The Oxford Union Standing Committee has voted this term against waiving the room hire fee for the Oxford Hub to hold their weekly Series programme.

The motion, proposed by President Stuart Cullen, which would have seen the continuation of the arrangement begun in Trinity Term 2009, was rejected by the Standing Committee with 8 opposing and 2 abstaining.

Over the previous two terms, the Series has provided the Union with several high profile speakers secured through Oxford Hub contacts, such as Rwandan genocide survivor Jean Baptiste Kayigamba and Eliot Whittington, the climate specialist for Christian Aid.

However, the Union stated that this term’s crowded term card, including former UN Ambassador Sir Jeremy Greenstock and Conservative MP Damian Green, has made it impossible for them to accommodate the Series event on the Wednesday evening slot.

Cullen explained, “We felt that the series did not contain speakers which merited cancelling or moving these speakers and events to later dates.”

The Oxford Hub President lobbied the Union to allow the arrangement to continue in a letter outlining the benefits provided to the society.

The letter stated that the Series’ diverse range of speakers and coverage of ethical and environmental issues, helped to encourage a wider variety of students than usual to attend the Union, providing an ideal opportunity to recruit new members. However, Standing Committee doubted that this was a tangible benefit.

Some felt that by offering free use of the rooms to Oxford Hub, the Union is allowing it an unfair privilege over other student societies.

It has also been revealed that there may be other issues which contributed to the Standing Committee’s decision; the arrangement stipulated a mutually beneficial advertising campaign from both organisations, however some have felt that the arrangement has not performed as well as expected.

What the Union’s withdrawal from the arrangement means for the future of the two societies’ partnership is not clear. Union President Stuart Cullen stated that “This is in no means a reflection on the work of the Oxford Hub, which the Union looks forward to working with in terms which are slightly less hectic!”

Meanwhile the Oxford Hub Series has relocated to the Saskatchewan Room at Exeter College, with the first debate on climate change including Simon Berry, founder of Cola Life and a representative of supermarket giant Tesco.

One member of the Union commented, “Although it is a pity for OxHub to not have use of the Union rooms, Exeter is still a central, convenient location for a lot of students.” 

A man accessed both St Anne’s College and Lady Margaret Hall on Saturday afternoon, in attempts to steal from both colleges, according to police reports.

He stole cash and cards from rooms at LMH, but was accosted by suspicious students at St Anne’s before he was able to take anything.

A combination of information from the St Anne’s students who apprehended the intruder and CCTV footage lead to the man’s arrest not long after the event.

College authorities have now warned that criminal gangs may be specifically targeting University students.

The individual in question arrived at St Anne’s early on Saturday afternoon, coming in through the front entrance. According to a student involved, who wished to remain anonymous, “the intruder attempted to enter student’s rooms, including mine, and when I confronted him, he was unable to provide a plausible explanation for being in college. We were able to inform the porters and police of the intruder before he was able to steal anything.”

However, the man managed to make it to LMH later on in the afternoon, coming into the college by the main entrance just after 3 pm.

It is thought that he had found a key fob a student had lost some time before, and a student who saw him holding it let him into the main building. He then was able to take cash and cards from unlocked rooms. Most of the LMH site is connected internally, so the intruder was able to walk through a large proportion of college trying doors.

Emily Cuthbert, a first-year maths student at LMH, says she was heading back to her open room, when she saw three middle-aged people loitering by her door. She became suspicious and informed the porters of what she had seen. She added that “they didn’t steal anything from my room but because they were loitering outside my open door I feel they were probably considering it.”

The man was later identified by trawling through hours of CCTV footage at LMH. The video shows a relatively young male, dressed smartly in a black overcoat and grey scarf, entering the college at 15:07 on Saturday afternoon – a time when many people are coming or going from the site.

Thames Valley Police informed Cherwell that the suspect has been remanded to custody, and will face trial at Oxford Crown Court on Monday. They also praised the actions of the St Anne’s students who “apprehended the criminal, contacted the porter and obtained vital identifying information”, saying that “this spontaneous action by two alert students proved invaluable in bringing the burglar to justice.”

Genevieve Clark, LMH JCR President, explained that the event there occurred because of a “simple mistake of someone trying to be helpful and fobbing someone in.” She also said that the “porters do all they can for security” and that “students should be reminded to always lock their doors and report any kind of theft immediately to the porters and the police so the criminals can be caught”.

Owen Evans, St Anne’s JCR President, similarly urged students to be cautious when it comes to security.

Additionally, LMH’s Female Welfare Officer, Karen Clarke, circulated an email to the JCR urging students not to “give anyone access into colleges or the buildings.” She added that “the police are aware of a number of groups in the city who specifically target the university’s colleges.”

Oxford University students have camped out for over thirty-eight hours, braving the snow and rain, in order to secure housing in the Jericho area.

The annual release of the student property list by North Oxford Property Services (NOPS), who operate on a ‘first come first served’ basis, is notorious for provoking over-night queues. This week, a group from St Anne’s College began queuing very early, taking to the streets at 6:30 on Tuesday evening in anticipation of the release of property on Thursday morning.

Many students commented that they had been warned against queuing up, and even against using NOPS altogether. A first year stated their College’s JCR advised caution, because students can “feel obliged to sign a deal because they’re worried they’re going to miss their chance.”

The system implemented by NOPS, which results in students camping outside in wintry conditions, has angered many. Jenni Butler, a first year student at Somerville College stated “it’s such a bad system, I can’t believe people started queuing so early, NOPS should discourage it, if they see people here they should send them home – at the moment you worry that if you don’t queue you’re not going to get anything decent.”

She continued, “I’m missing a class because we have to sign a contract at nine – I had to write an essay today on three hours sleep.” Though most groups are taking turns to wait outside in shifts, others were less fortunate; a fresher from Christ Church, whose prospective house mate was unable to make the queue due to ill health, commented that he had been outside for eight hours and had no alternative but to continue waiting for a further twelve.

Some undergraduates praised NOPS who had provided queue members with hot drinks and dry cleaned students’ sleeping bags after they had spent a night camping out in the snow. Others pointed out that such gestures were “nice but then considering the non-refundable admin fee of £135 per head, insignificant.”

The letting agency refused to comment on the legitimacy of the admin fee which students describe as “outrageous”, but defended the current process arguing that due to demand, the first come first served policy remains to be “the fairest system that we can implement.”

NOPS is not the only company to employ this strategy yet alternative estate agents have conceded that the system was by no means ideal. One estate agent stated that they were even aware of instances in which customers had been offered large sums of money in exchange for the opportunity to jump the queue and get first picks on houses.

Unlike other Oxford estate agents, North Oxford Property Services does not warn against overnight queuing.

A first year undergraduate from Somerville College referred to the company’s online clock which counts down the hours, minutes and seconds until the 9:00 release, describing it as “patronising and unnecessary”. According to NOPS “Students have missed the boat in the past, complaining that they were not aware of the release day. The clock means all students are aware.”

The company offered no comment as to why it uploads videos of past student queues on to the internet, however. A second year student who camped outside their office last year was critical of their actions, “They put videos of people queuing on the internet which creates unnecessary hype. It makes people think that unless they camp outside for two nights they won’t be able to live in the area.”

Welfare Reps are keen to point out that North Oxford Property Services are not the only letting agency in Jericho and that students should not sign a deal without looking around a house. But most students were unable to look at properties because NOPS have made the open day for viewing houses the same date as the release of the student list.

Only students who happen to know people currently living in the area have had an opportunity to view properties. This, combined with the competitive nature of the release, has led to fears that students may feel pressured into signing a deal before they have time to properly consider.

Laura Clegg, a second year student from St Hilda’s College recollected her experience on the day of the release, “You end up making a decision on where to live based on two sentences and thumbnail photo of a front door.” She described the state of her property on moving in, adding “our garden was too overgrown to use, there were slugs in our kitchen because it was so damp, our washing machine was broken when we arrived and never fixed, we had a broken window that was patched up with MDF for weeks, another window had a crack in it that was never repaired and our front door didn’t shut properly.”

Laura Adamson, a former tenant, also criticised NOPS. She said, “According to contract, it was meant to be the landlord who dealt with areas like the maintenance of the house but that did not happen in our case, despite many requests.”

Former Oxford pharmacologist, Professor Les Iversen, has been appointed Chairman of the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs to the government.

The post has been empty since David Nutts, the previous Senior Drugs Advisor, was controversially sacked by Home Secretary Alan Johnson over his criticism of tougher cannabis laws.

Further controversy has arisen over the content of a 2003 lecture Iversen gave called for the legalisation of cannabis.

However, his position on the effects of cannabis appears to have changed over the last few years.

In an interview last week with BBC Radio 5, Iversen stated “we now have to confront the more potent forms of cannabis, we have new evidence that arose since 2003, linking cannabis to psychiatric illness.”

He commented, “I think it is quite free for a scientist to change his mind when faced with new facts.”

A rent strike was proposed at St Peter’s General Meeting this week in response to the college’s allegedly slow response to the findings of the Fire Risk Assessment. The JCR is giving the college two weeks to respond to their concerns, with the threat of a vote to strike on rent if they do not.

The assessment, carried out in September of 2009, examined all the St Peter’s buildings. There were findings, of which 31 were “significant”, and one “inteolerable”. Findings included a faulty alarm, fire exits which did not comply with legislation and the use of boiler rooms for storage. The Assessment advised that 42 of the problems should be fixed within one month.

Jack Matthews, a third year St Peter’s student, brought forward a motion proposing a rent strike, in order to force the college to take action over the 42 urgent issues.

According to Matthews, “St Peter’s totally ignored the assessment. A broken fire alarm at the Paradise Street Annex was deemed an ‘intolerable’ risk by the assessment, highly recommended to be fixed within one week. But it was not fixed until December 8th (almost three months later).”

“At Paradise Street Annex, only three out of eight fire escapes open; this was supposed to be fixed within a week. Almost four months after the assessment, these doors have still not been fixed, so if there was a fire there today, people in the Annex would have no certain means of escape.

“I have no idea why the college’s attitude is so lax… The warning by the fire officer should have been enough, it shouldn’t have to come to this.”

Richard Rawlings, a second-year English student, agreed with Matthews. He commented, “The fire alarms have been an issue at Peter’s for a long time. When I was preparing for my job interview, the fire alarm was going off all day. One night I was pulled out of my bed by a friend- that time there was a fire, but no alarm.”

Opinion was split over Matthews’ motion. Sanjay Nanwani, ex-JCR President, said the situation was “intolerable and not fair at all.” However, he felt that “a rent strike at this point is frankly overreacting”.

An amended motion was passed which advises all St Peter’s students to defer rent payment for two weeks, giving the college time to look into the issue. This falls within the 21 days that students are given to pay their battels.
If no action has been taken by the college during these two weeks, a vote will be taken at the next general meeting in third week as to whether a full rent strike should go ahead.

JCR President Daniel Stone said, “The motion was fair, as it gives the college enough time to do something about it, and also leaves the JCR’s options open to a full rent strike. I think people would be prepared to get behind the rent strike. No one knew about this before the meeting, but now people are outraged.”

First-year student Michael Anderson, commented, “I would be prepared to rent strike. It’s just not acceptable. Students’ lives could be put at risk by this.”

Jean Wright, the Home Bursar of St Peter’s College issued a statement following the JCR meeting: “St Peter’s College takes fire safety very seriously. The College is working vigorously to improve fire safety in all its buildings and takes seriously the concerns of the student body.”

A spokesperson from the Fire Risk Assessment commented, “Under the new legislation the fire risk assessment is to be risk-appropriate – by identifying remedial action required and planning a strategy to implement these actions, St Peter’s College is fulfilling its obligation under current fire safety law.”

Mephedrone, recently labelled in the national press as the “UK’s new favourite drug”, is widely taken by Oxford students who thave little idea of the associated side effects and health risks.

A Cherwell investigation this week has shown that students at the University are not only use the drug recreationally, but also as a study aid.

They investigation also found that student-users are ignorant of forthcoming changes in its legal status, with many students incorrectly believing the drug will be banned imminently.

Mephedrone, also known as M-Kat, is widely available online. However, the compound is illegal to sell for human consumption, so the websites which sell it market the drug as a plant fertiliser. The substance costs around £10 for a gram, with discounts available for bulk orders, making mephedrone less than a quarter of the street price of cocaine.

Students report the drug as causing a feeling of euphoria, increased self-confidence and conversational ability and, in some cases, sexual arousal. They also said that the drug helped them to stay awake and “lively” when going out.

One leading Oxford pharmacologist, who asked to remain anonymous due to the sensitive nature of the issue, warned of the dangers of potential overdose on the drug.

Many students use mephedrone because of its easy access and immediate effects. “It’s not as strong as cocaine or ecstasy,” said one undergraduate, “and it’s obviously much easier to get hold of. I

know there must be risks about taking it, but not as much as others. It’s more of a sweetie-drug for me.”

“It’s the smart person’s drug of choice, you take it, don’t drink, have a bit of a buzz, and then wake up feeling fine,” said another. “It’s legal which makes it seem a bit less bad, even though obviously it’s not legal for what we do with it…”

The Home Office has confirmed to Cherwell that mephedrone is only legal when sold for purposes other than human consumption.

One surprising finding of the survey was that a minority of students are taking the drug as a study aid, a use not reported on until now.

“I had the idea for using it for an essay crisis because it kept me up all night at a club, and I didn’t feel bad in the morning,” said a student. “I only took only took a little bit in comparison to what I’d do on a night out, and it gave me a slight mood elevation – which you definitely don’t get from coffee.”

“I’ve only done it once or twice as a last ditch resort,” he said, “‘because it’s quite a precarious solution”.

Many emphasised the fact that the drug can be delivered to your door by post as an advantage. “You can buy it easily online – no lurking about on dark corners or cryptic text messages – you can buy it during labs!”

“There’s something rather delicious about the postman handing over your fix by special delivery,” claimed one modern languages undergraduate.

But one leading pharmacologist, who has led research into recreational drugs, told Cherwell that “with Mephedrone you’re taking an unknown dose, and one of the dangers with this is that someone will overdose.”

When asked what he would tell students using the drug, he said, “don’t assume that just because it’s legal it’s safe”.

He quoted a public health report which listed the possible negative side effects of use as “uncomfortable changes in body temperature (sweating and chills), heart palpitations, impaired short term memory, insomnia, tightened jaw muscles, grinding teeth, muscle twitching, dizziness, light headedness, vertigo,” as well as pain and swelling in the nose and throat if the substance is snorted.

The specialist also reported that, chemically, the substance is an amphetamine like controlled drugs such as Speed.

“You’d say that it’s in the category of amphetamines,” he said.

Students spoken to by Cherwell also had little idea about if or when the drug was due to be reclassified by the government, with most believing that a new legal status would be set at the end of this or next month.

A rumour of an imminent change in the legal status prompted a spike in sales as users ‘stockpiled’ earlier in the year.

But a Home Office spokesperson confirmed that the Advisory Council for the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD) to the government was not due to report their findings into Mephedrone until the spring. The government would then take time to reclassify the drug, meaning that it may remain widely available for the rest of the academic year.

The spokesperson said that the Council were reviewing the drug as an urgent priority. A source within the ACMD confirmed that “[Mephedrone] is one of our most pressing concerns. We are also investigating use of anabolic steroid for cosmetic reasons.”

And despite the drug’s currently uncontrolled status, Oxford University proctors have now said that any student found abusing the substance is liable to be disciplined.
“It is an offence…for any member of the University to engage in action which is likely to cause injury or to impair safety. Even if a substance is legal, supplying it to others in the knowledge of documented adverse side-effects could fall under the above,” said a representative for the university.

“We would strongly advise students against the practise [sic] of taking any substance that could cause potential risks to their health,” they said.

All students spoken to as part of the investigation asked to remain anonymous.

See Cherwell’s editorial on drug use in Oxford: http://www.cherwell.org/content/9586

The merger of RockEntz and PulseNation events companies into Varsity Events has led to a drop in the variety and diversity of Oxford club nights, students and managers claim.

Organisers of other club nights have complained about the “monopoly” Varsity has on the city.

Jenny Edmunds, a current student who runs the popular club night Eclectric, said, “It’s not very nice having all the money going to the same people at the top.”

OUSU-backed PulseNation was founded by two Oxford University students Dominic Conte and Arthur Worsley at the beginning of 08/09 academic year.

Pulse was formed in response to Balreick Srai’s grip on Oxford entertainment in the form of his events promotion company RockEntz.

Last summer, the two biggest Oxford promotion companies merged together under a trademark of Varsity Events, creating a monopoly which has been both condemned and praised.

Escape nightclub criticised Varsity Events’ effect on the Oxford clubbing scene. “Certainly Pulse and Balreick are the big boys. They have made it hard to break in for other promoters; they do seem to have monopolised the situation. This does lead to more generic nights, I think. More different promoters make it more interesting, catering to different clientele,” said Escape’s spokesperson.

A spokesperson for BabyLove said, “Balreick [the founder of RockEntz] has too much of a monopoly, and I think that it’s unhealthy…I have the view that it’s better to help student promoters.”

“Also, working with different independent promoters means that we have all different kinds of nights, with nights like Eclectric, Pop Tarts’ gay night, and Indie nights with the Narcissists.”

Edmunds, of Eclectric, claimed that the backing from the OUSU made Varsity Events’ domination of the market insurmountable. She said, “The scariest bit is that they have the mailing list from the OUSU, no-one else can compete with that; as soon as new students come they have already got access to them. It would be much better to have lot of individual promoters.”

Varsity Events is described in the Freshers’ Handbook as “the official OUSU-affiliated Entz company”. No other events promotion company can be affiliated with OUSU.

“It’s a really sad scenario that it’s so hard to arrange alternative nights for the amount of cheese,” Edmunds said. She added “lots of people go home to go clubbing, because it’s so much more expensive in Oxford.”

OUSU’s sponsorship of Pulse means that Varsity Events are able to advertise their club nights in emails from Oxford Student Services Limited, OUSU’s commercial subsidiary. This association means that students are aware of Varsity Events’ nights from the start of Fresher’s Week.

But Lewis Iwu, ex-president of OUSU, argued that such a monopoly could be a good thing, and defended OUSU’s decision to sponsor PulseNation.

“I see no problem with the idea of a monopoly on the clubbing scene,” he claimed, “as long as that monopoly isn’t abused, and club prices are still affordable, then I think that can’t be a problem.”

Some believe that the creation of Varsity Events has made a positive difference to the turn-out at clubs. Lava&Ignite manager Ken Getgood admitted, “Having [Varsity Events] working with us makes a huge difference in relation to the amount of students that attend our venue. Admissions wise we are at capacity every Wednesday for our Oxford Uni night – 1200 persons.” He defended the allegation of a lack of choice and variety saying, “I know they use all different types of venues so surely this offers variety to the students?”

The Bridge and Escape also conceded that Varsity Events do boost their student turn out. Escape said they get over 500 people on Fridays, while Bridge claim to reach capacity most Thursdays, both nights being run for Oxford University by Varsity Events.

A day centre for homeless people in Oxford could be closed down, after a report recommending funding cuts last month.

The Gap, located on Park End street, is currently funded by Oxford City Council. Without council money the project would have to close.

The report, which reviewed all of Oxford’s day centres, also recommended that the council remove the £10,000 funding for The Gatehouse drop-in centre for over 25s.

The Gap provides services for up to 60 homeless people a day aged between 16 and 25. Help offered includes access to shower and laundry facilities, computers, donated clothes and two daily meals. The centre also gives confidential advice and information to help people find accommodation and runs a range of classes in essential skills such as IT.

The closure of the project would leave the youngest of Oxford’s homeless community without a place to go. Age limits are in place in other shelters and drop-in centres to protect young people from abuse from older residents.

The report, which suggested the project would be unlikely to reflect the council’s new agendas of “rehabilitation” and “empowerment” better than other services, has been opposed by Councillor Patrick Murray.

Mr Murray, who was himself homeless in the winter of 1999-2000 due to depression, described how The Gap had helped him back into society. He has expressed concern for the planned closure.

“I want to see the work about where young people and people with mental health problems are going to go.

“I want to see that there’s going to be no gap in provision before any decisions about funding are taken.”

Critics claim that the proposed closure would force young homeless out of the ‘safe haven’ and on to the street.

One homeless girl in her twenties who asked not to be named described how she had woken up while sleeping on the streets to find two men with their hands under her clothes. “I’ve been sexually harassed, urinated on and spat at while on the street. It’s like people no longer see me as a human being.”

The proposal has caused concern among the student community. One Brasenose student, who volunteers giving out food and hot drinks to the homeless, said she was outraged by the report on funding cuts. “When Oxford is such an extravagantly wealthy town, the fact that the most vulnerable people are now going to face more time on the streets is simply unjustifiable.”

The report, which suggested the project was unlikely to reflect the council’s new agendas of “rehabilitation” and “empowerment” as well as other services, has been opposed by Councillor Patrick Murray.

Mr Murray, who was himself homeless in the winter of 1999-2000, described how The Gap had helped him back into society. He has expressed concern for the planned closure.

“I want to see the work about where young people and people with mental health problems are going to go.

“I want to see that there’s going to be no gap in provision before any decisions about funding are taken.”

A final decision about the fate of The Gap will be made in February 2010 when budgeting decisions for the council will be made.