise academic life from the intellectual challenge of debating conflicting views.” 

Oxford University’s Vice Chancellor Professor Louise Richardson has also given indicators that she may not be in favour of ‘safe spaces’, highlighting in her inaugural speech the duty of universities to ensure students “appreciate the value of engaging with ideas they find objectionable”.

However, in May 2016, the university decided to issue “trigger warnings”, or alerts of upcoming content that might upset some in the audience, to undergraduate law students attending lectures on criminal law. Lecturers make these before covering material which is deemed “distressing”, particularly detailed descriptions of sexual offences which may have traumatic effects on rape victims.

Notably, Marine Le Pen’s speech at the Oxford Union in February last year attracted significant protest, with some 300 students demonstrating outside the Union building, disputing Le Pen’s right to speak publicly in Oxford under free speech laws.

As of 2015, the University’s official code of practice states that “the University believes that a culture of free, open and robust discussion can be achieved only if all concerned avoid needlessly offensive or provocative action and language.”

In a statement released this afternoon, the governing body of Trinity College announced its decision to elect Hilary Boulding as the next President of the Oxford college. The Principal of the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama will succeed Sir Ivor Roberts as the institution’s President on 1 August 2017.

An alumna of St Hilda’s College, Ms Boulding studied Music at Oxford before embarking on a successful career in the arts and broadcasting. She produced and directed Music and Arts programmes for BBC radio and television, before becoming Director of Music at Arts Council England in 1999. Ms Boulding took up her current role as Principal of the Welsh College of Music and Drama in 2007.

“I am honoured to have been offered this important position at one of the leading colleges of Oxford University,” she said in her official statement, “Trinity is well placed to build on its significant achievements during the presidency of Sir Ivor Roberts and I look forward to playing a full part in its future development.”

Outgoing President and former diplomat Sir Ivor Roberts welcomes the decision: “I welcome the election of Hilary Boulding as my successor and as the twenty-eighth president of Trinity. I wish her every success and look forward to working with her to ensure a smooth transition.”

Trinity students also seem to be optimistic about the new appointment. “I’m looking forward to see which direction she’ll take Trinity College in the future, and especially how she might develop the arts scene in college.” remarked WeiKheng Teh, a 3^rd year Engineering student.

Surgeons at John Radcliffe hospital have performed eye-surgery using a small robot operated by joystick. The procedure, the first of its kind, took place on 9th September,  when a device was used to remove a membrane one hundredth of a millimetre thick from the patient’s right eye, restoring his sight.

The robot was operated by Robert MacLaren, Professor of Ophthalmology at the University of Oxford as well as a Consultant Ophthalmologist at the Oxford Eye Hospital, who described the procedure as ‘a vision of eye surgery in the future.’ He was assisted by Dr Thomas Edwards, a Nuffield Medical Fellow.

The device, known as the Robotic Retinal Dissection Device (apparently referred to as ‘R2D2’) was being trialled in a series of experimental procedures funded by the University, the NIHR (National Institute for Health Research) Oxford Biomedical Research Centre and the Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, which runs John Radcliffe.

The patient in this procedure was the Reverend Doctor William Beaver, a 70 year-old Oxford resident and Associate Priest at St Mary the Virgin, Iffley. Until last year, he had been the chaplain to the Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment. In July, doctors had discovered the membrane growing at the back of his right eye, damaging his vision by creating a hole in his retina. Dr Beaver described the procedure as ‘effortless’ and a ‘godsend’.

R2D2 was developed by Preceyes, a Dutch company linked to the Eindhoven University of Technology which specialises in producing precision surgical equipment. Their technology has improved the effectiveness of micro-surgery by limiting the effect of surgeons’ hand-tremors, which can include movements as small as a pulse. Preceyes have claimed that the movement of their devices is precise to within the thickness of a human hair.

Surgeons hope that using robots small enough to fit into the human eye will allow for a greater number of intricate procedures to be carried out successfully. Professor MacLaren said that robots may soon treat blindness using gene therapy and stem cells placed under the retina.

Moobs, YOLO and Vom are among hundreds of words newly added to the Oxford English Dictionary (OED).

Moobs is used to describe prominent breasts on a man, whilst YOLO is an acronym for you only live once and vom a colloquialism for the word vomit.

Other words added or updated include cheeseball, clickbait, gender-fluid, yogalates, fuhgeddaboutit and Westminster bubble.

FOMO, meaning fear of missing out and deffo, meaning definitely, also made the cut.

There are several new entries related to Roald Dahl to coincide with the celebration of his 100th birthday and the publication of the Oxford Roald Dahl Dictionary.

These include Oompa Loompa, scrumdiddlyumptious, witching hour, human bean and golden ticket.

The chief editor of the OED, Michael Proffitt, told BBC News, “The inclusions reflect both his influence as an author and his vivid and distinctive style. For many children, Roald Dahl’s work is not only one of their first experiences of reading, but also their earliest exposure to the creative power of language.”

New words and phrases are typically added to the dictionary when editors have found enough evidence to demonstrate their continued historical use.

The dictionary is a guide to the history, meaning and pronunciation of almost 830,000 words, senses and compounds from across the English-speaking world.

It is different to the online Oxford dictionary, which has a lower threshold for accepting new entries and lists current definitions of English words.