Concrete issue 072 30 04 1997

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By JANE KIRBY, News Editor

UNIVERSITY BOSSES are set to fork out over £4 million In an attempt to rectify structural problems In UEA's top-spec accommodation.

Nel on Court, Constable Terrace and the Village are to undergo a major overhaul, following the di covery of faulty bower pods, wall linings and heating systems. this purpo e."

A total of 360 rooms will be stripped inefficient background heating sy tern - 12 per cent of UEA' s accommodation UEA will also splash out cash to caused by a reaction between water, capacity. redecorate the piu b residences. piping, and the heating element.

The University plans to get back the "We might as well do it at the same Speculation also surrounds the use of cash by taking legal action against time," said Mr Preece, "It is money that medium density fibreboard, which has would have been spent in the future." companies involved in the construction, been absorbing water from the showers. however Team Management who The news of the repairs comes as the R G Carter Limited and Wate developed the Village went bust last £12.3 million Village approaches its Construction who built Nelson and third birthday and ju t four years after Constable refusod to comment on the April, and in urers may have to cough Nelson Court and Constable Terrace overhaul, commencing in September. up for the eo t of repairs.

Nevertbele , UEA Director of were completed.

And Rick Mather Architects, who Communication , Alan Preece is designed the buildings Problems certain that the whopping £4 million unavailable for comment. can be recovered.

Students have also expressed Since developers began work on the ''The fact that we are prepared to 713 room site in 1993, the Village has confusion over the University's pursue it through the court is a clear been plagued with problems; including motives for carrying out the work indication of the advice we have been bower floors sloping the wrong way, during the semester, thus forcing them given that it is possible to regain all of kitchen windows opening no more than to move from Constable to Nelson over the co t," he aid. a few centimetre , and the discovery of the Chri tmas vacation. mouldy mattresses.

Frustration Inconvenience Back in 1994, Concrete also "One would not expect these exclusively revealed that 52% of ''The University do not seem to care residents in the Village felt the if they are eau ing inconvenience," said problems to occur and it i very. very fru trating ... accommodation offered poor value for one tudent living in Nelson Court.

He also revealed that until the eo t of money.

"If you count the number of times the work can be regained, The present problem in the £47.70 we will be moving in and out, it adds up accommodation bo es will be dipping per week en-suite rooms results from to a ridiculou amount." "ponding"; with shower water failing to into UEA's back-up funds .

"Is thi really the only solution?" ''The University has managed its drain properly, eau ing penetration and Centre But Accommodation taining of walls and ceilings. finances quite prudently and has Manager, Laurence Daly denie the ufftcient reserves to pay for the work," Nelson Court and Constable Terrace University is trying to protect its he said, adding, 'They are built up for face further problems involving an Continued on Page 2

Accommodation Centre Manager, Lsurence Daly In front of Nelson Court

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Concrete, Wednesday, April 30, 1997

BALL

THE DARING duo who made the front page of Concrete in 1995 have made a comeback, this tim e in the ViceChancellor's own chair.

The troublesome two who scaled the Registry and took down the University flag , replacing it with their own version "Welcome to Disney Land", came back in force, as this picture shows.

At the time of the original prank, one of the students commented, "It had to be done - a practica l joke to end all practical jokes."

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By EMMA SHOTION

Students have expressed anger following the decision to move the City-based Graduation Ball to Union House, writes John Spacey.

T icke ts went o n sal e yesterday for the event, which is scheduled to take place in the LCR o n July 4, tJ1e last day of graduation .

Ti cketS to cover the mea l cost £25 , and after-d inner tickets are £20.

Defending the deci ion t hold the ball in the LCR, Uni on Entertainments Manager Nick Rayns said, '"Last year we used St

Andrews Hall in the City and it just was not big enough for what we wamed to do. "ll was impossible to run entertain ment and eating in the same building and we fe lt th at th ing were too c ramped and loo difficult to stage that way."

The ball wi ll begin with a buffet in the congregation marquee at 8pm, before moving on to Union House for 9pm .

Plan s include a cocktail bar in the Hi ve. and live band s. and suit and dress hire will a! o be avail able on campus towards the ends of May. However, tudents gradu ating this year were o utraged at the decision .

Nicki Robertson (E Y4) commented, ·'tf it is in Uni on House then 1 am tempted not to go. ..It will just be a jazzed up LCR for twen ty odd quid."

Simon Grist (H! S3) and Emma Lee (EAS3), also e.xpres ed their anger, '"With the Graduati on Ceremony in the Sports Centre, it just adds in ult to inj ury."

Another student added, "T m disgusted ...

Nevertheless, Ni ck Ray ns in si red, "lt won ' t be a normal LCR. We will make it as different as we possibly can.

"W e anticipate putting on entertai nmen ts that will make it a memorable night. "

UNIVERSITY accommodation bosses and Norwich City Council have met to discuss the future of derelict residences, Fifers Lane.

The 38 acre si te , wh ic h c losed for good in 1994, h <~s been s ubj ect to vanda lism and fires in recent yca r5.

EA pays almost £I 00.000 per year to the o uncil for the sit e, on a lca,c whi ch is set to run until 2007.

A meeting held last month failed 10 reac h an amicable solu tion between the two parties. but UEA is still keen to ri d itself of the burden of the lease.

""The Univen.ity''> negotiatiom have bee n aim ed at tr) ing to >ecu re a , urrender of th e Jca<,c," >aid UEA s Directo r of Estates and Buildin gs .

Ri chard Goodall . " ego tiati ons arc co ntinuing, but nothing has been resolved yet. " Demolit ion is o ne o ption being conside red. but the Council remains sceptical that the bui ldings are beyo nd repair. " We are not convinced that Fifers La ne is at the end of its fu ll life," said a Cou ncil spokesperson . '" We have had vario us unsolici ted express ions of interest. and are looki ng at ways of reso lvin g the issue.'"

£4 million overhaul coutiuu ed from frout page

...conference guests. who occupy Nel son Co urt during the summer vacation. " We looked at various ways of achieving work," he said . "and it is being done durin g the semes ter purely because of the time needed to complete the job."

He added that th e Un iversity intends to lay on removal van s to he lp students move their pos essions across the campus.

Uni versity chiefs al so guaranteed that rent s wi 11 not rise as a result of

the maint enan ce wo rk . but wi ll remain at or around the rate of in nati on until the year 2000.

However, Union Welfare Officer, Pau l Donnelly is concerned that those who arc not guaranteed a room on campus will suffer. " it does make a big difference to returning students," he sa id , adding, "T he worry I have is that they will be di sadvantaged as a res ult of the building work ."

And Welfare Officer-elect , Gary Massey fears that with fewer rooms availabl e on campus, students may

be forced to pay hi gher rents in the City. '"There is going to be increased press ure on th e private sector," he said . " My concern is that we n1i ght see a lot of o pportun ist land lo rd s appearing.· · But Laurence Dal y re mains adamant that students are a pri ority. '" Returnin g stude nt s are definitel y very impo rtant to us.'" he said, "espec iall y tho e in their final year, who are given priority on the waiLing li st.'"

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Concrete, Wednesday, April 30. 1997

Campus rabbits under threat as UEA allows P-Oachers a free rein

By KATIE NICHOLL, Assistant News Editor Anti-animal abuse campaigners have expressed outrage, following the discovery that UEA bosses have given the all-clear for the culling of rabbits on campus.

The University has called in "qualified pest controllers" but admits that poachers have also been visiting the site, using nets and dogs to catch rabbits. running track.

Co-President of the UEA AntiAnimal Abuses Society, John de "It is the responsibility of the Sousa, is furious and believes the University to maintain a playing rabbits are causing no harm. field of that nature," he said.

"We are required by law to keep "I think the method they have chosen to employ is inhumane," he rabbits under control." said.

Mr Hovey also confirmed that "If there is an overpopulation of rabbits have been found on grazing rabbits, then there are other methods land and pose a danger to stock, but that can be used such as trapping." when questioned as to whether they were his own horse , his answer wa~ Spokesperson for the RSPCA, Charlotte Monisey agreed. unclear.

"No I do not:' be said, but added, "Well, sometimes I do, and "We are opposed to the hunting of sometimes I do not."

He added that contractors have all animals with dogs; it is cruel and received benefits for supplying the unnecessary," she said.

However, UEA Superintendent of rabbits to various outlets, including the School of BIO research team.

Grounds, John Hovey, believes that the rabbits are causing extensive But bead of research, Dr Diane Bell, denies that she has received damage to UEA's top quality

Hunting

Anti animal abuse campaigners, John de Sousa and Dave Finn

any rabbits from contractors and feels that culling will interfere with ongoing research into natural behaviouraJ patterns.

"We do not think there is a rabbit problem, in fact quite the contrary," she said, adding that that the number of rabbits wjll be kept in check by the wave of myxomtosis set to sweep across the region shortly.

Absurd Refening to research, she said, "It is absolutely absurd that rabbit control is going on without informing people who are involved in work of international importance.

"Our area has been broken into and we have been targeted by poachers. as I predicted we would be."

Dean of BIO, Dr !an Gibson.

added, "It shows a lack of respect for the high flying research at UEA." But Mr Hovey insisted: "We certainly do not carry out any rabbit control in the compound or its close environment."

Mr Hovey also confirmed that poison has been used to kill rabbits in the past and the University would use this method again if necessary.

"We are perfectly entitled to use that method and we will do that if rabbits become a problem." he said.

He also denied that anyone had ever been injured a~ a result of the use of pellets, despite the fact that Dr Bell was hopitalized following contact with the poison.

Confusion now surrounds the University's policy on the issue, and contractors have been told not to come onto campus until some

kind of policy is worked out.

University Campus and Planning Manager, Mike Stamford is sure that every effort will be made to ensure that rabbits are not killed unnecessarily.

"We are trying to find out as much information as we can,'' he said. "Obviously we do not want to cull rdbbits unless we really have to."

Determined However, campaigners are still determined to stop the culling of rabbits at UEA .

"Once we find.. out where its happening we will employ ways of stopping them either by diverting the dogs or sabotaging nets," said John de Sousa.

"We are very effective at taking direct action."

F YE STAR

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I I I I I I I 102·4 I I I I I I I

THE UNION has yet to decide the future of a cash windfall received from a lucky investment - the total of which is a whopping £93,840.

In 1984 the Union bought shares worth £4,000 in East Anglian Radio as a goodwill gesture to the local community.

Then last year, Wiltshlre-based GWR FM bought up EAR, causing share prices to soar and netting the Union almost £95,000.

But as yet, the Union has not made any decisions how to spend the cash and Union Finance Officer, Ginge Kaye says that the Union Is keeping Its options open.

"The money is working for the Union and its Interests," he said, adding, "At the moment there are no plans to spend it on anything specific."

The most likely projects set to receive a lump sum are a Union catering outlet In the Hive and

a pharmacy on campus.

"The idea was that the Union would be running a pharmacy," said Ginge, "but space is a big premium.

"And we are definitely going to have a catering facility, but where it is going to be is anybody's guess."

The cost of a catering outlet could be in the region of £80,000, but other plans for the cash include creating a balcony in the LCR. "We have the money now to do it, but it is a testion of which project to spend the money on," said Ginge.

"We have got a few projects that would benefit from that money, but we have got to make sure they are right."

However, Ginge added that no research has yet been carried out amongst students to see how they think the cash should be spent.

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Concrete, Wednesday, Ap ril 30, 1997

Play LAW BALL GETS GO· AHEAD, BUT ORGANISERS ARE TOLD: carefully THE UNION Adv ice Un it plans to hold a safe-sex week in an attempt to increase student awareness on campus, writes Emma Newbury.

Scheduled to begin next Monday, Union Welfare Officer, Paul Donnelly hopes to grab student's attention by hanging free condoms from trees and making leaflets available.

"The week is to promote sexual awareness amongst the 18.-25 year-old group," he said .

"The majority of people in this age group feel that they are immortal , and will go unaffected by the diseases that can affect their lives."

Each of the four days will focus on a particular issue, including women 's health, men 's hea lth , AI DS, an d health for gay men.

Tile UGM next Wednesday will also give students a chance to vote on whether the Un ion sho uld be affiliated with the campaign group Free Choice.

Paul also hopes to launch a Drugs Awareness Ca m paign the f ollowing week, with infor mation being free ly avai lable.

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By JANE KIRBY, News Editor

The Law Society has confirmed plans for its all-night bash despite coming up against opposition from Council licensing chiefs.

T he ba ll , set to be held in the grounds of Earl ham Hall, came under att ack last year for causing sleep less nights to UEAs neighbours.

Norw ich C it y Counci l la;t year .

"We got complaint; from m·cr a Environment al Hea lth Department rece ived fo ur complaints about noise m il e away. in areas includi ng po llutw n and Norw ich police received Bowthorpe."

Council Spokesperson. Rachel another 15 following the bal l which run s from 6pm to 6am .

Bobbit added , " We have to ensure that As a result, the Council now intends residents arc not disturbed ." to place restrictions on the lice nce, However, me mbers of the Law incl uding the recommendati on that no Society Commitiee believe that the Counci l may have acted hastily . amplified m usic is played after l lpm .

"T hey are being really strict thi s year," said Social Secretary Loui se " For the period following 11pm the Hen nessy . di sco would have to be run at nothing " I th ink it is unfair that they are more than background music," said treating us harshly because of what ounci l Poll ution Control Manager, happened last year.

Michael Stephenson. " We are a whole new comminee."

But he was also keen to poi nt out Members of the Society will make that the Coun ci l was taking the issue of spot checks around campus throughout the license serio usly. the evening in order to monitor noise " We are not makin g th ese levels. recommendations on a whim," he said .

Justifying the 6arn finish, Society "There wa a very serious problem Treasurer, Katherine Beacom said , " !t

Background music

NORWICH ARTS CENTRE Norwich's livelist venue

COST Of LAW BALL 's Ball will cost at This ye ar least £42,000: Marquees £14,500 Rides £2,5° 0 Bands £3,000 casino £5,000 Insurance £1 ,ooo

is completel y di fferent to anything else we do. " W ith the Law Ball the hi ghli ght is the sophistication and tJ1e duration of the event."

Tickets are set to go on sale o n May 12 and will be distributed for a three day period.

Law Society members only wi ll be able to obtain ti ckets on the fi rst day and are allowed to buy two dinner tickets and two after-dinner tickets.

The cost will be £40 per dinner ticket for members and £42 fo r non-members.

After-dinner tickets are £30 and £32 respectively , highlighting an increase of £2 per ti cket on la t year.

Plans for the e vent incl ude

rides . an up-market breakfast , a separate bars marquee and new colour sche mes and marq uee layout.

There will also be a greater security presence in order to cut down o n the number of students who try to gai n entry to the ball without a ticket.

Finances Katherine prai ed how the committee have worked thi s year, fo llowing last year's allegations members mis managed that finances and saved tickets for friend .

"We have gelled better as a tea m and are sharing the respo nsibil ity amongst ourselves," he said.

"We are much further ahead with our plans because we started so early.·· She added that the Society ftnds it difficult to keep the ball open lO al l students, and could sell the tickets for the ball an estimated twice over. " We feel pressured because we do not li ke th e idea that peopl e think we are just doing it for the benefi t of the Law Society members," she said.

And she welcomed tJ1e idea of anotJ1er bal l run by the Union or University. " [ think it would be a shame if anyone tried to compete with us," she aid, " but another ball in additi on would be good. "

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The Union bars have underg one a maj or overhaul - all in the name of p rovidi ng students with the 'perfect' pint, writes Katie Nicho/1.

Metered pu mps were insta ll ed in the U ni on bars over the Ea, ter vacati o n, to e nsure that p ints eq ual 20 nuid o un ces and no more .

T hl'> means that students will no longer be allowed to ask for a lOp-up on their average pint. but Un ion Fi nance O ffice r, G in ge Kaye insists that the pump; arc nece>sary.

"The) were pu t in to a>s i>l benc r ' lock control." he said. but wa; unabl e to spec ify as to whether the pumps were in, talled as a rc>uh of beer sh rini-.agc.

The new pumps arc bein g funded by Whi tbread at no cost to the Union. \\llO \\ ill jus! be responsible for the cooli ng and d1 ; tri buti on of !he beer. " We sell a lot of the ir beer... s;ud G111ge. " Wh itbread suppl ) the cellar

and expense eq uipmenl 10 ensure the1r produ ct is up to their standard ...

He added that studcms shou ld not

reall y be affec ted by the move. wh ich he says will prevent them rece iving inaccurate measure'> .

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Concrete. Wednesday, April 30, 1997

Alarming remedy UEA ACCOMMODATION bosses are set to clamp down on the reasons for false fire alarms, writes Jane Kirby.

In a statement handed to Concrete last week, Accommodation Centre Manager, Laurence Daly said that something had to be done to stop the false alarms - of which dozens have been reported in recent weeks.

"People are tired of having to evacuate residences and stand outdoors in their nightclothes," he said.

The University plans to modify smoke sensors In order to cut down on the number of alarms going off accidentally and will also cover "break glass" fire alarms with plastic in a bid to stop hoaxers.

There will also be a point of contact for anonymous callers to report offenders, and anyone caught setting off fire alarms will be charged.

Security patrols and the possibility of Installing closed-circuit television are other measures the University Is looking Into to Improve the. situation.

By KATIE NICHOLL, Assistant News Editpr

A top local judge has Issued a warning to young people after a UEA student was Imprisoned for possession of cannabis.

Chemistry undergraduate, Jonathan Evans, pleaded guilty to possession and intention to supply earlier this month when Judge Paul Downes also warned other students that drugs would not be tolerated.

"A four month prison sentence is dealt with in any other way than are going to come down heavily on sufficient to bring the point home," imprisonment," he said, adding that you." said Judge Downes, but added that he this was not an isolated case.

However, UEA Security Supremo, felt Jonathan' s sentence was lenient.

"I do not think it is a one off Morris Morson insists that the arrest "In normal circumstances he would incident because I know there are and imprisonment do not have any have got fifteen months but he was in other cases in the pipeline." connection with the University. the last year of hi s degree and I 'The drugs offences for which he However, Chief Inspector Sandra wanted to interrupt it as little as Wilkinson maintains that Jonathan's was charged and imprisoned did not possible." case is unusual. occur on University grounds," he said.

'There was no evidence that the 'This is a different issue to regular However, Judge Downes maintained that jail was the only way personal possession which is what case involving Jonathan Evans had of getting the message across that 99% of any arrests at the University anything to do with the University drug dealing will not be tolerated, would be," she said. other than the fact that he was a 'This is an arrest of someone with university student." despite Jonathan' s claims that he was Nevertheless, Mr Morson agreed only dealing to small group of friends intent to supply.

"I think that people have to realise that the sentence should be a warning and had no previous track record of the difference between personal to other students, saying, "Any drugs related offences.

"Because he was helping drugs to possession and intention to supply. publicity that draws attention to the "It is a warning," she added. unlawful use and the dangers of using be circulated in an educational "If you deal drugs the authorities drugs is welcome."

UEA CHIEFS SAY 'NO' TO GRAD TEST ACADEMICS from UEA's Career Centre have expressed concern over a new test which alms to boosts graduate employment levels.

The Graduate Employability Test, costing about £100, is a commercial venture which tests three areas: business awareness, computer literacy and personality.

Graduates can take the benefit to students," he said.

"The Careers Centre test at any of the 50 test centres nation-wide and would naturally be advising then show their results to students to be very careful prospective employers in that their money is well the hope of boo ting their spent." chances of getting a job.

Dr McGilvray is now However, Dr Ian urging students to make the McGilvray feels that the test most of the resources the is largely a commercial Centre has to offer, venture and will provide including courses and little benefit to students. workshops aimed at student's "It is widely recognised increasing throughout the UK that it is confidence when entering an .expensive test with little the job market.

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Concrete, Wednesday, April 30, 1997

French connection

The high flyers FIGURES released by UEA reveal that the class of '93 are doing well for themselves, writes Amy Pierce.

77 per cent of student s w ho g radu ated in 路93 are in full tim e work . w ith the ir ave rage earnings set at a hea lth y 拢 16,3 18.

90 per ce nt of th ose who responded to UEA's survey now say they fee l they are head in g in th e right d irec ti on in term s of employment. Bu t fig ure> revea l that six months aft er grad uati on, 32.8 per ce nt of >tude nts we re unempl oyed.

63 per cent o f student s also had debts when they left UEA. a quarter of which were over 拢2.000.

However. Jan Anderso n fro m SOC 's Economi cs Research Centre is still qui ck to po int out that the un employ ment fi gures were still well below the nati onal average of 43.9 per cent and that by 1996 the fig ure had fa ll en to just three per cent.

Mrs Anderson be li eves that students shou Id now aim to have a ra nge of skill s in order to increase the ir chances of empl oyment upon graduat ion.

"20 years ago if you got a good academi c degree th at was yo ur passpon to a job," she said .

"These days there are far more graduates chasing fewer jobs."

She added that overaJithe caree rs centre was pleased with the hi gh leve l of graduate employment. " l think that it is a reall y positi ve statistic: 路 she said. " UEA gradu ates are bein g successful in th e e mployme nt mark et. "

Sabbatical Officer quits job to P-Ursue lifelong ambition

By JANE KIRBY, News Editor UNION COMMUNICATIONS Officer, Nick Robinson has quit his post - in favour of a job birdwatching.

Nick, who took up the post of Communications Offi cer last July, be lieves he h as fo und his "dream job" as Warden of Cape Clear Bird Observatory in County Cork off the West coast of Ireland. office, he replied, "This year has "I'm going into a field which I am qualified for and for which 1 been a wonderful year. have many years experience," he "I and the other Sabbaticals have restored the Union' s said. " I would not have dreamed of cre<libility and the fundan1ental chance to move forward ." leaving had not such an envious However, the 27 year-old place come up. be lieves that changes need to be Dream job made to the Union's structure in "This i a dream job," he order to make it work more added, "it is bigger than me and effectively.

"1 do believe that the Union is will give me a huge chance to not guided by students and for improve myself." students," he said.

Nick became a fully qualified "Personalities have influenced ringer following five years of training, but said that he bad got the Union much more than they the job "by word of mouth" and should and this is fundamentally \ wrong. had not filled out any application "We have got to get back to forms for the post. finding out what students want.

When asked about his term in

Ex-Communications Officer, Nick Robinson : " This job 's bigger than me."

"1 think the system here is archaic as it is at many other Unions across the country."

Upset Union Academic Officer, Becky Co lley said she was "upset" to see Nick go. " I totaJly understand why he has gone and l wish him all the best," she added.

The post of Communications Officer will now be open as a non-sabbatical

post for the period unti l next year's SabbaticaJs take office in July.

The closing date for nominations is tomorrow, with the election being held next Friday, May 9.

However, Communications Officer elect, Andy Watson says that he will not be standing for the position.

"I am in the finaJ year of my degree and the pressure is on," he said, "And with other commitments I have got I would not be able to do the job properly."

STUDENTS from UEA 's Anti-Nazi League visited Strasbourg last month in protest against a neo-nazi convention being held in the City.

Eight out of 17 members of the league took part in a massive demonstration to protest against National Front activity in France.

Said President Niamh Dineen, " We do need to oppose fascism wherever it appears, but now that Europe is gaining momentum and Britain will soon be a part of it, it is more and more worrying."

Niamh added that the demonstration started peacefully but soon escalated into violence , " At the end of the evening there was fighting between the riot police and the anti fascist demonstrators," she said.

But Niamh believes it was vital to address the issue. " I feel it was very important to go and show our solidarity," she said , " particularly because in this country we do not have such a large National Front representation."

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Concrete, Wednesday, April 30, 1997

THE COSMOPOLITAN Show hits London again this year, bringing to the capital the very best in fashion and beauty.

The Show, which only opened last year, will be at Earl's Court next week from May 2·5, and Concrete has got five pairs of tickets to this exclusive eventl

So If you fancy a day out in London celebrating Calvin Kleln, Vldal Sassoon, Andrew Colllnge and other top names, just call the Concrete hotllne on Norwich 250558.

The first five people to call with their name, school and telephone number will win tickets for themselves and a friend absolutely freel

By EMMA NEWBERY

UEA BOSSES have been strongly criticised over draft proposals to slash funding, following Concrete's discovery of a detailed document.

Concrete obtained the document last month and can exclusively reveal that UEA chiefs are intending to cut cash to the majority of schools and the Library.

A decrease of 1.8 per cent in "The documents are clearly research, following the Research the government grant means that not firm and have no basis other Assessment Exercise conducted UEA will have to make dramatic than as a starting point for last November. cuts, and the Library could lose a discussion."

VEA aims to increase its massive£186,194.

However, an internal source performance before the next RAE Union Academic Officer, maintained that library funding takes place in the year 2000, and Becky CoUey described the draft would inevitably be slashed, Alan Preece is confident of the proposals as "shocking", adding, following a meeting held last benefits of investing in research.

"It is a sad state when you see week between officials.

"In terms of deciding where to cuts being made across the And in a letter to aU academic put money you have to think board." staff, Vice-Chancellor, Dame about priorities," he said.

Elizabeth Esteve-Coll stated, "The decision that faces us is Reduced funding "The financial situation is likely how we are able to achieve this damagi ng student The document details two to worsen at least unti l the year wi thout 2000." services and some of our versions of how UEA could But Head Librarian, Dr Baker, research projects." reduce funding to faculties - the believes that the Library wi ll be worst affected schools would be Furious able to make up any shortfall Chemistry, Physics and Music. through bidding for cash However, top-dogs within the However, Becky Colley is investments, and he is confident University ms1st that the furious that the University may that the proposal to extend document Concrete has obtained penalise undergraduate study in opening hours could still go is just "modelling work". favour of research.

Said VEA Head of Planning ahead.

"It angers me that VEA has and Development, Alan Jones, "I would hope that it is unlikely become so dependent on looking "It really is quite a complex that the Library wi ll be cut at league tables." she said. process which is not yet significantly," he added, ''There is "I do not think the University anywhere near completion." a general view that it is a central is geared up to educating Director of Communications, academic service." students anymore but to getting Alan Preece commented, "It The news of the proposed cuts the most prestigious research sounds like someone is trying to comes as the University proposes base it can." make mischief. ploughing more cash into

Stress reduction

The University Counselling service In conjunction with the Health Centre have set another two dates to help students and staff control their stress levels. \ first session, The Relaxation Skills, _alms to '.

reduce tension, Improve sleep and concentration, and boost confidence. lt will be held on Thursday, May 15 from 6pm to Spm and the cost Is £5 for students.

Tt-te second session looks

at head and shoulder massage and will be held on Tuesday, May 20.

To book for either of these sessions just see Chrlstlne Jope at the Counselling Centre to fill out a booking form.

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8 News in depth

Concrete, Wednesday, April 30, 1997

•

Top·dog ra1ner DOUGLAS TRAIN E R will enjo y a secon d year as President, following his reelection at this year's NUS Conference , writes Sam Richard s .

Delegates from universt t ies .tround the country \\ ho attended the cunft:rence held tn BI..tLk.pool l.tst month, \ oted overwhelmingly in favour of rl'tumtrg Tr trer to •he post '>tamliPg .ts a l , bour StLdcPt, I rat Per pt> ~d '\99 H'l ,, 271 ahead of the Campaign for I rec hlucat ion CTE) candidate !\lie~ Duncan. \nd i 1 a biurre tv."t. L'f'As ow•1 candidate for .he P'"t. Gince Ka)c. failed to tum up at Confe rence and had his name w i thdr~m n from the

ballot paper.

Ex plaining hi s non appearance.

G inge said that it was a last-minute dec ision. based part ly on the fear that he would spli t the vote of a fe llow independent candidate, l\laf) Page. who he claimed "wou ld do a better job than me .. M! dcc"ion was also based on personal and financial reasons:· hl' added.

Last semester. Ginge failed to be elected to LEAs p<trt) ol seven Conference delegates, \\ hJCh left htm unable to c<tll on L nion expenses to pay hts t1 .tvcl Ices to Blad.poot Top i"ues bemg d cussed at this )Car's Conferencl' tnc luded Higher Education and the Dean ng revtC\\ Ftmhcr EduLaBon. Anti

Fasctsm, Antt-Radsm.and Fducation Funding.

The post of vice· prcstdent in charge of f-urther Education and Lnion Developmen t went to local based :--Jathan !le) w< od . w l•o i the current NUS comenor for Suffolk. CambnJgeo;h1re and "iorfolk.

Other Cu:Jdidalc eh:ct~d a ful time me11b1..·s of the Nattonal [ xccutt\ e CPmmittcc tnclude: Simon Webher as N.tttonal Secreta\, Andrcw Pales (Labour )tudcnt-;) Js •• tlt<'-li Treas re Lee hndell (Labour Stud~.-nts) ~' \ ce Pre idcnt for l:ducatton and Julte Easnn 11 ,thour Students) as Vice Pn:stdent for We lfare NUS Co/lfe re/lce from tlze i11side, see page 12

CONCRETE'S QUESTIONS

W N! WIN! WIN! THOSE wonderful people at Tipp-Ex have come up with a revolutionary wa y of being able to scrawl over all th e books in the library and yet return them unmarked!

Marker Mouse is a special highlighting tape so that you can underline and mark in books without causing any permanent damage.

1: What are your views on the proposed top up fees ?

2: Are you planning to make any alterations to the grants and loans structures ?

3: How w o uld you address t he issue of higher education fundin g ?

4: What are your views on graduate une mployment ?

5 : Wh ere do y o u stand on th e issue of c an nabi s legalisation ?

6: Do you oppose or p romote th e st rengthening of economic and legislative ties ac r o ss Europe ?

7: Do you feel that yo u h av e student s u pport ?

All you have to do is rub out the dry ta pe with a normal eraser.

Concrete, in conjunction with the makers of Marker Mouse, have got 100 of these handy dispensers to give away.

Just call into the Concrete office and tell us which colour you would like.

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1: "I would be pleased if the government would fund students.

A lot depends on how wealthy your parents are. I would like to make it more standard and uniform ."

2: "We are trying to fight on a single issue . There is no point in promising anything if you cannot deliver the promise, soon very few people will be able to deliver."

3: "In principle I feel that students should be able to fund themselves adequately and should not have a debt when they leave. But you have to be real istic."

4: "Th ere is a lot of unemployment. Many graduates are getting lower interest jobs just to get experience so they can eventually get into something a bit more to their liking . " 5: "I would want very close monitoring of th is with a government health organisation , and until I am conv inced that it is very, very safe I would not alter the law as it stands."

6: "We are asking that the government have a full and fair referendum to let everybody decide that issue. We favour free trad ing with Eu rope but we are not happy with the cu rren t situ ation."

7: "I do not think that anyone can be sure of support at all , it is what happens in the ballot box which counts."

1: "I think that all students ought to be on a full grant as I was. The country should invest its money in education rather than prisons for instance ."

2: "Students should not be saddled with a loan for the rest of their lives. I do not think that it enables them to concentrate on what th ey should be doing."

3: "I would take away money from the prison and the defence budgets. lt is a case of the rea llocation of funds with a heavier emphasis on education ."

4: "I do not feel more sorry for graduates who are unemployed than anyone else . I just thi nk it is a shame that highly qualified people cannot be put to good use."

5: "I am for it more than anyone I have ever met. At the moment people are paying huge ammounts for a naturally occurring herb. I think it is ridiculous that people like me could make millions of pounds out of kids like you ."

6: "I think that a referendum would be suitable for the European question . Personally I am for greater integration , I am not too keen on borders."

7: "I do; but I am generally with th ose who support me. There seem to be a Jot of supporters but I do not know what percentage of the student population they represent ."

...

Concrete, Wednesday, April 30, 1997

1: "The current level of financial support will be maintained. Tax benefits will be given to families who keep their children in higher education until twenty one years of age."

2: "We would discuss with all relevant bodies, which includes the Students Union, as to what should be the way forward with appropriate student financing."

3: "We do not have a policy which we wish to dictate upon people.

We would wish there to be local decision making at a local level."

4: "If graduates are unemployed it seems to suggest a failure with education. Either we are not educating them or we are creating a system which is preventing them from realising their creativity."

5: "We are not in favour of nonprescribed drugs. we¡ think that they have a negative effect on an individual's consciousness. They make people less coherent."

6: "The issue of Europe is polarising into either having a strong European Union or having strong national sovereignty. The Natural Law Party is saying we should have both."

7: "There is a lack of knowledge.

There is a gap between us; the media and students. We do not get our knowledge across as we would like."

1 : "I think that the idea of setting up unnatural barriers to studying and learning; to improve not only ourselves but also society is absolutely wrong."

2: "Firstly to make it possible to pay off over a longer period, also to ensure the loan system responds to ability to pay; and to reduce the loan and increase the actual grant."

3: "The long term future of student finance will be based on the tax system, putting more money in the system rather than the students who are currently going through University having to pay."

4: "We will only succeed and compete in the worlds competitive economy of skills if young people coming out of university can do the jobs which they are equipped to do."

5: "I am against the further legalisation of drugs unless professional and scientific research can clearly demonstrate that a change in the law will have no effect on increasing the consumption of drugs; 6: "I am in favour of a referendum and a closer approach to Europe rather than a distancing from Europe. The single currency would depend entirely on the economic condition at the time."

7: "I have been very encouraged walking around the campus on the number of occasiond I have been

1 : "I am totally against it and the Green Party are. We believe that students fees should be paid in full."

2: "In the long term we would introduce our basic income scheme which would give all young people a living allowance of as much if not more than the grant."

3: "I think that education is a high priority for everybody. We want education funded from the local and regional level and we want the priorities to be made at this level."

4: "This is the point of the basic income scheme where you give people security so that they can look for a career that suits them and develops their own skills."

5: "Personally I am in favour of an immediate decriminalisation of cannabis and the other lesser drugs. I am totally in favour of cannabis for medical use."

6: "I oppose the centralisation of economic policy making by, for instance an unaccountable central bank. What I want Europe to be is effective regions co-operating with each other."

7: "Yes I know students who are Green Party members and there are a significant numbers of students who are sympathetic towards the Green issues."

NelNS in depth 8

1: "We would oppose any move to charge for education because we believe in free education at the point of delivery from the cradle to the grave."

2: "We would propose a full scale audit of the tax and benefits system. This means that we would put extra finance into education and Higher Education."

3: "We do see that Higher Education is very important. For post-sixteen education and training courses we will create a new quality council to ensure . higher standards and value for money."

4: "If we kick start the public sector by using targeted additional taxation for specific areas of public expenditure this will have a knockon effect, creating additional jobs at all levels."

5: "Our party did vote at a conference in 1994 to look into the legalisation of cannabis. We would set up a Royal Commission to look at the health implications of that."

6: "We do not advocate that everything should be governed by Eurocrats, but key important issues like the environment and prosperity do need to be looked at in a wider scope than our shores."

7: "Yes I believe so. As a student myself I get a chance to talk to students at City College and there is an underlying support for us."

depend on Sir Ron National Committee of but I think our policy of grant and 50% student loan is good thing for students."

"Sir Ron Dearing's enquiry into education is coming out on , the structure and the Higher Education, support for students for next twenty years."

"Graduate unemployment in this is far lower than on the I consider the university 's"'"""ms. the people in Higher and Further Education as for our economy." against the legalisation of ,....,,,n.,,h,., for recreational use until a time as we prove its medical No doctor and no pharmacist want to see it being ,_..,,.,,.,,;h.,.oi indiscriminately."

"Of couese I support legislation Europe to promote European or protect European trade, but we have to have more ment interference I say no." think so, with un-employment away as we have seen I believe that students coming of UEA would want a change of i.v-.â&#x20AC;˘>~ornrnont â&#x20AC;˘

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12 Features·

Concrete, Wednesday, April 30, 1997

• The National Union of Students Conference takes place every spring. Decisions taken dictate student union policy for a whole year, yet how m~ny students know what is really being decided in their name? Sam Richards certainly didn't, so he joined UEA's seven delegates for the long trip to Blackpool ess than ten minutes of the 1997 National Union of Students Conference have elapsed. NUS President, Douglas Trainer, h<!S just delivered his opening address but barely has he had a chance to sip at his Evian before a procedural motion has been lodged.

The chair informs us that it is Standing Order 405c: that a Standing Order be suspended for a specified length of time for a specified reason. I am desperately fumbling through the pile of documents I have diligently collected (most of which later L prove to be irretevant) in order to make " sense of proceedings. 1500 confused delegates wave their little orange and yellow cards in the air. Someone else lodges • Standing Order 405a. I look hopefully at my neighbour who shrugs extravagantly. Just what the hell is going on?

You see, NUS Conference is not just a big UGM - it's a big UGM with political pretensions. Most of the National Executive Committee sat in front of us on the platform will be MPs in a few years time. Everything has to be done properly, hence the esoteric jargon. it's baffling at first, but once immersed in this strange world for ~ couple of hours, I am soon talking of card votes and CD17s as confidently as the next man.

Though constitutional measures may seem petty and designed to confuse the outsider, they are actually pretty important for the smooth running of Conference and for the preservation of democracy. An inadvertent side-effect of such bureaucracy, however, is to create the illusion of positive action. I sit through three days of shouting, bantering, arguing, card-waving, cheering, leering and electioneering, and at times, it all seems quite exciting. In retrospect, though, I ask myself: what was actually decided at Conference '97? it's difficult to say.

The Conference is held in a complex called the Winter Gardens which is basically Blackpool in microcosm, being made up of bars, amusement arcades, souvenir shops and all the architectural flourishes of your kitsch nightmares - we end Monday night's drinking in an astounding cod-medieval banqueting hall. Entertaining elsewhere in the complex during our residence are Jim Davidson and Peter Andre (although s.adly not as a duo).

Blackpool itself is a cross between Coronation Street and Las Vegas on a budget.

A brief. stroll along the blustery, neon-lit prom and one is almost glad to be back on

L

Conference floor amongst the left· wing in-fighting. Almost.

The running order largely consists of the elections for this year's National Executive Committee (the NEC, NUS' highest governing body), and the debate of four key motions, the subjects of which have already been decided and voted on by Student Unions around the country. Higher Education And The Dearing Review, Further Education, Anti-Fascism And Anti-Racism and Education Funding were chosen from a list of 31 motions, including one which asked Conference to recognise that Star Trek is the standard by whic1 all other science fiction should be judged. Stude1t Grant is alive and well and running Bristol University Union.

During the first debate, concerning Higher Education And Dearing, the pattern for voting at Conference becomes quite clear. Anyone who believes that student politics is free of party lines is severely mistaken, but the Labour Party is the only one you might recognise.

Labour Students are the most powerful single body here, and roughly half of the NEC (including the outgoing President and Treasurer) are proud to call themselves Labour Students. ndoubtedly, the commencement of the general election campaign casts a gloomy shadow over Conference, and the Labour Students are preaching selfrestraint. Although the general election is hardly mentioned, it's obvious that the intention is to give Tony Blair a smooth ride through his -campaign and, if elected, his first year of government.

This attitude is disappointing - the fact that Labour Students appear to be adopting New Labour policy as their own means that a vote for their proposals would effectively leave NUS with no bargaining power against the whims of a potential Labour government.

Thus, it becomes the domain of the more left-wing or 'socialist' organisations to shake things up a little. If only this were the case.

The most prominent group are known as the Campaign for Free Education (CFE), although they appear to be a reincarnation of a previous left-wing group, Left Unity. Also maintaining a high profile are the Socialist Worker Student Society (SWSS). Beyond th s, there are numerous other minor left· wing factions distinguishable only by the shade of red used in th eir

U

F e a tures 13

Concrete, Wednesday, April 30, 1997

' ' badges. Although the CFE, SWSS and others end up voting together on most issues, they despise each other almost as much as they despise the Tories. This lack of unity, combined with a counterproductive confrontational approach, makes it easier for Labour Student~ who are, on the whole, regimentally organised, and who have the backing of a major political party. The left-wing threat never truly emerges.

There are probably more than 700 politically independent delegates here, but their views are often lost beneath the political banner-waving.

The Higher Education Funding And Dearing debate hinges on a key amendment which suggests that rather than sit back and wait for the result of Sir Ron Dearing's inquiry, NUS should withdraw from the review altogether and begin fighting for its demands from outside. The amendment is defeated after a strong speech by Douglas Trainer condemns the "revolutionaries" who he claims are only impeding progress. lt is the first evidence of 'Trainermania'; although he never seems to be saying anything particularly exciting, his aggressive method of public speaking sends the Labour Students into paroxysms of delight.

NUS President, although only two of these have a realistic chance of winning the election. The first is the ubiquitous Douglas Trainer, courting re-election. 'Trainermania' is at its peak and Trainer peremptorily shouts down hecklers whilst lambasting the 'radicals' who he sees as the main threat to NUS democracy. Mick Duncan of the CFE, however, is an equally competent speaker and hits back at Trainer with allegations of Labour Student sleaze as well as claims that the NEC is abandoning the wishes of real students in exchange for career advancement within the Labour party.

A notable absentee is UEA's very own Ginge Kaye, whose failure to be elected as a delegate left him without any funds to actually get to Blackpool.

His name is subsequently withdrawn from the ballot papers.

Despite an apparently evenly split crowd at informal hustings, Trainer gains the Presidency by 599 votes to Mick Duncan's 328.' In the National Secretary election, UEA's Dave Manningham, standing ' as a SWSS candidate, trails in third with 55 votes after

hangovers onto Conference floor on Wednesday morning, but an unexpected victory is scored by the CFE in the 'Block Of 12' vote to elect 12 parttime members to the NEC. While Labour Students only manage to get two of their three candidates elected, the CFE boast three supporters on the final committee.

This result preludes a fierce final debate on the Education Funding issue. The original motion acknowledges increased incidences of student debt, and pledges to oppose top· up fees in all their forms.

Amendments 1 and 2 are passed as further additions to the main motion, but there is concern that the policy is not strong enough and would leave the government free to introduce a graduate tax without encountering strong opposition. The CFE talk of mass demonstrations and funding Higher Education through raising levels of taxation for the rich. Labour Students talk of "realism not rhetoric" but fail to fully alleviate fears that they would support a graduate tax of some form .

Amendment 3, which advocates a national demonstration to protest against fees and education underfunding, suggests ways of funding a living grant for all students, and even briefly mentions a return to 1979 grant levels, divides the floor

Banners are waved, literature is thrown from the balconies and a skinny blond man streaks across the platform. Finally, the chaos that we had all secretly hoped for ensues

This is the first evidence of 'Trainermania'· • although the NUS President never seems to be . saying anything particularly exciting, his ;~~~;h~n atypically lacklustre aggreSSiVe methOd Of publiC Speaking SendS SCAN There is some joyforthe (Suffolk, the Labour Students into paroxysms of delight Cambridgeshire and Norfolk) Such commanding oratory is only to be applauded, but it is a little bizarre to continuously see such vehement defences of the status quo.

Further amendments are passed which broaden the scope of NUS' battle against Higher Education underfunding, but it is difficult to know how much attention will be paid to the resolutions made here by those in government.

Still, we could be here all night. In fact, at 12.15am Tuesday morning, a good ninefeen hours after I rose from my slumbers, I'm still in the Pavilion debating room which is hosting the informal Presidential hustings. An antidote to the rather muted discussion of the day, here there is no constitution to abide by, and anything goes. There are five candidates standing for

along party lines. Unfortunately, this tends to mean that speakers for and against any given amendment say pretty much the same thing in the absence of any party political metoric to repeat. This is perhaps an inevitable consequence of a debate where everyone is in basic agreement that the NUS should fight fascism and racism in all its forms. The significant

area delegation as our Area Convener, Nathan Heywood, is elected as Vice President for Further Education and Union Development (VP FEUD, if you like). Although the unwieldy title makes it sound like a minor post, it is the highest governing position in NUS' Further Education sector and Heywood will now be in charge of implementing the important Further Education motion that has just been voted Into NUS policy.

developments are the decisions to refuse a platform to the BNP and to appoint a part-time Black Students officer to the NEC. The amendment which proposes to fight the Government's new Asylum And Immigration Bill is controversially defeated following the closest vote of Conference.

By Tuesday evening, delegates are all sporting looks of marked weariness and the complex debate has aged everyone by several years.

Thankfully, then, the NUS have hired out the Palace Ballroom (allegedly Britain's largest nightclub, although the delay for service at the bar didn't suggest as such) and all kinds of Ritzy-style fun ensues to alleviate our homesickness.

1rs no surprise that most delegates are lugging

along Labourrtree education' lines as before. The biggest standing ovation of Conference is given to a disillusioned former Labour student who urges delegates to vote for Amendment 3, proving that those who don't align themselves with a party line can still hold sway in the debate. At one point, it seems that Labour could possibly be toppled in this key vote. However, as further rounds of speeches are continuously proposed, it is clear that the 'tree education' supporters are shooting themselves in the foot. Several poor speeches and a timewasting procedural motion lose the momentum they have generated among the delegates and the dinner break effectively ends their chances of getting the amendment passed.

Whilst Labour Students spend the 90 minute recess canvassing and campaigning for all they're worth, the CFE and SWSS are doing little to gattler support. Even so, no-one has reckoned with the political genius of an independent Labour sympathiser called Jim Gardiner. By submitting a complex procedural motion, he succeeds in taking Amendment 3 to pieces, getting the noncontroversial parts voted in and leaving it impossible to vote for the remainder. The 'tree education' supporters are taken by complete surprise and some unwittingly vote for the destruction of their own amendment. lt is a good twenty minutes before the~ll

implication of Gardiner's brilliant ploy becomes clear and the only way to prevent it would have been to submit a counteractive procedural motion

immediately. My head is beginning to spin.

Labour Students are wearing huge grins all night, but they do have the humility to admit that Gardiner's move was unexpected, and would have saved them embarrassment were they likely to lose the vote.

From then on, it all goes a bit pear-shaped.

There is still minor business to conclude, including the reports frqm liberation campaigns, but the Leeds University delegation decide to liven up proceedings a little by starting a protest which is soon joined by fifty others from around the floor.

Ban'ners are waved, CFE literature is thrown from the balconies (defying constitutional law) and a skinny blond man streaks across the platform.

Finally, the chaos that we had all secretly hoped for ensues, although the nature of the protest is entirely self-defeating - they are calling for the reinstatement of Thursday's session which had been axed from the schedules, but they only succeed in closing Conference an -hour early as the entire NEC resign from the platform. o we stumble out into the good night, past the paper sellers and the tarted-up 12-yearolds hoping for a glimpse of their hero (that's Peter Andre, not Douglas Trainer). An advantage of Thursday's disappearance from Conference schedules has been to allow us time to visit the Pleasure Beach, and the spin on Britain's highest rollercoaster is so refreshing that I intend to pass a motion next year making a ride compulsory for all delegates.

NUS Conference '97 was sometimes frustrating and sometimes ridiculous, but almost always interesting. it's sad that reading back over the list of motions and amendments which were passed, it is full of unquantifiable pledges: NUS will "resolve" and "research", it will "lobby" and "campaign", it will "investigate", "acknowledge" and "criticise". Many of the proposals formed will be carried out, but to what end and with what effect is currently unclear.

Hopefully, Conference '98 will be an improvement. If a Labour government is installed, we'll be able to see just how much Blair & eo. really care about students. For the moment though, it seems unlikely that the average student will feel the effect of Conference '97 any more than if it hadn't happened at all.

S

' " •

he Anti-Fascism And AntiRacism debate is refreshing insomuch as it doesn't necessarily divide

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April 24 - May 1 Nominations for Communicatins and Sports Officers (See Becky for details) May 6 LCR

Busy today:- 12pm hustings for above. 6pm abortion debate. 7pm Union General Meeting

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Elections for above posts. Bring your SU card to Union House to vote

\...

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16 Features

..

Concrete, Wednesday, April 30, 1997

a ou stretching back more than a century.

+Caley's chocolate has to be one of Norwich's best kept secrets. Darcy Hurford and Jane Rigby-Jones visited the factory of the re-launched Norwich firm and found the reality is far from their Willy Wonka fantasies ersonally, we blame Roald Dahl. If he hadn't written Charlie And The Chocolate Factory, we wouldn 't have grown up believing that every chocolate factory was like good ol' Mr Wonka's, choc-full (geddit?) of underground bean storerooms, edible blades of grass and chocolate rivers . Our excitement on being invited to the Caley's company headquarters one sunny Norfolk afternoon was understandable.

The fact that our destination was so secret the taxi driver hadn't even heard of it and had to consult a map at some length merely added to our feeling that we were doing Someth ing Exciti ng.

These romantic illusions were immediatel y shattered on ou r arrival: There were no wrought iron gates, no aroma of chocolate in the air and there were certainly no two-foot high shadows moving around mysteriously behind the windows . Instead we were faced with what could have passed for a cosy, if somewhat bizzarelysituated bungalow, had it not been for the busin ess sign by the door.

Undettered, we entered, and were greeted by Caley's director Terry Long .

Mr Long may not have been wearing a top hat and pu rple tailcoat (much to our re lief, in fact) but, as one of the company's three directors and the man whose ideas launched the business, he was certainly the best person to tell us more.

Despite the distracting presence in the room of a

P

large table covered with products of a chocolatey nature, we did our utmost to listen.

The reason many of you may never have heard of Caley's is that the company only sprang back to life last

riginally set up in 1857 as a chemists by Albert Jarman Caley, the firm later turned its entrepreneurial hand to making lemonade and by 1886 was producing chocolate, even going on to supply the troops during the First World War. In 1932 the company was acquired by Mackintosh Ltd , but the Caley's name continued to be used until the 1960s.

1969 saw a merger between Rowntree and Mackintosh and nearly two decades later in 1988,

O

expensive, so an agreement was made with a factory in the Midlands to get th e chocolate bars made there . Back in Norwich , they bought a unit at Sweetbar Industrial Estate

business.

This Caley's stuff is not just

lt was surprising to learn how much of a 'hands on' business Caley's really was. There were only two men working in the production area, both of whom turned out to be company directors!

Rowntree Mackintosh Ltd was itself bought out by those ethically questionable suppliers of third world baby milk, Nestle (it sure is a dog-eatdog world out there) . By this time, the Caley's name had all but disappeared.

Happily, that's all changing , as Terry Long explained to us . What with one thing or another - more specifically the closure of the Nestle factory

was time Caley's reappeared. He then persuaded two other former

autu mn .

However, th e name Caley's, like that of Jarrolds, has a long history as a business in Norwich

Roger King , to run the company with him. Having gained perm ission from Nestl e to use the Caley's name, the company re-launched duri ng the spring of 1996.

Buying the machinery needed to produce the choco late locally would have been too

any old chocolate - the bars are made using a recipe designed to resemble chocolate made in the 1930s far more than anything around today.

According to Terry Long, the difference between Caley' s and other brands produced in Britain can be summed up in just on e word quality. This is reflected in the price, -------"'1"!!~

wh ich at 38p a bar, is somewhat steeper than your average cmJcolaH3 .1 Read th e label thou gh, and you 'll see why: most milk chocolate bars contain less th an 25% cocoa solids, while Caley's use at least 30%.

Their plain chocolate is using about 58% cocoa solids, which may be less than the ultraposh Swiss chocolate your rich aunt Mildred gave you last Christmas, but sti compa res favourably with the modest offered by leading UK brands. In addition, wh ile about four-fifths of chocolate produced Britain is made using vegetable fat, Caley's use cocoa fat, which is more expensive but

Features 17

Concrete, Wednesday, April 30, 1997 considerably tastier.

To quote their slogan, Caley's is 'Chocolate Uke lt Used To Be', and to prove the point, each bar is covered by a nifty '30s-style wrapper, designed to conjure up images of a time when small boys in cloth caps frolicked harmlessly in the middle of roads and when the twinset'n'pearls look was truly fashionable.

- the equivalent of one and a half tonnes a year.

Eventually, Caley's hope to transfer the production of their chocolate to a location in Norwich . This won't be possible for some time, owing to a lack of funds, but they're gradually acquiring assets, having recently bought their

the moment. Caley's is a very small, if perfectly-formed business. Currently they nly distribute within the Norwich area, they supply to around 1,000 outlets, newsagents (of which our Union ~'"""'""h'"' is one), Tesco's, and most Salnsbury's. hope to

country.

Anyway, it was time to see inside a real , live, chocolate factory. Wearing attractive regulation mob-caps, we poked our noses around the door.

What we saw was a big room, about the size of the Union Food Outlet without the shelves. lt was almost entirely white and full of important-looking equipment. The general aura was of a cross between the secret

in Independence Day, and a school home economics room. There were also some intriguing grey pipes running along the ceiling, which apparently were for cooling purposes, but they

on' business Caley's really was. There were only two men working in the production area, both of whom turned out to be the other two company directors! Multinational corporations. eat your hearts outl At present, any other employees are part-time, many of them taking charge of wrapping duties which apparently can be "a bit fiddly."

Once we had been introduced to the different machines, we moved on to the storeroom. lt was small and a bit nippy, but contained encouragingly high piles of chocolate.

This short tour covered most areas of the factory and sadly it was time to leave. We were allowed to keep our mobcaps

(having grown quite fond of them) and they made useful receptacles for stowing our free chocolate. That's right, free chocolate - don't say this journalism lark doesn't have its perks.

Then, as if to prove that Caley's really are the nicest people in the East Anglian chocolate industry, we were given a lift back homel All in all a great afternoon. But before we go, let's have a quick recap. Roald Dahl: great author, but a deceiver of the young. Anyone who genuinely believed in Charfie And The Chocolate Factory would have been most disappointed by the by the reality.

Luckily for us, the taste of Caley's chocolate compensated - it's a blast from the past which we'll choose in the future.

This Caley's stuff is not just any Old chocolate -the bars are made using a recipe designed to resemble chocolate made in the 1930s far more than anything around today own wrapping machines to use in the Midlands factory.

Their aim, to treble their production to about four tonnes a year might seem insignificant when you realise that a product like Kitkat sells about 100 tonnes a week, but despite Terry Long's claim that "you need to be either very brave or very stupid" to set up an enterprise like his, all the signs indicate that Caley's has a very happy future ahead. inally, the moment we had both been waiting for arrived - we got to look inside the production room where they were making chocolate novelties. When we visited, they were working on Easter decorations. Before that, however, they'd been making chocolate medallions for Norwich Union to use at their VIP-infested bicentenary dinners, held all across the

LOOKED big enough to house an Oompa-Loompa or several, so perhaps we had been wrong to doubt Mr Dahl. lt was surprising to learn how much of a 'hands

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UNIVERSITY OF KENT ;G. we liked it, but does Caley's eh late pass the UEA campus eh llenge? lt takes me back to when I was a nl per," declared Nell Carter, his eyes ml tlng over sentimentally, whilst Emma Fo an reckoned lt tasted "really creamy, Ju like Galaxy," an opinion with which he~publlclty-shy friend heartily agreed. an Caley denied being related to the eo pany in any way, but conceded that

the chocolate given him was "alright."

We tried to ask him whether he was proud and happy for his name to be connected with such a fine product, but he was having none of lt, and merely laughed at us.

On a brighter note, Nell Roberts eulogised that "h literally mehs off the tongue." High praise Indeed, even H the sun seemed to have got to some of our testers' heads.

AT CANTERBURY • • • •

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Letters & Comment 19

Concrete, Wednesday, Ap ril 30, 1997

The ast word on the matter... am writing in regard to the exchange of letters concerning and Christianity homosexuality. I started the whole thing off with my letter of 22 January in which I questioned the use of the word 'homophobic ' because it implies an irrational fear and hatred of homosexuality, therefore writing off the views of those who may only have reservations and doubts about accepting homosexuality wholeheartedly. Unfortunately I couldn't resist the temptation of making my point in a flippant manner and so posed as a bibled-thumping Christian who also happened to be a ' nonpractising hof!1osexual ' who was

I • am writing on a subject that has some relevance to the recent heated exchange of letters in Concrete. However, I have no desire to be dragged mto this affair, so wi ll contain myself to commenting that these etters ( although it is not mmediately obvious) seen to be about misuse of language. This s what prompted me to write not any desi re to prove a point.

On the front cover of the \llarch 5 issue of Concrete was an article about a local mini-cab firm, Beeline. One of its driver 1as been described as racist because he said to an Irish student ' it's Irish bigots like you that cause all the problems '.

This remark is in no way racist.Rude, yes . Offensive, perhaps. Racist? No For the cab-driver's remark to be racist there would have to be a clearly identifiable Irish 'race '.

There is no such thing , just as there is no such thing as a French , English or Spanish race.

I

Even the Nazis did not try to prove the existence of a German race, contenting themselves with talk of an Aryan ideal.

To insult someone of a different nationality on the grounds of their nationality is not racist. If I were to call an American an' American moron', I would not be racist. Neither would an Angolan who called a Somali a' Somali moron '.

I may seem to be. splitting hai rs, but language is terribly important and should should not be misused. To accuse a person of racism is far more serious than accusing them of mere xenophobia ( a term of dubious value , as I am sure Edward Reeves will ag ree ).

At the end of the day I think we would all rather hear abusive and offensive lang uage from a (presu mably poo rly educated) mini-cab driver th an we would abuse of language from students who should know better.

Da vid Soloman Soc1

suppressing his own desire for the love of god and the good of society.

As a result, my original point was all but lost under a deluge of Biblical quotations as both Christians and gays attempted to defend the Bible. The two correspondents who did manage to pick up on my central point and strongly disagreed with it ( Daniel Helier of the LGBT and Josh Kald or-Robinson ), defended the word 'homophobic ' by stating, in the words of Daniel Helier, that, ' homophobia ... is the word used in this language to describe hatred or dislike of people because they are gay, lesbian or bisexual '.

I disagree. ' Homophobia ' is not a legitimate word of the English language but part of vocabulary of muddle-headed slogans and soundbites calculated to raise the greatest emotional response from people with too much free time. the use of words such as ' homophobic ' goes some way to creating a climate, perhaps not of fear, but certainly of anxiety, in which rational discussion becomes impossible due to the ease with which people can be branded intolerant, bigoted, fascist, sexist or what-have-you by fanatical moral crusaders.

The word ' homophobic 'is yet another, particularly effective, weapon in the arsenal of the self

righteo us and over-sensitive minorities that dominate student politics. The words and phrases they favour also have another purpose; they are used as camouflage to disguise the very real intolerance and narrowmindedness of their users. it is not right to allow the use of such language to pass unchallenged . That is why I wrote my original letter, not because I myself object to or even dislike homosexuality , and I apologise to any gays or Christian who might have taken me seriously and were offended by someone openly expressing an opinion that contradicts their own.

Edward Reeves, His 2.

~~f~yQu, h-~~~_,any opinions W.~ich you :·{~ UEA's Independent Student Newspaper

PO Box 410,Norwich NR4 7TB Tel: (01603) 250558 Fax: (01603) 506822 E-Mait. su.concrete @uea.ac. uk

:/-Wish to au m Concre.te, please mark ;;~ .: ·. t~em for .the.attentior(of the ~.ditor;~ ·. : James Curtis·; at the above ·address. ,. iWe reserve the right to edit all~ letters.·:~ ' for length and clarity.· ~-·~· ~ ' .. ,. ~·~

•Editor: Jamcs Curti;• Deputy Ediwn: Manhew Doylc and Matt Fasken •News Editor: Janc Kirby •Assistant News Editor: Katie Nicholl• News Researcher: Emma ewbcry •Features Editor: Sa m Ri chards •Sports Editor: Nickthc Trigger• Piuure Ediwr: Rob Lutyens •Consultant Editor: Simon Mann •Chief Ne 11 s Reporte r: Matthe11 · Ray •Editorial Comribw ors: Jerome Collene. Emma Shollon •Photographers: Mall Fasken, Jane Kirby, Chris Loader, Rob Lutyens, And rcw Bailcy•Ad1•ertising Manager: Simon Mann • Special Thanks w: Jerome the bestworkie e1•er UH Stewards, everyone at EC •DTP Assistants: Jan1es Curti s, Mallhew Doyl e, Mall Fasken, Stuart Dredge. Sam Richard s•Concrete is publi hed by the Union of UEA Students. Op ini ons expres ed are those of the

Contributor and not necessarily those of the Publi sher or Ed itor. se of the name 'The Event ' appears b) arrangement with the copyright holders, Planet Zog Ltd. • o part of th is newspaper may be reproduced or transmitted by any means electronic, stereotypic. alchoholic, in a Union Officer's jazz mag, or thro ugh the ringpiece of a certai n manager. or with any references to members of Union >taff without the prior written consent of the publisher. •Printed by Eastern Counti es ewspapers Ltd.. orwi ch. NorfoiJ.- RI I RE.© UUEAS. 1996.

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Letters & Comment 18

Concrete, Wednesday, April 30, 1997

er.•.

last word on am writing in regard to the exchange of leltars concerning

I

am writing on a subject that Even the Nazis did not try to has . some relevance to the prove the existence of a German recent heated exchange of ·race, contenting themselves with letters in Concrete. However, 1 talk of an Aryan ideal. have no desire to be dragged To insult ' someone. of a Into this affair, so will t::ontaln different nationality on the myself to commenting that these grounds of their nationality is not letters ( although_ it is not racist. If I were to call an immedia\eiy obvious) seen to be American an' American moron', I about misuse of language: This would not be racist.- Neither is what prompted me to write not would an Angolan who called a any desire to prove a pOint SomaH a ' Somali moron '. • On the front cover of the I may seem to be splitting March 5 issue of Concrettr was hairs, but language is terribly an article about a local mini-cab important and should should not firm, Beeline. One of its driver be misused. To accuse a person has been described as racist of racism is far more serious than because he said to an Irish accusing - them of mere student ' Ifs Irish bigots like you xenophobia· ( a term of dubious that cause all the problems '. value, as I am sure Edward This remark Is in no way Reeves will agree ). racist.Rude, yes. Offensive, At the end of the day I think we perhaps. Racist? No would all rather hear abusive and For the cab-driver's remark to offensive language from a be racist there would have to be (presumably poorly educated) a clearly identifiable Irish 'race'. mini-cab driver than we would There is no such thing, just as abuse of language from students there is no such thing as a who should know better.

French, English or Spanish race.

Davld Soloman Soc1

I

Christianity and homosexuality. I started the whole thing off with my letter of 22 January in which I questioned the use of the word • 'homophobic ' because it implies an Irrational fear and hatred of homosexuality, therefore writing off the views of those who may only have reservations and doubts about accepting homosexuality wholeheartedly. Unfortunately I couldn't reelst the temptation of making my point in a flippant manner and so posed as a blbled-thumplng Christian who also happened to be a ' nonpractising homoeexual • who was

suppreaalng hla own desire for the love of god and the good of

society.

As a result, my original point was a8 but lost under a deluge of Biblical quotations as both Chrisllans and gays attempl8d to defend the Bible. The two correspondents who cfld manage to pick up on my central point and strongly disagreed with it ( Daniel Helier of the LGBT and Josh Kaldor-Roblnson ), defended the word 'homophobic ' by stating, in the words of Daniel Helier, that, • homophobia ...is the word used in this language to describe hatred or dislike of people because they are gay, lesbian or

bisexual'.

UEA's Independent Student Newspaper PO Bbx 410,Norwlch NR4 7TB Tel: (01603) 250558 Fax: (01603) 506822 E-M8lt au.concreteOuea.ec.uk

I dlaagree. ' Homophobia ' la

a

righteous

and

over-senaltlve

legitimate word of the Engli8h language but part of

minorities that dominate student politics. The words and phrases

of muddle-headed

they favour also have another purpose; they are used as camouflage to disguise the very real intolerance and narrowmindedness of their users. lt is not right to allow the use of such language to pass unchallenged. That Is why I wrote my original letter, not because I myself object to or even dlallke homoeexuallty , and I apologise to any gays or Christian who might have taken me aerioualy and wera offended by someone openly exprassing an opinion that contradicts their

not

vocabulary slogans

and soundbites calculated to raise the greatest emolional raeponse from people with too much free time. the use of words such as ' homophobic • goes some way to creating a climate, perhaps not of fear, but certainly of anxiety, in which rational discusaion becomes impoealble due to the ease with which people can be branded Intolerant, bigoted, fascist, sexist or what-have-you by fanatical

moral crusaders.

The word • homophobic 'is yet another, particularly effective, weapon in the arsenal of the self

own.

EdwMI.....,.., His

2.

If you have any opinions which you wish to air in Concrete, please mark them for the attention of the Editor, James Curtis, at the above address.

We reserve the right to edit all letters for length and clarity.

•Editor: Jamcs Curtis• Deputy Editors: Matthew Doyle and Matt Fasken •News Editor: Jane Kirby •AssistanJ News Editor: Katie Nicholl;News Reseorcher: Emma Newbery •Features Editor: Sam Richards •Sports Editor: Nickthe Trigger Picture Editor: Rob Lutyens •CcmsuJJant Editor: Sim.on Mann •ChilifNews Reporter: Matthew Ray •EditoriiJJ Contiibutors: Jerome Collette, Emma Sbotton •Photographers: Matt Fasken, Jane Kirby, Cbris Loader, Rob Lutyens, Andrew Bailey•Advertising Manager: Simon Mann • Special ThanJcs to: JerotM the best workie ever UH Stewards, everyooe at ECN •DTP AssistanJs: James Curtis, Matthew Doyle, Matt Fasken, Stuart Dredge, Sam Ricbards•Concrete is published by the Union of UEA Students. Opinions expressed are those of the Contributor and not necessarily those of the Publisher or Editor. Use of the name 'The Event' appears by arrangement with the copyright holders, Planet Zog Ltd. ~No part of this newspaper may be reproduced or transmitted by any means electronic, stereotypic, alcboholic: in a Union Officer's jazz mag, or through the nngpiece of a certain manager, or with any references to memben of Union staff without the prior written consent of the publisher. •Printed by Eastern Counties Newspapm Ltd., Norwich, Norfolk NRl I RE. 0 UUEAS, 1996.

Don't set out on travtls without a from the Union DOOIKsna

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20 Features

Concrete, Wed nesday, April 30, 1997

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â&#x20AC;˘ Fresh from downing eight pints of Stella, scoffing a kebab and throwi ng up 'til dawn, Stuart Dredge considers the impending death of 90s media phenomenon, the New Lad icture the scene: in a packed LCR, groups of checked-sh irted blokes joyously lurch around bellowing along with Wonderwal/ or The Day We Caught The Train. Earlier, on the country's most popular breakfast show, the DJ expounds his admiration of the twin delights of booze and tatty.

Meanwhile, two comedians manage to become popular icons simply by sitting around in a flat talking about football. Yes, 1996 truly was the year when lad culture ruled the roost in Britain , as it made its presence felt in every field of popular culture.

In 1997, however, the New Lad is facing his greatest challenge yet. Not, as you'd expect, from feminist opposition , but from simple indifference.

Has lad culture served its purpose now? it's hard to set a starting point for lad culture ; in a sense it's been around since the days when pulling simply required knocking your partner over the head with a cl ub and then dragging her off to your cave. Until recently , the ethos of 'men being men' was the accepted norm. it was only at the advent of the '90s, with this decade's peculiar creation of the New Man, that masculine behaviour became an issue, and subsequently a concerted movement.

Depending on your point of view, New Man was either a sensitive, undominating partner for the modern woman, or a spineless wuss firmly under the thumb of his female compatriots. 11 was the latter viewpoint which led to the invention of New Lad as a model for behaviour. His champions argued that it was simply unrealistic to expect a red-blooded male to conform to the perceived restrictions of th e New Man. Why should he be ashamed of preferring lager to laundry, curry to cleaning and porn to polishing? The New Lad proudly stood up for these profoundly masculine ideals, and a media legend was born .

The bible of the New Lad was, of course, Loaded magazine.

Headed by editor James Brown, it sprang seemingly from nowhere to become the fastest-growing magazine in the UK, simply by putting beautiful women on the cover and writing the sort of articles that men wanted to read . Whatever you thought of its attitude, you had to admit that here was something truly refresh ing.

In music, a new breed of bands came through to epitomise the lad movement.

Paul Weller returned from musical oblivion to find a new audience and slotted in alonside bands such as Ocean Colour Scene, Cast, and of course Oasis.

In comparison to the drugcentred rave culture which had emerged

P

in the late '80s, bloke-rock was all about going to a gig, getting lagered and singing along.

Even the most memorable techno record of the year was adopted as a beery anthem for the blearyeyed .

And don't forget the patron saint of laddism, Chris Evans. Before; a fresh-faced young upstart. After; probably one of the most powerful figures in the media, able to confer instant top-ten status on any band whose lead singer was remotely foxy.

This year, however, change is in the air.

Evans resigned from his radio job, arguably just before he was pushed. In a frenzy of tabloid gossip, Liam Gallagher, the hard drinking no-bullshit hero to lads everywhere, did the unthinkable: he got married. Fans of Fantasy Football League were stunned by a double whammy. Not only was the series ending, but David Baddiel was actually moving OUT of his shared flat with Frank Skinner to move IN with his girlfriend.

Am idst rumours that Men Behaving Badly was soon to leave our screens for good, Neil Morrissey

masculinity developed into a nearhomophobic fear and distrust of anything wh ich deviated from the norm. it's no exaggeration to say that in certain towns, it was pretty foolish to wander the streets around closing time if you were a male sporting long hair, or an even vaguely androgynous appearance.

Crucially, lad culture has run its course - it has achieved its aims and is now floundering.

Thanks to the Loaded generation, you could argue that it is now more acceptable for men to do 'wh at comes naturally'. Whether that's a good or bad th ing is open to debate of course, but it does seem that it's been so far absorbed into our mainstream cultu re that lad culture is no longer a particularly relevant set of ideas. "I can drink 12 pints!" is hardly a defiant statement of identity, since society's retort now is likely to be ''Yeah, so what?"

Finally, lad culture is dying, simply because the lasses are getting in on the act. it's sexist to claim that boozing, footy and casual lechery are a solely male preserve - even Loaded is unable to keep up with )he rumpo-related saucery of More! or Minx! magazines.

Only a fool nowadays would make the chestbeating claim "I ogle the opposite sex, I get pissed, I eat curry - I AM A MAN!" Bollocks to that mate - you're a human being.

Congratulations! Realistically, of course, there won 't be any conceivable change in climate fo r the next year or so. After all, it's not as if blokes everywhere will switch drinks to Babycham , start taking an interest in Mother & Baby magazine, or throw out their copies of Moseley Shoals (although, regarding this last point, we can only hope).

Maybe, though, Britain will start becoming a tad more tolerant.

Perhaps it has already begun in the music industry, groups like Placebo, Suede and Mansun are doing their bit to allow those men who aren't 100% brute testosterone to be proud of who they are. it would be nice if before the end of the century we could reach to a point where there are no sets of rules to govern how someone - male or female - should act. Until then, Babycham anyone?

lt's sexist to claim that boozing, footy and casual lechery are a solely male preserve - even Loaded is unable to keep up with the rumpo-related saucery of More! or Minx! magazineS decided to pursue a career in family drama, whe re there was nary a crumpled beer can to be seen.

If lad culture is dying a death, then the fatal blow was administered last week when James Brown announced that he was quitting Loaded for GO, a more upmarket men's magazine.

So why don't we need lad culture any more? Well , for one, it started getting out of hand.

What began as a defence of

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Features 21

Concrete, Wednesday, April 30, 1997

+Every fortnight, we take a well-known campus celebrity to the bar, buy them a drink and then ask them a load of random questions.

THIS ISSUE: Union Ents Manager, Nick Rayns What did you dream about last night?

I'm not sure exactly, but it involved lots of violence because I had to stop three lads beating the shit out of each other after the LCR the evening before.

What do you have In your sandwiches?

I usually have what's left in the fridge after the kids have been at it. Ideally, though, I'd choose ham and pineapple.

What instruments can you play?

I can play the guitar of a fashion. About 25 years ago, I was in a prog-rock band in Grimsby.

What's your party trick?

I can do a few card tricks.

And I pull pennies out of people's ears for the kids.

What do you never miss on

it's All Over.

How much can you drink?

I should think I have a fairly large capacity, but I don't drink much at all these days.

Did you ever get into trouble at school?

Not seriously. But I was a typically unconventional '60s child. My hair was too long, and my clothes were different.

So you were at the vanguard of hippy youth culture?

I suppose I was - I remember going to the 24-Hour Technicolour Dream at the Roundhouse.

When was the last time you had a fight? .

I often have to deal with idiots who come looking for a fight after events up here, but I'm large enough to look after myself.

1"l'l I miss most things because I

What was the last record you bought?

The Reef album.

work all bloody night, but I always try to catch Have I Got News For You or They Think

What sports are you good at?

I used to be able to play squash

and cricket competently.

Actually I still reckon I could beat most people on the squash court, but it's not helped by being 21 stone.

How do you like your eggs?

Scrambled, with plenty of Worcester sauce.

Can you tell me a joke?

What happens if you tread on a grape? lt gives a little wine.

What was the last book you read?

I read a lot. Over the last couple of weeks, I've read two Colin Dexter novels, and a non-fiction work called Life In A Medieval Castle.

What's the biggest lie you've ever told?

I once told a man that he needed a thousand cases of Mars bars, and he believed me,

so I sold them to him.

What's in your pockets?

Lots of keys, including a key to the main Union safe, and spare cash.

Who are you going to vote for?

I'm most impressed by the Liberal Democrats becaus~ of their policy of raising taxes to fund education. However, a vote for the Lib Dams would probably be a wasted vote in my constituency.

What's the bravest thing you've ever done?

In my youth, I dived into a millpond to pull somebody out.

I'd probably sink if I dived into a millpond today. Or cause a tidal wave.

Right. Now for the trivia section: In what year were women first given the vote?

1921.

Wrong! lt was 1928.

Who Is the editor of the Dally

Mirror?

Piers somebody ...

Almost - Piers Morgan.

Approximately, how many times heavier is water than air?

20 times?

Not even close.

85 times?

Miles out. lt's actually ns times heavier.

Nick Rayns was drinking a ginger beer and talking to Sam Richards.

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CJ

Concrete needs a new Advertising Manager for the next academic year. So if you have experience of selling and would enjoy working as a member of a dedicated editorial team, then the job could be yours.

You will need to be a UEA student, preferably here for another two years.

The job involves strict deadlines, telephone and personal contact and some out of hours working ... BUT THEN, YOU .WILL BE WELL PAID!. ~·

CJ

OPEN: MON-FRI 9:30AM-4:30PM (TEL ENQ: 9:00AM-5:15PM

In the first instance send a full CV with a covering letter to: Simon Mann, Concrete, PO Box 410 Norwich NR4 7TB

- - - - - - - - --- -

22 Sport

Norwich City star and fan's favourite Darren Eadie took time out of his winning ways and England trials to chat with our Sports Editor, Nick Triggle, as speculation about his future plans grows..• Darren Eadie at the tender age of twenty-one, is the hottest prospect to come out of these parts of East Anglia for a long time, and is now coming to the end of a season during which he has set Carrow Road alight, and fired the imaginations of fans who have / suffered so much in recent years.

With the football world at his feet, he is part of the breed of young footballers sweeping the land, up there with the David Beckham's, Sol Campbell's and Jamie Redknapp's.

These players have become superstars in their own right and while the aforementioned are perhaps more famous because of their high profi le city cl ubs Darren Eadie can, without doubt be talked in the same breath as them.

And it cannot be long before he joins these footballers in the full England squad, and perhaps go o nto the 1998 World Cup, in France.

For all his potential Eadie remains affable· and down to earth. when asked about his England prospects he rep!ied modestly. "Of course it is always in the back of your mind. but I can only carry on playing to the best of my ability and hope Glenn Hoddle sees enough in me to pick me for the squad."

But nonetheless Eadie has tasted the pride of pulling on the three lions. he was in the same youth team as Robbie Fowler. Chris Bart-Williams, and Jamie Redknapp. and is currently playing a starring role in the Eng land U21 sides quest for World Cup qualification. scoring the solitary goal in the 1-0 victory over Italy U21's.

"The U21 England side is a very exciting and

enjoyable experience, it gives you the taste for more, and if we do qualify I wi ll still be eligible to play even though I wi 11 be over age at the time."

So what may one ask is he doing at a provinc ial club like Norwich City, when there are reportedly a queue of Premiership teams waiting to tempt him into the lucrative lands of the top di vision?

" I can't put my finger on my improved forrn this season, I obviously get more chances upfront, and therefore score more goals but it just seems to have clicked th is season.

"I see myself more as an attacking midfielder and don' t want to be branded as an out and out striker as I will be expected to score goals. It is just a bonus to get them."

Again Eadie is being modest, since being moved upfront at the turn of this year he has been a sensation, now a partnership has developed with the experienced former Scottish internationa l Robert Fleck, who has nothing but respect for the up and coming star, "Darren is a very fast player. and our partnership seems to be coming along well now, I drop off to knock it onto him . " He is a great player already. and also a smashing lad. he has limitless potential."

Not everything is

"Darren is a very fast player, and our partnership seems to be coming along well. He is a great player already, and also a smashing lad, he has limitless potential." Robert Fleck on his striking partner "Th is club remai ns very ambitious, we have a fairly large squad, with a nice blend of youth and experience, I have two seasons left on my contract after this one. although I obvious ly want to play in the Premiership."

However there is no chance of him getting cocky whilst at Norwich, manager Mike Walker remains scant in his praise, "Darrcn Eadie is pretty useful. but there is always room for improvement. ''This season he has progressed as a forward. sometimes players need to be tried out in different positions. it happened with Chris Sutton ."

Norw ich's manager was obviously understating Eadie's status, but he hit the nail on the head with the claim that he has made great progress since hi s move from winger to striker as he has shot his way towards the top of the scoring charts with 17 goals.

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Eadie himself admi ts the lure of the Premiership may be too much, "It is the only place to be, and I don't know how I would feel if we do not get back there.

"When I fi rst broke into the first team we were at the top, and I tended to take it for granted. it was horrendous when we went down. I have got the taste for more."

Yet the club remain conf1dent the)' can satisf)' hb ambitions, manager Mike Walker said. " He is happy here and has just signed a long term contract which he would not have done if he was not going to stay here.''

Robert Fleck echoed this

going as smooth as it :~::::-::::-::;~--.:..~~=~:.::..J sentiment, "He seems happy. and could though, as Eadie completed a one match is really settling into the team now . suspension. having been sent off after scoring two goals Even if he is lured away by the prospect of grander against Huddersfield. Th is has not just been a problem things fans should for Eadie not be too alone, as the dis h eartened rest of the though, as one team have supporter, said to also been me recentl y on c o 11 ec ti n g match day. discip linary "We must be points that gr atefu l he is here at all , and enjoy hi s talents whilst he is make Norwich the worst behaved team in the land. here."

And with promotion now an almost impossible dream And this we must because in the future his name could another season in the firs t division is beckoning, and with well be up there with the very best, and then we can all the World Cup taking place at the end of the season, even say with pride he started out here in Norwich, and that we the most die hard fan wi ll begin to worry about his long remember him. terrn fut ure at Norwich.

"lt is the only place to be, and I don't know how I would feel if we do not get back there" - Darren Eadie on life in the FA Premiership

l STUDENT MEMBERSHIP £1 I St Mary's Plain, Norwich Tel: 627478 Only 5 minutes from N orwich mark et •Fantastic Four: The fan's favourite salutes the Carrow Road faithful- but for how much longer?

Sport 23

Concrete, Wednesday, April 30, 1997

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Concrete's Canaries Correspondent Adam Ailcen charts the fall of Norwich City from promotion hopefuls, to mid-table obscurity The Easter football programme finally saw Norwich City's slim promotion hopes to the Premiership effectively extinguished as they failed to put together a consistent enough run to push them up the table and into a playoff place.

The critical period started promisingly at the beginning of March with a bizarre game of woeful refereeing decisions, that saw two sendings-off for each team, in a contest that deserved no more than a couple of yellow card$.

Darren Eadie, who scored both goals in a 2-0 win, confessed to being embarrassed at his dismissal - he didn't know what he had done wrong.

A couple of less memorable games followed, starting with an away game at Reading from which City should have returned home with at least a point, but Neil Adams' last minute own goal resulted in a 2-1 defeat.

Later in the same week, a negative if effective Port Vale outfit earned a 1-1 draw at Carrow Road after equalising Matt Jackson's opening goal.

The Canaries' promotion hopes took another battering at Crystal Palace when a poor performance enabled the Eagles to coast to a 2-0 win.

True, City had nine players unavailable but a team in Norwich's position really should have greater strength and depth, and it still seems that the ghost o\ the former Chairman's selling policy haunts the corridors of Carrow Road.

Another defeat, this time by a single goal at home to Champions-elect Bolton, at least saw an

improved performance, and this upturn in fortunes continued the following week with a 3-0 victory at Swindon, courtesy of an Eadie brace and a Keith O'Neill goal.

In true Norwich fashion, though, these performances weren't consolidated and they could only manage a 1-1 draw at home to Oxford on Easter Monday, Eadie yet again getting his name on the score sheet.

Further heartache came at Wolves when teenager Drewe Broughton's first senior goal and a Neil Adams penalty pulled City back to 2-2, only for Wolves to snatch a late second half winner.

Hope was restored briefly with a 2-0 victory against a dire Stoke side at Carrow Road, with O'Neill netting after just 12 seconds and Eadie grabbing the second.

Typically, though, there was one final, cruel twist - as the arch rivals, Ipswich marched on towards the play-off zone, sods law once again meant that it was the Blues who finally ensured that City wouldn't make the play-offs.

Norwich can have no complaints, however, as they performed abysmally throughout and thoroughly deserved their 2-0 defeat, a result which condemns them to another season outside the Premiership.

•Down and out of the play-offs, despite victory against Huddersfield at Carrow Road.

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

'Sport job should be full time'

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Sport at UEA has taken major steps forward In the past few months, and is now awaiting the decision on its application for a lottery grant, which would ultimately push the profile of sport to the forefront of the Union agenda. respectively.

"This situation means that not enough time is spent on ensuring sport at UEA progresses forward since these sabbaticals are overworked and subsequently sport is put on the backbumer."

And arguably, when you consider that UEA can proudly boast one of the largest university participation rates of sport in the country, with around 4000 students taking part in some sort of physical activity the case can be made that a more comprehensive system seems essential.

As David says, "Not only would its creation provide sport with an officer who would have the time to ensure the efficient and effective management of the Union's

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Outgoing Sports Officer, David Payne, calls for post to be Sabbatical as no-one comes forward to take over next year•••

However, problems have been created by the growing status of sport at this university which has gradually increased the pressure put on the management.

This has led the current Sports Officer, David Payne to raise the issue of the need for a sabbatical Sports Officer, and this will be discussed at the forthcoming UGM on Tuesday May 6: David Payne explained, "Sport has become too vast for a nonsabbatical officer to cope with on his own, and this is further highlighted by the fact that the responsibility for sport, and perhaps more importantly, safety in sport, at a sabbatical level has been tacked onto the end of the portfolios of finance and welfare

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annual six figure investment, but it would also mean they would have the time to seek a sponsorship package which would provide partial self financing in years to come."

The sudden emergence of the important issue of safety in sport is also an important consideration; as David admits, "recent incidents have highlighted the fact that providers of sport have both a legal and a moral responsibility, and therefore we need to ensure that the matter is overseen comprehensively at a sabbatical level.

"Otherwise there is the danger that all the good work put in so far will be wasted as we will be unable to go any further."

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By NICK TRIGGLE, Sports Editor THE SNOOKER cl ub has just completed by far the most successful season in its long history here at UEA, and can now proudly boast two England University players and a BUSA title to their name. Their season culminated with the selection of two players, Ben Miller and Chris Haydon for the English University side that took part in the British University Snooker Games held in Glasgow over the Easter break.

Both players turned in superb performances, each winning seven of the eight frames they contested, and were instrumental in England's clean sweep of the board as they won both the BUSA Home Nations and the British Isles Championship titles.

After the competition Ben Miller was overjoyed, "this is a fantastic achievement and experience for both of us, we worked really well together, and helped one another to do so well."

This recognition for the players was reward for their excellent performanes in the BUSA tournament held at Warwick, at the end of February, where both players fought their way to the individual final , with Ben Miller defeating his team-mate 3-2.

However, the same success was not enjoyed in the team event as the firsts crashed out in the quarter fi nals to Ulster.

The seconds, though had no such problems as they came from nowhere to

win the second string BUSA Championship to become the first UEA team to be crowned Champions this year.

They made a shaky start in the group stages beating defending chapions Cardiff, but going down 4-6 in their second match to the home side, Warwick.

This left UEA needing a victory in their final group match against Hull to qualify for the knockout stages, and in a tight match they eventually ran out 6-4 winners.

The semi-final draw pitted them against an experienced Bristol side, but in a superb start they blistered their way to a 30 lead with two frames from Tim Stone and one from Russ Chambers.

Bristol refused to surrender, showed tremendous fighting spirit to claw back three frames to level the scores at 3-3.

The next match was then drawn leaving team captain Anil Patel to play the final two frames with the scores delicately balanced at 4-4.

He won the first frame convincingly, but the second went right to the wire as the black was respotted, but Patel managed to sink it to avoid a play off and put UEA into the final , with a chance of getting revenge against Warwick.

With the 6-4 defeat still fre!lh in their minds UEA changed the order of play, a decision which was justified as they demolished Warwick 3-0.

Leaving Anil Patel elated, "lt felt great, the guys were really up for it, it was a great team performance, and a superb way to finsh my time with the club.

Club President , Al ex Brookes was delighted as well , but also looked to the future as he said, ''The good thing about this team is that it is very young, and we should be able to build from this."

But on a more distressing note added, "lt is just a shame we cannot get more publicity, and recognition as it was a superb achievement."

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