Oxford alumnus Margaret Thatcher is at the centre of a new debate between University academics after plans to name a university building in her honour were revealed.

Billionaire Wafic Saïd, who recently donated £15 million towards the construction of a new facility at the Saïd business school, told the Spectator that he hoped to name the building after the former Prime Minister, calling her a “lioness.”

Whilst many Oxford academics have backed “The Thatcher Building” as a fitting tribute to the former Prime Minister, others have suggested that she is an inappropriate figure to honour.

The dispute follows the decision of congress in 1985 to not award Thatcher an honorary Oxford degree due to her cuts to education. She became the first Oxford educated Prime Minister since the Second World War to be refused the honour and no incumbent has been offered one since.

History Professor Robert Gildea emphasised that current Oxford academics should acknowledge the earlier decision of their peers, commenting, “As a young lecturer I voted against giving her an honorary degree because of her attack on higher education and I have not changed my mind since then.”

He added, “Far from being a benefactor, Mrs Thatcher started the attack on the funding of higher education and began the process of marketization and privatisation of universities that has continued over the last 30 years,” concluding, “To name a building after Thatcher would be to legitimate those policies which are destructive of a university system which seeks to uphold its autonomy and the values of disinterested research, teaching and learning.”

However Emeritus Fellow of All Souls Peter Pulzer, who led the opposition to Thatcher’s honorary degree in 1985 disputed this argument, telling Cherwell that he was “indifferent to the proposal.”Pulzer stated, “I thought, and still think, that the refusal of the degree in 1985 was justified as a protest against the policies of the government of which she was head.”

He continued, “But buildings are named after all sorts of people, some of whom are controversial.

“There’s a difference between a comment on policies at the time and a later memorial to someone who has left office. The new passage linking the two parts of the Bodleian is named after Gladstone. I’m an admirer of Gladstone, but many people hated him.”

Dr Alice Prochaska, principal of Somerville College, where Thatcher studied chemistry, told Cherwell that Somerville were “always glad to hear of plans to honour her.” She added, “We already have a Margaret Thatcher conference centre at Somerville, so the Saïd building would be far from the first building in Oxford to honour her.” Thatcher has been an Honorary Fellow at Somerville since before she became Prime Minister.

The student population has been equally as divided over the issue. Lincoln student Nathan Akehurst stated, “It comes at a time when Thatcher’s inheritors are busy packaging up and selling higher education, and the dons are absolutely right to attempt to force a Congregation vote. Honouring her with a building, especially when a Conservative-led government is in power continuing her legacy, is partisan and inappropriate.”

Brasenose student James Norman opposed the plans, remarking, “Margaret Thatcher’s ‘legacy’ is indubitably associated with a whole nexus of negative and offensive actions undertaken during her ministerial career contrary to the socially progressive and inclusive stance which Oxford has been attempting to align itself with in recent years.”

Thomas Adams, chair of the Oxford University Labour Club, said, “She is still a divisive figure and I understand why there has been opposition to these plans.

“If students who would be using the new building are strongly opposed to it, those concerns are of course valid. Student concerns should definitely be taken into account and if opposition is high enough they should seek a new name.”

Fergus Butler-Gaille also felt the plans were misguided, quipping, “It seems to me appropriate that such a vulgar and Mammon orientated institution as the Business school should appropriate the prophetess of monetarism for their ghastly new building.

“However there is the added problem that the majority of the opposition is led by morons who simply have a non-thought out, knee jerk reaction to ‘Thatcher’. As a consequence, I am torn between dislike for Mrs Thatcher and the profound dislike of stupid lefty JCR types opposing this for the sake of it.”

In contrast, History and Politics student James Johnson supported the suggestion, saying, “I believe the building should be named after Mrs Thatcher, the University should notice that Mrs Thatcher did a great deal for the country as well as making mistakes.

“Academics from across the spectrum are wrong to paint this as a ‘right v left’ issue. Instead, the naming of the building should be about recognising and applauding esteemed figures from the University, about celebrating the fact that Oxford University produced such a leading figure as Mrs T.”

He continued, “Mr Said has pumped £15 million into the project to profit the students of the University. Surely he should be allowed to choose the name of the institution?”

Wafic Saïd, 72, helped to broker the Al-Yamamah arms deal between Britain and Saudi Arabia in the 1980s, the UK’s biggest-ever export agreement. His £23 million gift in 1996 to establish the business school at Oxford was controversial and its opening in 2001 was marred by student protests.

St Anne’s will not be flying the Pride Flag this month, despite the proposal to do so obtaining unanimous JCR support.

A well attended student meeting on 29th January mandated the JCR President to take the suggestion to the college’s council. However the St Anne’s authorities argued that they were unable to comply with the JCR’s wishes because of a ‘college policy’.

Many St Anne’s students have expressed frustration that their views have been ignored, especially because other colleges have accepted similar proposals. Wadham flew the flag during their annual Queer Week last year, whilst others have pledged to raise the flag for LGBT History Month this year.

A similar motion was approved by Mansfield’s JCR on Monday and LGBTQ rep Kat Humphries has already ordered a flag, confident that the college porters will put it up over college.

Humphries commented, “The flag is an important symbol for the LGBTQ community, especially during February which is LGBTQ history month. It shows that Oxford colleges are progressive and open-minded, which is why I was quite shocked to hear that St Anne’s college authorities had vetoed the idea.”

One first year St Anne’s student told Cherwell, “It’s appalling that although the JCR voted unanimously for a cause we all feel strongly about our voices are so easily hushed.” English student Viccy Ibbett added, “For a college that bases its reputation on being modern and progressive I think it is outrageous that they should refuse to fly the rainbow flag because of a bureaucratic quibble.”

Andrew Hall similarly told Cherwell, “I don’t find any satisfactory reason why any college wouldn’t fly this flag. Wadham does it and they don’t have problems. The Pride Flag is a reassuring symbol of acceptance for a community than needs it more than most.”

St Anne’s Principal Tim Gardam told Cherwell, “The College has a policy that, from the flagstaff, only the Union Flag or the College flag should be flown. There have in the past been other requests for other flags to be flown, and, in order to ensure consistency this has been a long standing College decision.”

He did however add, “As the College made clear to the JCR representatives, it is fully supportive of the values and ideals of Gay Pride, as its history demonstrates.”

Sam Weinberg, LGBTQ rep at St Anne’s accepted this, stating, “You don’t need to put up a rainbow flag to support LGBTQ rights. St Anne’s is supportive where it really counts and I’m glad for that.”

However OUSU LGBTQ officer Jess Pumphrey commented, “I think all colleges should participate as it is a simple gesture which shows that a college is taking these issues seriously, and is willing to celebrate LGBTQ history.”

Michael Brooks, who organised the raising of the rainbow flag at Wadham last year, added, “The LGBTQ community is still subject to numerous forms of discrimination, injustice and persecution. If many colleges were to raise the rainbow flag, it would show that Oxford does not stand for intolerance and encourages the promotion of LGBTQ rights.”

One Oxford student is planning to catch typhoid fever in exchange forover £3000 as part of a University medical trial.

Ben Conroy, a student at St Peter’scollege, hopes that the pre-screening will find him eligible to take part in a medical trial organised by the Oxford Vaccine Group, an independent research group which is part of the Oxford University Department of Paediatrics.

He told Cherwell, “The long and short of it is that I signed up so I could pay my rent. It’s a quick way to make a large cash sum. I’m aware there is a risk of developing typhoid fever which would probably mean four horrible days in bed but the trial has a lot of safety measures to ensure that you get treated as soon as symptoms develop.”

Participants will be given either the old or new vaccine, or a placebo. Four weeks later they will face the ‘typhoid challenge’ by drinking a solution containing Salmonella Typhi bacteria. Some participants are expected to develop typhoidfever as a result, which may lead to a raised temperature, tiredness, headaches, pains, loss of appetite, stomach pains and sickness.

While typhoid fever is threatening if left untreated, killing 200,000 worldwide a year, it is highly unlikely that it will prove fatal within this trial. Sufferers will immediately betreated with antibiotics, and all participants will be treated as a precaution even if they do not develop any symptoms within two weeks.

The trial’s organisers intend to make provisions so that friends of those taking part will not be in danger of contracting typhoid –including providing soap and disposable towels, and promising,“to offer peace of mind to your household and close contacts, we will offer them voluntary screening.”

Conroy commented, “Many of my friends are supportive, loads of offers of chicken soup etc, and some even want to join the trial themselves. My mum is a little more apprehensive but that’s what she’s there for!”

Participants will receive money for their efforts which may reach £3350 by the end of the third year of monitoring.

Some have expressed reservations about the ethics of drugs trials. One student commented, “Of coursethese tests are benevolent in their intentions. Of course we need to find more effective cures for serious diseases. And of course testing these things on humans is a necessary evil that will ultimately benefit the entire human race. But if young students are willing to pawn themselves to scientific experimentation, potentially causing permanent harm to their health for a bit of extra cash, it throws a harsh light on students’ financial desperation who have to turn to these kinds of schemes for money – a problem that is only going to become more acute with next year’s fee increase.”

Oxford University has been awarded a grant worth approximately £3m to train at least 30 doctoral students in tackling “the most important challenges in bioscience research.”

The funding, from the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council, aims to support a new generation of researchers.

The four year DPhil programme will see students take on some of the most important areas in scientific research. Among other challenges, participants will focus on the development of new sources of bioenergy and cleaner industries, and ensuring everyone has access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food.

India Stephenson, a first year biologist, expressed her “delight” at the new programme, stressing the “importance” of “continually funding research in the most important areas of scientific study”.

She explained that the provision of safe and nutritious food is “one of the most important issues facing mankind today,” and added, “I am sure the research produced as a result will more than justify the investment.

Oxford University students have become the latest to involve themselves in the burgeoning internet meme craze.

University-specific meme pages, which set a particular brand of incisive student humour to amusing stock images, have grown massively over the last few days.

The Facebook group ‘Oxford Uni Memes’ has gained over 2,850 members since its creation early on Wednesday morning.

The term ‘meme’ was coined by Richard Dawkins, Oxford’s former Professor for Public Understanding of Science. In his 1976 book The Selfish Gene, Dawkins defines a meme as an idea or behaviour that spreads through a culture by imitation. Internet memes follow this principle, humorous images are copied and re-captioned, concisely describing or satirising the activity of an individual or group.

The Oxford group’s most well-received submissions have exploited the same general themes popular on many university humour sites, including college rivalries and the perceived failings of university infrastructure. The Oxford site particularly satirises the rivalry between Oxford University and Brookes.

PPE student Nicholas Howley explained the phenomenon, telling Cherwell, “Ideas like this always tend to spread fast when they’re universally popular. I think it’s great to have a place to pool Oxford jokes, even if it does show just how much Brookes actually gets slated!”

However the collection of memes has received criticism from some quarters. One Lincoln student suggested that derogatory remarks made about Durham and Brookes were “downright awkward.” He questioned the notion that memes were just “harmless fun.”

One online commenter stated, “You don’t understand memes and more importantly it seems your sense of humour is awful.”

The Oxford Green Party has come out in opposition to proposed plans by Oxford City Council to spend £330 million redeveloping the Westgate shopping centre area.

Chair of the local Green Party, Sushila Dhall, told Cherwell, “The plans to build lots of chain stores and a multi-story car park are a really bad idea. Oxford does not need it and the site could easily be a car-free zone instead.

“There is a desperate shortage of affordable housing in Oxford. This is a publicly-owned, central site which should be used for low-cost, quality housing, public spaces and amenities, and small business units.”

Dhall further clarified a “misunderstanding” with the Oxford Mail, who reported comments made by her on Wednesday. She said, “It’s not the Westgate centre itself that’s the issue. We do want to see that revamped, and to a high environmental standard of energy efficiency. Rather, it is the area behind the Westgate centre that we’re concerned with.”

The Council’s plans include a John Lewis department store and a small amount of housing, with the building to begin in 2014 at the latest, and potentially opening in 2017.

David Williams, leader of the Green group on the City Council, commented, “The days of grand malls are over. In the last few years more and more people are buying online. People’s shopping habits are changing.”

President of Oxfordshire Chamber of Commerce, Nigel Wild, called the Greens’ idea “ill thought out”, adding, “It is vital it is a shopping site. There is space round the city for houses. This is a prime shopping location. It will draw people to Oxford and creates jobs in Oxford.”

Dhall responded to this by arguing that, “There isn’t space round the city for houses, or they would be building them. Nigel Wild doesn’t seem to realise that thousands of people do live in the city centre, just a stone’s throw away from the area. I don’t think he knows the city very well at all. It is a very suitable site.”

Robin McGhee, a third year undergraduate city council candidate, said, ‘It’s ironic of the Green Party to pretend that they care about affordable housing when they support policies that aim to limit student housing in the city centre.’

He added, ‘I agree that the Westgate centre should be improved since at the moment it is pretty bad.’

Alex Harvey, a third year who is standing for the Labour Party nomination for city councillor, commented, “Redeveloping Westgate will apparently create 2,000 jobs, with the building work itself providing a further 2,000. With unemployment as high as it is, I think the priority should be job creation.”

National forecasts have shown that the average graduate starter salary is set to increase by 4%, rising to £26,000 this year.

This would be the largest rise in graduate starting salaries since 2007, should the forecast made by the Association of Gradute Recruiters be proved right. This has fuelled rumours that the nature of the labour market is changing, with lower interest in pure profit and a greater weight placed on the development sectors.

Although statistics show that around 5-10% of graduates fail to find work in their first year after university, an Oxford University spokesperson told Cherwell, ‘Oxford is in a particularly strong position when it comes to student employment, because recruiters in all professions value the skills that the tutorial system and the rigours of an Oxford education provide.’

They added, ‘This translates into very high employment rates and well above average salaries as well.’

Oxford graduate statistics show that in 2010, job vacancies posted on Oxford’s careers website rose by 71% from the previous year, whilst 75% of employers report that Oxford students are more likely to have better initiative and problem-solving skills than students from other universities.

60% also report that Oxford students are more likely to have all eight of the CBI’s employment skills. This translates into the graduate salary as well. Those students who go on to full time employment have a median salary 20% higher than the UK national average six months after graduating. Of those students, 20% earn more than £30,000 pounds a year, in comparison to 10% of the UK average.

One recent Oxford history graduate, now at law school and employed by a top London law firm, told Cherwell, ‘I am extremely happy with my starting salary and I definitely think being an Oxford graduate gave me a big head start in getting a very competitively paid job.’

However she added, ‘I have lots of friends who are also Oxford graduates and working very hard in demanding jobs whilst being paid half as much as I will be. The level of salary goes with the career path you choose, the Oxford degree is a great help in getting the job you want but won’t raise your salary compared to graduates from other universities.’

According to 2012 statistics released this year, the highest graduate starter salary is still investment banking, at £45,000, whilst those entering the retail industry earn £24,000. Those in the public sector earn the lowest, with a starting salary of £23,000.

This year’s Cowley Road Carnival has been cancelled by organisers so the community can focus on events to celebrate the Diamond Jubilee and Olympics.

John Hole, chair of Trustees for the charity Cowley Road Works which runs the carnival, said, “To make the Carnival the best it can be, we can use the 18 month lead time to attract help and participation from all parts of the community and to secure crucial funding and sponsorship”.

Third year Cowley resident Charlotte McCann said, “The carnival was fantastic last year. As a student, it’s easy to feel separate from the community, so it’s a shame it won’t be happening this year.  I can understand the decision though as I’ve heard of lots of other events planned for the summer.”

The event has run since 2001. It was attended by 20,000 people last year.

St Hugh’s students have this week lodged complaints against a decanal system whose  procedures they have described as “active deaning.”

St Hugh’s students have this week lodged complaints against a decanal system whose  procedures they have described as “active deaning.”

Many have complained that the team of Junior Deans are trying to catch students out rather than help them, as one third year stated, “Their role is to protect the welfare of students, not to target them.”

One second year told Cherwell that he had been falsely accused of physically threatening a junior dean. He received an email stating that he had “engaged in an altercation which concluded with [his] purposefully shoving a member of the decanal team” but claimed that he had merely left a gathering in a student’s room without a fuss.

A biologist at St Hugh’s added, “Many people find the junior deans rude, sour and abrasive; I think that most students resent their presence around here. They treat us like children and they aren’t even welfare trained.”

Anger has also been expressed over high fines. Mathematician Sam Johnston was fined £100 when junior deans had to return to his room to tell him to keep the volume down on a bop night.

English student Tom Adams commented, “The fining system is thoroughly absurd, serving only to damage students’ (often already precarious) financial situations, without demonstrating any evidence of preventing further ‘offences’.” Adams has been fined almost £1,000 over his time as an undergraduate.

He reflected, “Given that I’ve done nothing criminal nor anything to the ongoing detriment of the College or its members, this figure is absolutely shocking.” Adams added, “The problem as I see it is that the ‘Law’ is de facto on the College’s side, and the process by which decanal issues are handled flies in the face of anything that could conceivably be called ‘democratic’. The Dean is, so to speak, judge, jury and executioner, and he need only appeal to his own authority to dole out whatever rulings and punishments he sees fit. The Disciplinary Code which putatively underpins all this is purposefully obscure.”

St Hugh’s Dean, Professor Peter Mitchell, responded, “I do not comment on anything that may or may not appear in the student press regarding the internal procedures of this college.”

Oxford will be the host of the World Literacy Summit at the beginning of April of this year, as part of a new initiative to target the widespread problem of illiteracy.

The main objective of the Summit is to stimulate greater levels of co-operation and partnerships in the global literacy sector. The organisers want to support the 796 million people who cannot read or write. World Literacy Foundation CEO Andrew Kay stated, “If a person does not have the solid base of literacy and numeracy skills that so many of us take for granted, their opportunities in life are far more limited.”

One in five adults lack basic literacy skills and 67 million primary school aged children don’t attend school. The organisers believe that millions more are receiving education of such poor quality that it will do little to enhance their life chances.

300 leaders from government, education and international development will converge on Oxford for the four days of the Summit. According to the organisers, this will include Heads of State, Ministers for Education, and literacy practitioners and experts.

A recent report by the World Literacy Foundation highlighted that the economic and social costs of illiteracy are estimated at 2-2.5% of a country’s Gross Domestic Product. It also stated that the direct and indirect costs of low literacy rates to an economy include unemployment, poverty, and health and welfare costs. 

Kay also claimed that illiterate people are prone to making poor decisions on their health and personal welfare, which can trap people in a vicious cycle of poverty and disadvantage.“

This is the first time that a global think tank of literacy experts has been dedicated to collectively addressing the problem of world literacy and its link to poverty,” he said.

“Leaders and experts from the literacy community from around the world will attend this Summit in Oxford to build a collective plan of action to make inroads into addressing the illiteracy issue.

”The event will be based in many of the university’s buildings, including the Sheldonian Theatre, Bodleian Library, Balliol, Trinity and Wadham College.