Friday, April 25, 2025
Blog Page 1794

New medical research labs face uncertain future

Tristana Smith
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New medical research labs face uncertain future

Permission granted last week to develop two new medical research labs in Headington costing the university £57m is already up for review, due to the dissatisfaction of residents.

The aim of the labs is to turn the Nuffield Department of Orthopaedics, Rheumatology and Musculoskeletal Science into ‘the largest research centre in its field in the UK and probably Europe, able to translate basic science into new therapies in multiple diseases’ according to Professor Sir Marc Feldmann, head of the Kennedy Institute Of Rheumatology.

Locals are opposed to the current plans, and the planning permission has been called in for review on 30 August.

Councillor Ruth Wilkinson commented that ‘the research building is very high’, sharing concerns that it is not in keeping with local architecture.

With no new car parking planned, and 150 new staff, the fear is that staff may park in nearby residential streets and local roads may become “rat runs”.

A University traffic assessment claimed that none of the new staff will travel by car. Currently 45% of staff at the site travel by car, and the Highways Agency predicts this will remain constant.

A researcher who currently works at the site highlighted the fact that the new buildings ‘will bring together researchers, which is very important for efficient to scientific research – not to mention getting new treatments to patients for more quickly’. She also said that ‘the new design fits in well with the more modern buildings’.

One local councillor, David Rundle, agreed with resident’s concerns but maintained he is ‘in favour of the principle of building on this site’.

If the plans go ahead, the two three storey buildings will be built on the Old Road campus site, near Churchill Hospital in Headington. 

The difference between riot and wrong

Alistair Smout
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The difference between riot and wrong

Picture this. It’s 30 years in the future, and your child/grandchild (for the sake of argument lets call her Geraldine) is sitting an A-level in Historical Studies. The module is ‘The Shit That Went Down In 2011’. She never got to grips with the Murdoch saga, passes on the Greece question, doesn’t like the question on the US debt deal and has literally no idea who Usama bin Laden is. But you can see the relief in little Geraldine’s eyes when she sees one question in particular. “What caused the England Riots of August 2011?”

She could argue that it was the shooting of Mark Duggan that caused rioting in areas as diverse as Walthamstow, Clapham, Liverpool, Birmingham and Bristol, but she’d be marked down for showing only a superficial knowledge of the issues. She could argue that there are socio-economic reasons for the riots, and that the cuts and a feeling of disenchantment have fuelled discontent.

But the riots lack a political message, so this can’t be it. Only one phrase will guarantee our Geraldine the A*+ she so needs to get into her PHEF (private higher education facility) of choice. For the examiners see “out and out criminality” as holding the key to explaining the devastating and shocking violence of the last few nights. Throw in a paragraph on the role of Twitter in organising the rioters, as if the Met could have seen #maraudingimbeciles trending and seen where was to be targeted next, and she’d be well on the way to full marks.

Or maybe, maybe, that’s not how it works. “Out and out criminality” is a reassuring phrase, as it writes off huge swathes of society as lawbreakers who deserve what is coming to them, but it fails to do two things. Firstly, it doesn’t offer an adequate explanation as to why people are rioting now when they weren’t a week, a month or a year ago, and second and more importantly, what is to be done to stop future rioting, and what we should do with the rioters. Because clearly, out and out criminality is a trait of out and out criminals, and we all know there’s one place for out and out criminals — jail. But jail doesn’t really seem to solve many actual problems — eventually, these kids will be released, even more disaffected and unemployable than before.

However, the unmitigated and total “bleeding-heart liberal” approach is a tough sell. Socio-economic conditions also fail to explain many things, such as the riots’ timing, and the anger in Tottenham over Duggan’s shooting has been exploited for opportunism in unrelated areas. Amnesty for rioters is not an appealing prospect when the thing that is fuelling these riots is the sense that if you break into a shop and nick a soundsystem you won’t be held to account.

It is not being fuelled by ideological conviction, and, for example, if we tried to map out areas of rioting, we’d see a correlation with retailers of expensive electrical goods and jewellers rather than with tax-dodging companies or areas of particular social deprivation. And this becomes more true the more copycat rioting springs up. Chief Constable Chris Sims put it bluntly when talking of the looting in Birmingham city centre on Monday night. ‘This was not an angry crowd, this was a greedy crowd.”

And more’s the shame. If only it were an angry crowd! What I’d give for an angry crowd at this point in time. People have so much to be angry about! A stagnant economy, a media unbounded by law, destructive reforms in both health and education, and to top it all off an arrogant government that shrugs off most criticism with a jibe and a laugh. People like David Mitchell defended criminal damage at Millbank on the grounds that when people are angry, they can target their anger and do so in such a way that people don’t get hurt: taking out the Tory HQ is a somewhat more powerful way to make your point than mutely marching to Westminster. The latter option involves remaining nice and peaceful so you can round off the 6 o’clock news bulletin without comment, be thoroughly ignored by parliament and as the saying goes, “tiptoe through life, so carefully, to arrive, safely, at death”.

The claim of politicians that the rioting was the work of “professional anarchists” rung false in the Millbank case as the political class once again seemed hopelessly out of touch with the real and legitimate anger of young people. Oh, what it it was to have something to fight for! “Bliss was it in that dawn to be alive, But to be young was very heaven!” Now to be young is to be smashing in a Footlocker.

Those words written about the French Revolution are poignant, as they reflect an idealism completely absent from this week’s anti-revolution. Even the riots of ’81 are being looked at through the rose-tinted glasses: that that was a movement, and this is no such thing. But isn’t that part of the problem? The fact that people don’t see themselves as having a role to play in society, even if it is ultimately trying to bring it down?

There is a genuine issue of deprivation at the centre here, however mindless and unjustifiable the violence. Riots are scary because they threaten order, order is so valuable because it helps us protect what we have. If you don’t have anything to protect — money, property, a “stake in society” (whatever that is), then the question turns from being less a case of needing a reason to riot and more a case of why the hell not riot? You could even bag a free Nintendo Wii out of events, as well as a misplaced sense of empowerment. EMAs provide an example of something which, though small, deprived kids could hold onto as a reason to stay in school, and gave them something that needed protecting. Ken Livingstone tried to suggest that there was a social context to what was happening, and got vigorously and unartfully interrogated — but wasn’t this all just a case of “out and out criminality”? Yes, he reasonably answered, it was. But a social context for criminality surely isn’t so incongruous an idea so as to be dismissed totally by our media, albeit one which has never been adept at incorporating nuance into reductive narrative.

That people are naturally conservative (in the non-loaded sense of the word) is no surprise. But one thing scarier than a riot is a mindless riot, as the targets are more arbitrary. At Millbank, if you weren’t a Tory then the chances of having your property ransacked was greatly reduced. Indeed, other companies used the same building, and there was a sense of injustice when they were adversely affected. Here, it’s all injustice. You live above that carpet store? Tough shit. You own that furniture store in Croydon, that Richer Sounds in Bromley, or that barbershop in Tottenham? Oh well. All martyred in the cause of… nothing.

In the one interview I have heard with a rioter (the media doesn’t give too much time over to that side of the story), he was asked why he was looting shops. He said he didn’t have much and that stuck-up people don’t understand. He was then asked about how he felt about the livelihoods that have been destroyed by these riots. His reaction was a shrug, and a  mumble along the lines of “that’s the way it goes”. No it’s not. You can protest the shooting of a local man on dubious grounds, absolutely. You can riot if you feel let down by your police, that is understandable. You might even think you can steal things because the people you steal from are richer than you, if you’re some sort of neo-Robin Hood who doesn’t believe in progressive taxation (and presumably doesn’t believe in sharing). But you simply cannot burn down people’s businesses and homes because “that’s the way it goes”.

In doing so, you riot because you have nothing and so you reduce people’s businesses to nothing. You riot because you’re angry at stop-and-search, and thereby bring about a situation where every young person in those communities will receive hassle from the police for the indefinite future. You riot against the treatment of the young people by authority, and thereby cause authority to crack down on young people further. You may riot with a point — it is lost in the wind of mindless destruction.

Like all good old-fashioned riots, anyone who has followed it, anyone who has listened, has been angered. Anyone who has heard a member of the Reeves family speak, or has seen certain Guardian photoblogs, or knows anyone who lives in any of the boroughs affected, has been angered. Angry like this lady. Angry at the rioters themselves. And if you had told me at the start of the summer I would be angry over a riot, I didn’t think it would be this way around.

Backlash against expanding student housing developments

Joseph D'Urso
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Backlash against expanding student housing developments

A local planning review committee has decisively rejected a 74 room housing development on Osney Lane, intended for students of Bellerbys College, a local education institution. This has possible ramifications for University housing.

Amanda Whiting, resident of nearby Mill Lane, said, “It’s a normal Victorian street, and we would have had a massive monolithic structure which would not have been in keeping with the rest of the street. I don’t have any problems with students at all, it was just too big.”

This is the latest in a line of disputes concerning the expansion of student housing developments outside the city centre.

An agreement between Oxford City Council and both Oxford Brookes and the University of Oxford states that each university may only expand its research facilities if it manages to keep the number of its students in private accommodation below 3,000.

This is because of a widespread desire to maintain ‘balanced communities’ and to ensure there is sufficient housing stock for local families. Oxford has met this target, but Brookes is still working towards doing so.

Brookes Communications Officer Edward Reed told Cherwell, ‘It clearly makes sense for the council to draw up and implement guidelines for development across the city to ensure a balanced community, whilst enabling the number of students living in the private rented sector to be reduced. Oxford Brookes University is supportive of measures to achieve this, for the benefit of both our students and the wider community.’

Halls of residence are seen as one solution to the problem of students taking up much of the city’s limited housing stock. Oxford City Council is leaning on the universities to cooperate with this.

Councillor Joe McManners, Executive Member for Housing Needs, said that the proliferation of halls is a good idea because doing so “frees up private housing and takes students away from residential streets, something residents wanted.”

There are no plans to push the number of students living out of college in private accommodation any lower.

Wealth perception and giving

Ben Maconick
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Wealth perception and giving

People often bemoan the idea that private charity should start playing a bigger role in the UK, claiming that people already give to and do enough for charity. However, the truth is really that charitable giving in the UK is not nearly at the level that it should be, and as a result many good causes are underfunded, and many institutions or services are too reliant on the government for their survival.

Whilst the UK is slightly more charitable than other European countries such as Germany or the Netherlands, it still lags far behind the charitable behemoth that is the USA. In 2006 2.2% of the USA’s GDP was given to charity, double that of the UK. Whilst there are strong incentives towards charitable giving in the American tax system (with charitable giving being tax deductable), this does not entirely explain why Americans give more. Particularly, one might note that whilst the UK tax system is not as generous towards charity, charitable giving is still tax deductible for higher rate tax payers and charitable giving can be topped up by government funded gift aid. It seems rather than being entirely to do with the tax structure, it is much more to do with culture.

I’m not talking about the culture of the super rich, as the UK has some notable historical charity giants such as Joseph Rowntree that rival Rockefeller and Gates in their generosity. Rather it is the culture of the quietly wealthy. This is primarily because most people in the UK have an entirely inaccurate perception of how wealthy they are, often tinged by mistaken notions of class, or who exactly are ‘middle earners’.

A poll conducted in April this year by YouGov showed just how skewed perceptions were. Individuals were asked to rate themselves from 1 to 10, with 10 being the richest 10% of the population and 1 being the poorest 10%. Staggeringly only 24% thought they were in the richest half of the population and almost no one thought they were in the richest 20% of people. This perhaps explains why the UK is bad at giving. Why would you give if you thought you were relatively poor?

One only has to look back to when the ‘additional’ 50% rate of income tax was introduced to again see how flawed perceptions are. The number of journalists that decried this attack on ‘middle earners’ was illustrative, as of course people earning over £150k a year are not middle earners. Yet in the eyes of the journalists and pundits, who of course viewed themselves as middle earners, they were. One could also notice the criticism levelled at the Liberal Democrat ‘Mansion Tax’ idea, with many seeming to operate under the ridiculous illusion that a house valued at over £1m was unexceptional.

It is interesting to note again that figures from 2006 show that the richest 10% in America gave 50% of charity, whilst in the UK they gave a pitiful 21%. Wealthy Americans seem to have a better perception of how wealthy they are and thus their duty to charity. I know many people who have worked in university or private school phone campaigns who have found in their calls that many people who are clearly relatively wealthy often claim they simply cannot financially support their alma mater because either they’re too poor and there’s richer people to do it.

 The contrast with American institutions’ fundraising clout  puts the UK to shame. Indeed many American private schools actually factor fundraising into their general budget, since it is such a reliable source of income, and don’t just using it for unique projects or bursaries, but rather to keep the lights on and pay the teachers.

The UK is not living up to its charitable potential. Those who claim they are far too poor to give to charity on top of other commitments need to appreciate just how fortunate they are for charities to get their fair share of cash in the UK. People in the UK need to start acting their wealth.

(For the reference of readers, a household income of above about £75,000 puts you in the top 20% and the mean income for an individual is about £23,000 a year).

Season Preview: The Barclays Premier League

Aleks Klosok
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Season Preview: The Barclays Premier League

Pre-season done and dusted, summer transfers slowly fitting into place and the mind games already kicking in. The Barclays Premier League is well and truly ready to go again for another season of twists and turns at the top and bottom of the table, controversies both on and off the pitch and the managerial axe waiting in the wings to claim its first victim. With improvements in the top clubs could we be set for a vintage title race? Which team will be the surprise package? And which players will come to the fore? So plenty of questions in the offing but come 13th May 2012 all will be revealed.

Arsenal

Manager: Arsène Wenger

League Position in 2010/2011: 4th

The purse strings as tight as ever, another Cesc Fabregas summer transfer saga and a below par pre-season – it all seems a little too familiar to Gunners fans. Keeping Dutch striker Robin Van Persie fit is a must if Wenger’s men are to challenge for any silverware however reinforcements in midfield and especially in defence are urgently needed. Werder Bremen’s Germany international defender Per Mertesacker may provide a cheap alternative to the likes of Blackburn’s Christopher Samba and Bolton Wanderer’s Gary Cahill.

Prediction: Champions League Qualification but will face stiff competition

Aston Villa

Manager: Alex McLeish

League Position in 2010/2011: 9th

Ex-Birmingham City manager McLeish will have to do a lot to convince Villa fans he’s the right man for the job thus a good start to the season is vital. The loss of wingers Ashley Young and Stewart Downing will be a blow but the signing of Wigan Athletic’s Charles N’Zogbia represents an impressive coup. Striker Darren Bent will look to continue his excellent form from last season and the Villains moved quickly to replace goalkeeper Brad Friedel with the signing of highly rated Shay Given.

Prediction: Solid mid-table finish

Blackburn Rovers

Manager: Steve Kean

League Position in 2010/2011: 15th

Owners who have little clue of how to run a football club, few reinforcements over the summer and losing one of their most promising prospects, defender come midfielder Phil Jones to Manchester United, expect the team to struggle. Keeping hold of Club Captain Christopher Samba is crucial however the lure of Champions League football will surely be too strong. Rovers squad is looking very light and a lack of creativity in midfield and firepower upfront is a concern.

Prediction: A season of real strife and struggle for the Lancashire club

Bolton Wanderers

Manager: Owen Coyle

League Position in 2010/2011: 14th

The Trotters manager will be looking to build on last season which saw the club reach the FA Cup Semi-Final. The loss of Swedish striker Johan Elmander will be a real blow as he was really finding his feet at the club. Captain Kevin Davies will once again have to tow the front line therefore a striker remains Owen Coyle’s priority. The introduction of experienced midfielder Nigel Reo-Coker and the pace of former Burnley and Manchester United winger Chris Eagle will reinforce the midfield.

Prediction: Steadily sitting there in mid-table

Chelsea

Manager: Andre Villas-Boas

League Position in 2010/2011: 2nd

Calm, concise and collected, former FC Porto manager Villas-Boas has quietly gone about his work at Stamford Bridge. If their performance in pre-season in the Asian Cup is anything to go by then the young Portuguese coach will look to play with attacking flair – exactly what chairman Roman Abramovich ordered. It’ll be a crucial season for striker Fernando Torres who severely failed to impress following his record-breaking move from Liverpool in January. He is soon to be joined by Belgian teenage sensation Romelo Lukaku from Anderlecht.

Prediction: Title contenders…perhaps even winners?

Everton

Manager: David Moyes

League Position in 2010/2011: 7th

It certainly hasn’t been a busy summer at Goodison Park. More than £40,000,000 in debt has sapped David Moyes of any money to bring in reinforcements. Instead, the priority has been to keep hold of his star players – Phil Jagielka, Leighton Baines, Marouane Fellaini and Jack Rodwell – which so far he has successfully managed to do. The loan and free transfer market, in which Moyes has been successful in in previous seasons, could be the best alternative for the Toffees manager.

Prediction: Punching above their weight with a top ten finish

Fulham

Manager: Martin Jol

League Position in 2010/2011: 8th

Martin Jol makes a welcome return to the Barclays Premier League and he’ll be hoping to continue to his success in English football following his spell with Tottenham Hotspur. Europa League commitments may well cause fatigue and thus impact upon the Cottagers league position. Expect Jol’s team to be compact and well organised as ever and the main priority this season will be to improve that wretched away form which has been the clubs Achilles heel for many seasons now.

Prediction: More consistency at the Cottage with another top ten finish

Liverpool

Manager: Kenny Dalglish

League Position in 2010/2011: 6th

Rebuilding, rebuilding, rebuilding has very much been the motto this summer at Anfield. Icon Dalglish has firmly stamped his marker on the team investing in British talent, albeit with hefty price-tags attached to them. Stewart Downing will provide much needed width whilst summer signing Charlie Adam will act as the perfect foil for striker Andy Carroll. The former Newcastle United man and highly rated Uruguayan Luis Suárez will hope to form a potent partnership upfront.

Prediction: A real push for Champions League football but a title challenge is perhaps beyond reach

Manchester City

Manager: Roberto Mancini

League Position in 2010/2011: 3rd

City have been busy in the Transfer Market especially with the multi-million pound capture of Argentine striker Sergio Agüero. Nonetheless, stability is the key for Mancini and he’ll have a tough time trying to keep his squad content…what with the temperamental Mario Balotelli and Carlos Tévez around! Despite the attacking talent, the team remains fixed within the defensive Italian mindset which, whilst may proving effective in the Champions League, will perhaps not work so smoothly in the Barclays Premier League.

Prediction: The Noisy Neighbours to be kept quiet by United

Manchester United

Manager: Sir Alex Ferguson

League Position in 2010/2011: 1st

Rarely out of third gear last season, United will certainly be looking to move up a gear this season. Their humbling by a mesmerising Barcelona team in last season’s Champions League Final will have taught them a lot of lessons. They look sharper and quicker with the addition of winger Ashley Young and have precisely the right blend of youth and experience. The only potential weak link could be new goalkeeper David de Gea whilst replacing Paul Scholes’ boots is an immediate priority.

Prediction: Hello twentieth Premier League Title

Newcastle United

Manager: Alan Pardew

League Position in 2010/2011: 12th  

There’s never a dull moment at St James’ Park and this summer has been no different. The shock departure of Kevin Nolan coupled with the lack of reinvestment of the £35,000,000 Andy Carroll transfer has generated disgruntlement amongst the ranks. The clubs transfer policy that of brining in inexpensive young players has seen an influx of French based players. Despite the introduction of ex-West Ham United striker Demba Ba the club are desperately short upfront and goals could be hard to come by.

Prediction: Disappointing bottom half of the table

Norwich City

Manager: Paul Lambert

League Position in 2010/2011: 2nd Npower Championship

After back to back promotions, The Canaries are back in the big time and will be looking to be the surprise package this season. They have a very bright and talented manager in the shape of Paul Lambert alongside a supportive board and an excellent fan base. Home form as well as discipline will be crucial to their hopes of survival. They have spirit in abundance however they can’t pin all their hopes on star striker Grant Holt.

Prediction: Against the odds the Canaries may well just survive

Queens Park Rangers

Manager: Neil Warnock

League Position in 2010/2011: 1st Npower Championship

Despite having wealthy owners, Neil Warnock has so far not been backed in the Transfer Window. He’s used the free transfer market to bring in injury prone midfielder Kieron Dyer as well as former Cardiff City striker Jay Bothroyd who is unproven at this level. DJ Campbell will add further depth upfront however the rest of the squad does look lightweight. Midfielder Adel Taarabt will once again be burdened with the job of creating chances from midfield.

Prediction: A short stay in English football’s top flight division

Stoke City

Manager: Tony Pulis

League Position in 2010/2011: 13th

The Potters will be hoping to build on last season which saw the club reach their maiden FA Cup Final appearance and thus guaranteeing Europa League football for this season. The team will be formidable opponents as ever with set-pieces continuing to remain their strong point, although it has to be said that their playing style is slowly evolving. Strikers Jonathan Walters and Kenwyne Jones will hope to build on their promising relationship upfront and wingers Jermaine Pennant and Matthew Etherington will look to continue improving.

Prediction: Top ten finish

Sunderland

Manager: Steve Bruce

League Position in 2010/2011: 10th

Steve Bruce has certainly been a busy man, using the money generated from the sale of striker Darren Bent to Aston Villa in January; to bring in no fewer than nine fresh faces to the Stadium of Light. Bruce fended off interest from several big clubs to land the highly rated striker Connor Wickham from Ipswich Town whilst the signings of David Vaughan from Blackpool and Craig Gardener from Birmingham City will add both creativity and steel in midfield. John O’Shea’s experience will be invaluable in defence.

Prediction: Safely in mid-table

Swansea City

Manager: Brendan Rodgers

League Position in 2010/2011: 3rd Npower Championship (Play-Off Winners)

The Swans become the first Welsh team to reach the Promised Land of the Barclays Premier League and, despite not adding significantly to his squad; Rodgers will look to continue playing with the type of attacking intent which earned his team many plaudits in the Npower Championship. Record signing Danny Graham will hope he can make the transition into the top flight whilst all eyes will be trained on exciting winger Scott Sinclair.

Prediction: Could spring a few surprises but may not be enough to survive

Tottenham Hotspur

Manager: Harry Redknapp

League Position in 2010/2011: 5th

It’s been a frustrating summer for Harry Redknapp with very little movement in the Transfer Window. Keeping hold of star players Luka Modrić and Gareth Bale is vital if Spurs are to once again push for European football. A move for Blackburn defender Christopher Samba looks likely whilst current Real Madrid midfielder Lassana Diarra could well be set for a reunion with his former manager. A striker remains the top priority with Athletic Bilbao’s Fernando Llorente and Internacional’s Leandro Damião mentioned as possible arrivals.

Prediction: Europa League football once again

West Bromwich Albion

Manager: Roy Hodgson

League Position in 2010/2011: 11th

As organised as ever, Roy Hodgson’s side will be difficult to break down especially at The Hawthorns. Keeping more clean sheets must be the main priority however goalkeeper Ben Foster’s arrival from Birmingham City on loan with a view to a permanent signing is an excellent coup for the West Midlands club. Midfielder Youssouf Mulumbu will look to carry on his impressive form from last season whilst Nigerian striker Peter Odemwingie will once again be the man charged with the task of firing in the goals.

Prediction: Comfortably surviving

Wigan Athletic

Manager: Roberto Martinez

League Position in 2010/2011: 16th

Season after season, the Latics continue to defy all the odds but could their fate change this season? Having already lost influential winger Charles N’Zogbia to Aston Villa, Roberto Martinez must ensure that he keeps hold of Colombian striker Hugo Rodallega and midfield teenage sensation James McCarthy who’s been impressive in pre-season. Nonetheless, the highly likeable Spaniard will continue to stick closely to his footballing philosophy of playing attacking football which could be the clubs saviour as well as potentially being its downfall.

Prediction: Going, going…gone? Survival but only just

Wolverhampton Wanderers

Manager: Mick McCarthy

League Position in 2010/2011: 17th

Having conducted his Transfer business early on in the summer, Mick McCarthy has been able to give his side plenty of time to gel. The acquisition of defender Roger Johnson for a club record £7,000,000 from Birmingham City will bring much needed stability whilst another arrival Jamie O’Hara will once again pull the creative strings in midfield. Beating the top four teams is all well and good but Wolves must ensure they pick up points from those nearest rivals around them.

Prediction: Barclays Premier League status assured for another season

The consequences of E-petitions

Edward Lewis
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The consequences of E-petitions

Direct democracy has this week supposedly gained a victory at the expense of parliament. “E-petitions” are now being considered by the government as a potential way for the public to influence parliamentary debate. Online petitions receiving more than 100,000 signatures could force a debate on its proposal. Whilst some, not least the government, hail the measure as a boost for democracy and responsive government, others have raised concerns over the political culture it could lead to.

E-petitions, on paper, allow greater involvement of the public in parliamentary debate, and potentially strengthen the link between government policy and the electorate. This is arguably all the more important due to Britain’s political system, one in which the government usually has a majority in the legislature and an effective whipping system. Governments are elected on a manifesto, and for four years possess the means to implement this, or indeed any new policy.

Indeed, Rousseau’s famous comment that the British are only free every few years arguably still holds true. E-petitions, however, would seem to challenge this state of affairs, by forcing parliament to respond to public opinion in between elections. What’s more, they present the average person with one of the easiest ways of participating in politics, provided that person has internet connection and a working mouse. But it is far from a perfect remedy.

Taking the spread of petitions as it is, parliamentary debates run the risk of being monopolised by what amount to no more than ‘joke’ motions. One petition to make Jeremy Clarkson Prime Minister currently has half the required threshold. Under the new system, David Cameron could feasibly be forced to debate this unrealistic and unconstitutional motion. This kind of potential scenario is a regrettable side effect of an otherwise commendable democratic initiative.

To get around this, raising the threshold which petitions have to reach in order to be considered for debate has been suggested. If the threshold were higher it would be difficult to mobilise enough support behind such a proposal. It is worth speculating, however, whether the idea of ‘joke’ motions would survive once a political culture developed that took petitions seriously. Many of the dafter proposals may currently attract support because people do not expect them to gain much parliamentary attention. If petitions became an established and effective way of influencing parliamentary debate then signing a petition would gain a greater significance, and would become a responsibility less likely to be abused.

One of the biggest fears with E-petitions is that they will spawn a ‘tyranny of the minority’. Particular interests attracting a particularly emotional response from a small section of the population may prompt unnecessary expenditure of Commons time. A petition gaining 100,000 signatures would grab the attention of parliament, but this may be a distorted picture of public sentiment as a whole, as the other 99% of the electorate might well passively oppose the proposal. As long as the debate is balanced, and there are groups or petitions on both sides then there should not be an issue. However, some issues may fail to attract counter-movements.

This is most prevalent in regards to laws assumed to be long-standing and of little contention. The obvious example is the death penalty, with 20 petitions in favour of bringing it back, and only seven ‘proposing’ to keep the law as it is. Thus, petitions allow a more active amendment of the constitution, but also require that it has a more active defence, something which may be harder to mobilise.

The new system could also allow a tyranny of the majority, with parliament swamped by unrealistic utopian demands. The majority of people, for example, would desire tax reductions if the opportunity presented itself – but it is surely better from an objective point of view for the government to decide what is necessary and what is best for the nation as a whole?

The state of California is a testament to this: their system of ‘initiatives’ (referenda on proposed proposals such as tax reductions) almost bankrupt the government. E-petitions may put damaging pressure on parliament to reject unpopular but necessary measures, and should therefore be treated with caution.

Several potential flaws of the new system can already be identified. But, as the government acknowledges, there may well be much trial and error involved in its implementation: concerns over sectional interests, waste of parliamentary time and unrealistic demands are not without justification. Furthermore, the initiative is perhaps likely to be seen by some as a cynical move by a government whose popularity is waning to strengthen its relationship with the public. The experiment with petitions may well be a short one.

Hertford tutor claims wrongful dismissal

Anthony Collins
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Hertford tutor claims wrongful dismissal

A former tutor at Hertford College claimed this week that he was unfairly dismissed from his post last year.

Dr Anthony Murphy, a Fellow and Tutor in Economics at Hertford from 2006 to 2010, and prior to that a Research Fellow at Nuffield College, left his job in Oxford after refusing to agree to a new contract which the college offered him. The contract would have given the college the right to lay him off with just one day’s notice.

Murphy appealed to an employment tribunal last week for £2,000 redundancy pay. He said, “it was clear that they wanted to lay me off”. He was told that his appeal is unlikely to be successful, since he voluntarily refused to sign the new contract. 

Tribunal chairman Jessica Hill pointed out that under the terms of the contract he was offered, he would still have received full pay for three months after being laid off, and described this arrangement as “a fairly standard practice”.

If he wishes to persist with his appeal, Murphy will have to pay the deposit of £500 required to hold a full hearing.

Murphy’s claims mark the second time in recent months that controversy has arisen over the appointment of tutors at Hertford.  In June, Cherwell revealed that one of the college’s lectureships in History is in jeopardy. Unless the college manages to raise the sum of £1.2m, they may be unable to appoint a successor to Dr Toby Barnard, a CUF lecturer in Modern History due to retire at the end of the next academic year.

A second year at Hertford commented, “I’m not sure about the details of the Murphy case, but reduced government funding means that it will become harder for the college to support the level of teaching we have had up to now.”

Dr Murphy currently lives and works in the United States, as Senior Research Economist and Policy Advisor at the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas. When questioned by Cherwell, he refused to comment at this stage in his hearing’s proceedings. 

Dr John Landers, Principal of Hertford College, also declined to comment.

Google Minus

Ilana Fernandes-Lassman
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Google Minus

25 million people must be on to something – something either very good (such as J.K. Rowling’s latest fan offering Pottermore), or very bad (Rebecca Black’s Friday is YouTube’s most watched video of all time). These particular 25 million people are the start-up users of Google+, or the Google+ Project, internet behemoth Google’s latest offering to the lucrative social networking sphere. Launched just last month, the site attracted over 20 million users in 24 days, a statistic which has caused internet nerds like myself the world over to sit up straighter in their ergonomic chairs and rub sun cream on their screen-tans. Not even the pompous ‘Project’ in the title could deter me from dipping my toe in the www.ater.

This is not Google’s first foray into social networking. In February 2010, they unveiled Google Buzz, a kid of Facebook/Twitter hybrid to Google account holders, which was a humiliating flop. Its covert opt-in nature angered even faithful Googleheads (a personal term used to describe those who will swear by all things Google – similar to the insufferable Apple Addicts, who will unthinkingly purchase anything Steve Jobs shits out). Buzz also presented a security threat: the ‘auto-follow’ function on email threads left one woman exposed to her ex-husband’s fury when he read that she had been interacting with her new beau. Traces of this annoying intrusiveness remain to this day, when Gmail, which has the aunt-like habit of scanning your inbox, presents you with adverts supposedly pertaining to their content – in my unhappy case, ‘islamiccards4u’ and ‘Serious About Cheese Since 1850!’. As with many of their previous projects, Google+ is in a ‘trial period’, or Beta version, and is currently invitation-only, like Google Mail was in its early days in 2004.

But Google is keen to show that they have learned from their past mistakes, and more importantly, those of its biggest competitor, Facebook. Google+ puts a huge emphasis on its improved privacy settings, centred around the creation of Circles. When you add a friend, they are automatically added to the Circle you designate – ‘friends’, ‘family’, ‘people I never talk to but can’t delete’, ‘ex-flings’, ‘people I hated at school and are now on the dole’, etc. You can have as many Circles as you like and select what is visible to each one. However, once you have smugly consigned Hugo van Ashrotherham-Scudberry III to languish in the ‘Douchebags’ circle, and undone everything Disney ever taught you about pigeonholing everybody you know, you realise little has changed. You cannot control who you are added by or see which Circle you are in, luckily in poor Hugo’s case. At the initial registration, Google ominously warns you that they will use your information on “non-Google websites” to help “personalise content”, which would niggle at cautious users. The privacy policy doesn’t clear this up much, stating that it does so “to provide… a better experience on Google services” (which are not defined, so presumably affiliates like Picasa, who will take care of all your uploaded photos and videos, as well as sites belonging to Google like YouTube). They also “collect information about you from other users”, but this again is not defined.

Other features revolve around the Google+ site in a slightly random but fun way. The excellent site demo gives an enthusiastic and colourful picture of what the developers are hoping to do with the Google+ Project, and the little animations which adorn certain actions, such as deleting a Circle, show up Facebook as the staid older brother. Procrastinators will recognise Sparks as Google’s answer to StumbleUpon – type in your interests, and up pop some sites which you can browse when you are supposed to be applying for any McJob that will take you. Hangouts, on the other hand, are an appalling idea – mass videochats which seem pointless when Google Chat is just on the other side of the stream. Google have kept the basic newsfeed/profile layout of Facebook, even the notifications, though as so few people are using it at the moment the stream is pretty much static. Huddle, a mobile feature, puts all members of a Circle in an instant-messaging-based chat stream, a kind of MSN by text, though so far it only works on Android phones. The much-touted ‘instant upload’ for mobile pictures is not so instant, and uploading a whole album is a lot slower than Facebook.

Being a scientific sort of girl, I decided to do some of my own research into what other people thought of these features. This involved bullying all my friends and some relatives – my real-life Circles, if you like – into signing up to Google+ and then interrogating them about their opinions. The most commonly used adjective was ‘confusing’, but there were mixed reviews. Even with the interactive and engaging online tour (http://www.google.com/+/demo/), the site remains strangely un-intuitive, unlike similar sites Tumblr and Twitter, but some enjoyed the site’s put-together look and feel. There was also an uncertainty that was not solely due to unfamiliarity in the tone of some of the feedback – “I’m not quite sure how it works, but…” was a common response, yet my sample of volunteers seemed happy to give Google+ a chance, if not as an alternative to Facebook. Who would want to upload, tag and caption their holiday snaps twice, and render their computer unusable for three hours? One friend wasn’t even sure whether she already had a Google+ account as her Gmail seemed to have signed her into it. Another friend took massive issue with the fact that you are obliged to use your real name. When quizzed further, he said it discouraged him from using the site because it didn’t allow him to create an alias. Disregarding the fact that Adolf Fritzl is possibly a wanted man, perhaps my paranoid friend had touched upon an interesting side of online networking. Twitter and the like allow us to project an image of ourselves which is carefully garnered, whether through nicknames, retouched photos or groups we have joined, people we follow and pages we have liked. Google+’s insistence on real names could, for some, puncture the bubble of online persona we have nurtured. The couple I babysit for informed me that at the moment they would not be happy with Google+ for their children because anyone can add you to a Circle without your consent, and therefore see your entire profile, and would thus encourage Facebook despite its poor track record regarding privacy. However, they also realised that social networking sites will be an inevitable part of the social interaction of their children’s futures, and therefore welcomed any variation on the monolithic ‘Facey-B’.

At the moment, the comparisons to Facebook are inevitable; there are too many features which are the same with a new coat of paint on them. Instead of ‘likes’ we have ‘+1s’, and ‘stream’ replaces ‘news feed’. Instead of Facebook’s ‘what’s on your mind?’ we have ‘share what’s new’. But I applaud Google’s effort to think laterally, and to break the Facebook fascination which has over 28 million users in the UK alone, and 1 in every 13 people on earth with a profile page. The English National Opera have just finished showing Two Boys, an opera about the sheer oddness of life lived through Facebook. But Google+ is just not interesting enough. Its 25 million users are not hard-earned the way Facebook’s following was; people have flocked over to try it out but, as it is, the hype will die down. If Google+ is to avoid the fate of Buzz, it needs a new angle or risk forever being like the iPad – cool, but totally pointless. While The Social Network remains literally the most boring film I’ve ever seen, I cannot yet imagine any marketability in The Social Circle (Beta).

Substance over style

Victor Mallet
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Substance over style

As the new season rolls into view, football fans are being treated to the usual gamut of chugging transfer sagas. The ‘will he-won’t he’ domestic affairs have become an annual English tradition. For a couple of days the rumours pique the interest of the general public but when the initial flirting turns sour, the babble becomes trite, dull and practically irrelevant. Moreover, these drawn out transfer soap operas have little positive – if not a detrimental – effect on the teams involved.

Consider the Luka Modric affair. The longer Spurs battle to keep their star midfielder, the more it might upset their dressing room. Rafael van der Vaart made veiled comments to the press hinting at his disappointment that his team mate would jump ship just a year removed from Tottenham’s exciting European campaign and, presumably, the morale of the team will only sink further as the saga continues. Even if Harry Redknapp manages to claw his coveted star back from the brink of a lucrative transfer to Chelsea, he will have to make do with a disgruntled player, further diminishing his team’s chance at challenging for European qualification. But Chelsea, too, will experience these detrimental effects. If the drama drags deep into August they will have to deal with an unfit player who is unfamiliar in their system; if they don’t get their man, they will have expended a ridiculous amount of time and effort for no gain. The majority of the time, these sagas present both clubs with a lose-lose situation.

The argument that either club would gain (or retain) an elite player is of course valid. But how many times has a big money domestic signing changed the complexion of the Premier League? Manchester City’s courtship of the very average James Milner and the high-profile situation with Fernando Torres might provide the hint that these affairs are not cost-effective.

Closer examination of the three most successful teams of the past decade serves as testament. Arsenal built their team around determined, skilful players who had not reached their full potential abroad. The signings of Henry and Vieira immediately spring to mind, but the Wenger teams of the early 2000s were packed with rough diamonds. Freddie Ljungberg, Robert Pires and Kolo Touré all fitted Wenger’s criteria: technically gifted and mentally strong. As Abramovich rode into the league, his team did not dominate immediately under Claudio Ranieri. It took some astute, tactical and cheap signings from José Mourinho to turn investment into trophies. Paulo Ferreira and Ricardo Carvalho joined him in Chelsea from Porto. They were players he knew to be solid and experienced from the club’s Champion’s League victory. Manchester United, too have built their team around a similar transfer strategy. While a few big domestic signings – Berbatov, Ferdinand and Rooney – serve as anomalies, the team’s success would not have been as great without the brilliance of Cristiano Ronaldo and the solidity and consistent performances of Patrice Evra and Nemanja Vidic.

These long episodes of tedious posturing between English clubs, players and their agents are in vogue. Occasionally, it must be said, they have a meaningful effect on the league. But André Villas-Boas would do well to learn lessons from his compatriot. Mourinho brought success to Chelsea through pragmatism and tactical nous more than sexy signings. While spending big bucks domestically grabs all the media attention, real contenders are busy finding those rare gems from abroad who bring with them determination instead of drama.

Ibiza or bust (2)

Cherwell Lifestyle Section Editors
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Ibiza or bust (2)

I feel very sorry for myself today. The rare sight of clouds has given me an excuse to drink Yorkshire tea and watch Friends in Spanish… What’s worse, all hope for a bikini bod has been quashed by 55 cent cartons of wine and 43 cent chocolate biscuits that are my new love interests – between them they have given me far more satisfaction than any guapo.

As for the job hunt, I like to call myself freelance… I’ve been a complete job slut and have got around most of San Antonio. One of my favourites was a short stint working at a tiny reggae beach hut serving cocktails; I spent a few days learning every type of mojito under the sun and perfecting my glass polishing technique. Sadly, it was just across the bay and a deathly hangover meant that I couldn’t be fagged to get the boat one morning and haven’t dared to go back since. My boss was a white rasta who was very proud of his bar, and had made it explicitly clear in sharing his secret cocktail recipes, he was trusting me with his life’s work, and I ought not to abuse that. Oops.

Basically, now I’m completely impoverished and have been on an egg diet for a week because eggs are complete bargains. Eggy bread has re-entered my life after years of abstinence, while every morning starts sunny side up.

But Ibiza brings a new meaning to getting scrambled (that was awful, sorry). This place is filled with “wreck-heads” and “ket-heads” and Mandys and Charlies. Drugs is a favourite topic of conversation for a huge number of workers out here. A friend offers an in-depth account of his deliberate “k-hole” on a daily basis – probably more actually. The biggest workers’ apartment block is dubbed “Ket Castle”, or “Ketless Castle” for the last few days because of a ketamine drought on the Island which, needless to say, hasn’t gone down very smoothly.

The clubs, of course, are a hotbed for pills and powder. It’s a different place when you’re on drugs to when you’re not; half the crowd are in their own world beneath their sunglasses even though it’s dark (it’s meant to stop paranoia of people noticing their fat pupils, but of course in any normal world this actually makes it pretty clear what’s going on). Another outright clue is in the fact that even guys are queuing to use the toilet cubicles; not that many blokes need a shit in one night.

Basically, it’s pretty undisguised. If anything, the clubs embrace it and probably make more money selling €8 water than all their other drinks. The funny thing is, people do actually know what they’re doing. Workers who’ve been out here months know to force some food down the next day even when it feels like chewing sawdust, and to constantly drink water all day to flush out the nasty pill remnants. I’m learning that it’s when people think anything goes when they’re on holiday that it gets serious: people popping pills for the first time every night, then lazing in the heat all day and getting back on it by mid afternoon. This week a girl died in Space superclub while I was there after taking a dodgy pill or something; the next day another girl fell over her balcony in the hotel down the road while she was pilled up… I’m starting to notice the nasty underside to this buzzing island.

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