Concrete issue 253 01 03 2011

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UEA's independent student newspaper since 1992

Tuesday 1st Ma rch, 2011 • Issue 253 • Twitter. @Concret e_UEA

Union's new Chief Executive quits after just two months Ed Leftwich News Editor The Union's new Chief Executive has left after only two months in the job. Richard Powell, a former regional director for the RSPB, has been "headhunted" by the National Trust, and will leave the Union on Thursday 3rd March.

When Concrete spoke to Mr Powell, he explained that his departure was not something that he took lightly, it was a surprise to be offered this position by the National Trust and that he regretted having to leave the Union after such a short tenure. Rumours have circulated that the National Trust have offered Mr Powell roughly £50,000 p.a. more than he was being paid by the Union.

Mr Powell himself commented : "They made me an offer that wou ld be very difficult to refuse".

Some concern has been raised as to why the new CEO is leaving so shortly after a rriving. with many asking if his experience of the Union had contributed to his decision.

Mr Powell says not: "[This Union] has the opportunity to be the best, I think you could walk Leeds, you could walk Hull, you just have to get the systems, the procedures into place. lt's a great place, with some great talent, in the six to eight weeks I've been here, you can really see some of that untapped potential."

The departing CEO also paints an interesting picture about the current state of the Union. Having run the eastern region of the RSPB,

he has 20 years' experience of running a large charity, and had interesting insights into the changes the Union needs to make. "lt's a great place, with some great talent... my plan was to have the Union in a different place in a year's time from where it is today .. .[the job is to set about] changing the culture of a beast, an organisation, the Union has gone through some turbulent times."

Union] is secure "[The financially, it has some good business acumen, but [it has] some bits that need to come up to the 21st century. [lt needs] a HR strategy, some superstructure and infrastructure underneath that. You have got to be able to create that culture where you are working as a single organisation rather than four individual departments. lt's meshing everything together, so when you talk to the cleaner, the cleaner is saying: 'I'm making this the best Union in the world'."

This task of bringing the Union into the 21st century will be undertaken in interim by Toby Cunningham, the current Membership Services Manager and Lesley Hanner, the Finance Manager.

Mr Cunningham will take up the role of acting Chief Executive, assisted

by Ms. Hanner as Deputy Chief Executive.

The appointment process for the new Chief Executive will begin at the end of this term, after the new Student Officer Committee have been elected.

Porter will not stand for second NUS term Susanna Wood News Reporter Aaron Porter has announced his intention to step down as President of the National Union of Students.

Porter has stated that he will not be standing for re-election at the NUS annual conference in Apri l, having served as President for one year. This will be the first time a President of the NUS has not served for two years since 1969.

This news comes after accusatio ns that NUS have not been doing enough to continue the fight against education cuts. Porter himself has been personally attacked for being slow to condone student occupations and fast to criticise violence at th e protests.

Citing a need for a fresh start after what has been a challenging year for the NUS, Aaron Porter said: "This new Government brings with it a new landscape, and I believe NUS now nee ds reinvigorating into the next phase of this campaign."

Porter went on to say: "After considerable soul searching, I believe there needs to be a new Pres iden t to lead the student movement into that next phase."

Continued on page 4

ISSUE 253

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concrete. news@uea.ac.uk

In this fortnight's

Concrete ...

UEA's Independent Student

Love or hate 1\aro n Porte 1; one ca nnot de ny th a t durin g his s hort te nure, th e outgoing NUS Presid e nt has pus he d s tudents' grieva nces to th e very forefront of thinkin g in Britain tod ay. Stud e nts lost their a pathy und e r Porter; a nd for this reason, Concrete believes tha t history will look kindly upon hi s tenure.

Detractors were quick to attack hi s sw ift cond e mnation of the Millbank protes ts, <I nd s ubseq ue nt violent clashes headed by s tud e nts.

In doing so, he a li e nated many of those who be lieved tha t tuition fees could on ly be overt urned through th e use of force. What they were qui ck to forget, however, was that it was th mugh th e o rgan isa tion a nd leade rship of Porter that a pi<Itfor m to the media was provided. Two thousa nd proteste rs cou ld ac hi eve re lative ly littl e, a nd ga in littl e me di a expos ure; two thousa nd protesters hij ac kin g th e peace ful NUS ma rch of

News pa per Concrete Newspaper Unio n House UEA Norwich NR4 7TJ concrete.ed ito r@uea.ac. uk

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Editori al: 01603 593 466 Advertising: 01603 592 507 Edi tor:

Danny Collins

Dep uty Edito r:

Steph McKenn a

Chi e f Co py Editor:

Mia Wecker

News Editors:

Davina Kes by Ed Leftwich

Comment and Opinion Editor:

Emma Pan·ott

Internati ona l Ed itor:

Nishavitha Murthi

Features Ed ito r:

Adam Fenwick

Turf Ed itor:

Anna Tomson

Lifestyle Ed ito r:

james Dixon

Trave l Edi tor:

Tom Hunt

Sports Editors :

Chris King Rob Schatlen

Chief Photographer:

Grcg Mann

Deputy Chief Photographer:

Laura Smith

Advertising Manager:

jean Will s

Distributor:

Rob Scha tten

... and

Porter can leave with head held high

VENUE

50,000 put th e ir ca use on the front pages of eve ry national news pa pe r.

For this reason a lon e, th ey had mu ch to be thankfu l to Po rte r for.

The backlash he ex pe ri e nced a fter Mil lbank, including th e a ntiSe miti c a buse he rece ived in Ma nches ter las t m o nth , was e ntirely unju s tifi ed. As was de mons trated by hi s atte nd a nce at the Fees De ba te at UEA in Decembe1; where he challenged Sim o n Wright to ho nou r hi s tu iti o n fee s pledge, Po rter worked tir·e lessly to fight the tuition fee s bill.

While his decision to be t he fir ·t NUS President to not s ta nd for reelection since 1969 wil l largely be viewed with s urpri se, it w ill a lso come as no g rea t s hoc k to ma ny given the intensity of his first year.

Por w hi le the NUS did not ac hi eve th e ir ultimate goal this yea 1; they achieved something a ltogethe r un expect cl: curin g s tud e nt apat hy.

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Large!_ loud but d _' C Ill

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The Jasmin Revolution? or su spell s a cold breeze

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Contributors:

Susanna Wood, Tim Bates, james Hughes, Rianne !son, Rcbecca Lancaster, Becky IIaz lewoo cl, Mark Sheacl, ]ames Schofield, Catherine Martin, David Murphy, Ines Guita, Rachael Lum, Isa belle Ca rty, Bell Thomas, Miha Kl emcnt, Pia La ngc heine, james Dixon, Nick Murrell, joe Lack, Alcx Ross, Lau ren Razavi, Greg Lewry, Marc Fan·ant, Wi lli am )on es, Christine O'Sullivan, Beth Wyatt, Henry Kilmi sler; Beth Robertson, josh Rayman, Keiren Cordery, Fredclie Magee, Oli Platt, Chris Teale, Sa m Tomkinson, Simon O'Mea ra, Henry Croft, Tim Mill er, Drew Senior

er cloudy · Large!_ d ell s a es reeze www .concreteweother .co.uk Concrete i' puhli,hcd h) l'l'E,\S Concrete Sl'L'iel) ([)2011 Com:n.:ll.:. I. Si\ Ll'i 1-277_1 Lett er'> \lllluld he addrc"ed ror tile attention or the J:dilor. Danm Coil in .... l,ctter' lllU'>l include contact uctaih. hut 11c I\ ill con,idcr anon) nH'll' lnihlication. \\'c rc,crl'c 1hc righl to edit ror length anu clarit ) a' nccc"ar). Opinion' np rc"cd arc not llCCC\\ariJ) tiJO\C or thc ne\\ \paper.

Proofreaders:

Susanna Wood, Kate Ll ewellyn, Amy Adams, Emma Parrott

Be ll Thom as asks w h e th e r uni ve rsity really is t h e bes t p lace to find yo ur future pa r tn e r ?

No part or I hi;, ncw,papcr tna) he reproduced Ill rough an) mean' C\I1I'C\\ pcrmi ;.'>ion or the I:Lii ll>r. Dann) Collin;,.

Primcu h) Archan l.

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ISSUE 253

Tuesday 1st March

UEAcomes third in Student Satisfaction Survey

Vice Chancellor leads report on Government plans for student visas • Vice-Chancellor of UEA says that visa cuts will have a dire impact on universities".

• Edward Act on accuses Government visa controls of having an ugly taste of apartheid" about them.

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UEA has pl aced third in Th e 2010 Times Higher Education Student Experience Survey, matching its place in last year's Survey. The news continues the University's high standards, which have seen it place in the top five every year since the survey began in 2005.

Vice-Chancellor Professor Edward Acton called the placing "a most pleasing result, and a resounding vote of confidence from our students".

High cou rse satisfact ion The overall position comes alongside the news that the School of Pharmacy was the highest ranked in the country, with 99% of eligible students satisfied, while the Media Studies and Sociology courses both scored 100%.

Other high achievers included the Drama and Psychology courses, which also were ranked as the best in the country, with 99% and 96% respectively.

Room for improvement on Assessment and Feed ba ck Whileallofthecomponentsof the Survey placed UEA above the national average, it still revealed plenty of room for improvement.

In particular, in the category of Assessment and Feedback, UEA only managed 68%, one point above the average of 67% across the country. Despite th is, the statistics have shown a strongly consistent trend, and a high quality of education, which has left local s tudents "proud", and "happy to be here".

Professor Acton emphasised that the s urvey re presents staff "commitment" to th e quality of the educational services it provides.

Loughborough topped the poll for the fifth year running, with the University of Sheffield at second, and Cambridge coming in fourth behind UEA. Ti m Bates

James Hughes News Reporter UEA's thriving internationa l contingent could become a thing of the past due to the recent announcement of possible restrictions on student visas by the coalition Government.

The analysis of UK migration andthesubsequentproposalbythe Government follows on from the Conservative's pre-election pledge to cut net migration to the tens of thousands. The visa clampdown initially targeted workers in the 1st and 2nd tier of the visa grading system, however, plans are in place to impose restrictions on those in tier 4 i.e. students. Action is expected to commence in March or April.

UEA Vice-Chancellor Edward Acton has publicly spoken out against the visa restrictions in a report published by the Higher Education Policy Institute. In the report, he highlights the

"devastating effect" on th e finances of UK univers ities and that of the economy in general.

His detailed report, amongst criticising the validity of the data used in the enquiry, suggests that the changes could "devastate pre-university pathway courses, costing universities circa £1bn in fee income alone".

The proposed action cou ld have a significant impact on the maintenance and status of UEA's international sector, INTO, as it could dissuade or prevent students from outside the EU from coming to the UK to study. The INTO centre has supported the stance ofEdward Acton and that of Universities UK with regard to the visa restrictions.

The hot topic of student visa restrictions has caused a large stir beyond the UEA campus, attracting MPs Simon Wright and Richard Bacon to meet with representatives of the INTO organisation "resulting in a very positive adjournment debate in the House of Commons"

Government plans to slas h visas for international students according to Matthew Perry, correspondence director for INTO. Staff and students have also engaged with the UK Border Agency's consultation process.

The INTO project and its stateof-the-art building, which cost £38 million pounds and can host over 700 students, may suffer financially and integrally from

failing to fill all of the placements that it caters for.

Matthew Perry has, too, reassured those concerned, adding: "INTO UEA is well placed to address the forthcoming changes across the education sector and we aim to continue to provide the very best support for International students at UEA".

ProJ·ect nightclub opens to rave reviews Rianne Ison News Reporter Project, Norwich's brand new 'super club', officially opened with a bang after inviting employees' friends and family on Monday 21st March. Later in the week the club opened its doors to members of the public to celebrate th e launch, topped with a special DJ set by Chase and Status. lt was an action packed week for the Project team with big names performing at the opening events, including former UEA student and Radio One DJ. Greg james.

The week commenced with the friends and family night and continued to be a popular destination with local residents for

the official launch party which took place on Thursday 24th February.

This continued with the established lndie night Propaganda, headed by Greg james, who was accompanied by his girlfriend Ellie Goulding, on the 25th February.

Project is located at the Riverside complex in the heart of the city and is certain to attract a considerable amount of attention, due to it being the only club of its kind in N.orwich and the surrounding areas.

The club itself is a huge space, with the main attraction being the large dance floor situated in the centre of the overwhelming venue.

However, the club also plays home to various other small rooms and seating areas including the suave

VIP bar, numerous Karaoke booths and another room called Project Live.

Project Live is arguably one of the club's strongest and more unique selling points, with the main dancefloor opening out to another room with a stage for entertainment and yet another bar.

This is to be the newest hotspot for live gigs in Norwich and is sure to attract some big names in the future.

One of the most exciting aspects of the club is that it offers Norwich club-goers something utterly different to any of its contemporaries. For one, the sheer scale of the venue causes it to be distinctive, but it somehow manages to have an intimate feel

about it at the same time due to the various different rooms inside.

Avid clubber Holly Kite who attended the Monday night event said: "It was a great night out! The music was good as were the two for one cocktails".

It seems that Project will become extremely popular with students as it provides them with a different night out to what other establishments in the city offe r.

All in all, it is certain that the wishes ofStephen Lynn, head of the national brand Luminar Leisure under which Project is managed, have been fulfilled, saying: "when we came back (to Norwich) we wanted to do it properly. We have come back with everything we've got".

ISS UE 25:;

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co ncrctc. news@ u ca .ac.u k

Bodies found in Norwich area Th e bodies of two women have bee n found in Norfo lk. 'T' he two gruesome discoveries were made w ithin hours of each other in the Norwi ch area on Thursday 17th Feb rua ry.

The firs t body to be found was th at of an unid e ntifi ed woman, tho ught to be in her SO's. Th e di scovery was m<1d e just befo re 1 Oa m a t a ho use in All Sa ints Way, in th e us ually quiet coasta l vi ll age of Mund es ley. The poli ce h<J vc yet to confir m the identity of the woman, but a 67-year-old man has bee n arres ted in connection with the incident and No rfolk Constabulary ha ve now co nfirm ed th a t th ey a re treating th e dea th as suspicious.

Th e a pp re hen ded ma n remains in poli ce cus tody and further investigation is to follow.

Th e seco nd cl iscovery was that of a woman in he r mid -2 0's in Whill ing ham Park, Norwich . The body was pull ed out of th e River Yare by Broads Authority wo rke rs at a rou nd 3.30 pm on the 17 th Feb ru a ry. Th e woman has . ince bee n id entified as that of local mi ss ing pe1·so n, 26-yea r-o ld Lucy Woo l rich.

Lu cy, who wa~ also known as 'Lu cy Flowers', h;1 d been mi ss ing s in ce Jan ua ry 8th. Woo lri ch was fmm the Tucks woocl <JI·ea a nd was well known fo r pl ayin g in seve ral loca l band s. ll e r fami ly a nd frie nds have bee n appea lin g fori nfo rmation on he r whereabouts s ince shortly afte r she went miss ing. /\ !thoug h police are still in vestigatin g the death, wit h a post-morte m a nd inquest to he carried out in th e near future, th ey arc not at this s tage trea ting th e in cident as s us pi ci ou s.

Re becca Lancaster

Example and Labrinth confirmed for Norfolk Spectacular Further ac ts have bee n co nfirm ed for the No 1·fo lk Spectac ul<1r, du e to ta ke pla ce at th e Norfo lk Showgrounc! o n th e 3 rd and 4th September.

Examp le, who pl aye d to a so ld -o ut LCR on 22nd February, is th e first act to be co nfirm ed for the Sa tu n!Jy of t he festival, with Tin chy S u ·y d e l~ Ti nie Tem pa h a nd N-Dubz all set to play on Sunday.

Labrinth , bes t known for co ll a borat in g w ith Tini c Tc mpah o n the No. 1 hit Puss Out, will also appea r on the Sunday.

Skills Share takes place across campus •

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Ski lls Share sees events ranging from lectures o n the archeology of rabbits to hula-hoo p workshops.

Event des igned to emphasise value of educatio n Becky Hazlewood News Re porter

l.as t week saw th e launch of a two clay 'Skills Share' eve nt on ca mpu s tha t bro ught toget her s tud e nts a nd lecturers fo r a series of fr ee lectures, workshops a nd pe rfor mances. Among the more unu s ua l eve nts were a hulahoop workshop, poi-spinning for beginners <llld a lecture on ' Th e archaeology of mbbits.'

The event aimed to s how that uni ve rsi ty isn't just abo ut en hancing one's monetary wo rth for c mployahil ily, but that th e re is value in education for the joy of lea ming.

Ann a Clayton, a final year ENV s tud e nt was respons ibl e for orga ni sing the eve nt , ema iled eve ry lecture r a nd soc iety o n

ca mpu s to set up the interes tin g ar ray of eve nts. "I wa nt s tud e nts to e njoy th e day, have fun, be in s pired and rea lise how mu ch peopl e are capab le of'. it's a great way of bringing lectu re rs in to th e st ud ent zon e... really it's a bo ut ge ttin g peop le thinking a bo ut how educat io n shou ld be a nd whet her it's bein g lea d in a ce rta in direction; wit h th e Government cuts fo r humanities sub jects, we're moving towards a scien tifi c, technical soc ie ty."

The id ea for th e Skill s Share originally arose from the Union ca mp <li gn against fees. There was a fee ling from students involved that much of the cam p;1ig n focused o n the Lo ndon de mon s trat ion s, and that most direct act io n ca mpa igns have in vo lve d a clique of :Jcliv is ts.

According to th e orga ni se rs,

s tud e nts thought th at campaigning s ho uld be o pe ned up to more peo ple a nd the idea of Ski ll s Share was born.

Th is being t he first time an even t of thi s nature has take n pl ace, th ere were un ce rtainti es abo ut ho w th e eve nt wo uld be rece ive d.

However, the Ski ll s Share was a grea t s uccess, with all the lec tures and activ it ies being well attended a nd e njoyed by th e st ud ents a nd lecturers involved.

An interesting a rray of sta ll s fill ed the LC I~ on r:riday, as part of <1 n a ll -day Enviro nm e ntal Expo.

Will Lacey, Environm e nt Offi ce r for the Union, was manning a stand of free coffee a ne! cakes, and s;1 id: "T he Expo plays a n important part of th e Skills Sha re eve nt, it gives peo pl e th e opportunity to com e along and get a tas te of env iro nm e ntal li vi ng,

th e poss ibiliti es that are o ut th e re and how easy they a rc to grasp."

After attending <ln eve nt, students were asked to fill out an eva luation fo rm detailing th e ir fee lings abo ut th e values education s ho uld hold, tuition fee s, and how UEA co uld move towards e mb odying these values .

This feedb<Jck will be Jl<lsseclto th e Vice-Chancellor.

So, th e question everyone is ask in g, is whether th e re will be mo re Ski ll s Share eve nts in th e futur e. Ann <l won' t be o rg;mi s ing a nother event lwfore th e end of he r time at UE/\, hut "ho pe (sJ thi s w ill s p<1r k oth er people to do simi lar events," she said. "Lots of lecturers want to s upport this ty pe of eve nt a nd hopefully peo pl e will be in s pired a nd re me mb e r to appreciate th e wo rth of ot hers ."

Porter will not stand for second term as NUS President Continu ed from page 1 Leadin g a high-profil e fig ht agai nst th e coa lition Gove rnm e nt plans to cut edu ca tion funding and rai se uni ve rs ity fees, Porter also orchestrated th e pl edge aga ins t an in crease in fees tha t mos t Libera l De mocrats signed before last May's election. li e was active in pressu ri s ing Norwich MP Simon Wright to vo le against th e fe e ri se, a nd ca me to UJ:/\ to debate with Wright and stud e nts las t Dece mbe r.

Heing in s uch a prominent position, his ab ility to lead a t such a turbulent pe riod in NUS's history has bee n questioned many lim es. In an article in The Gua rdian , Mi chae l Chessum, a ca mpaigner fo1· the National Cam p;1i gn Against Fees a nd Cuts, stated that 1\aro n Porte r risked makin g NU S 'irrelevant' and S<lid that for th e ca mpa ign to mo ve forward, NUS will ha ve to 'ch;mgc radica lly'. Porter was also pe rso nally targeted by protesters at a rece nt

rally in Mancheste t~ where he was esco rted away from a ngry s tud e nts by poli ce.

Th e Union of UE/\ Stud e nts has join ed NUS in the 1·cce nt National Demos aga inst ed ucation cuts. The Communications Officer for the Union , Tom Dolton, told Concrete: "The Union saw so me great cha nges in th e stud e nt move me nt and NUS und e r Mr Porter; the increase in acti vis m by stud e nts and Uni ons a like is so methin g to ce le bra te".

When asked if Aaron Porter h<Jd made the right choi ce, th e Union chose not to spec ui<Jle, hut urged s tuden ts to sta nd for the NUS del ega te pos iti on, whi ch wou ld all ow th e m to have a say in the election of the ne w pres id ent.

Current NUS Sco tlo1nd Pres id ent, Liam Burn s and Shane Chowe n, the curre nt Vice-President of NUS <1 rc both set to run for th e position whe n elections take pla ce in April.

Susa nna Wood

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NEWS

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UEA entrepreneurs compete for Caribbean internship A w ee k-lon g inte rn s hip in St Lucia is the top prize up for grab s in t he Eure ka Bus in ess Pla n Co mp e titi o n.

Th e co mp e titi o n, crea te d in pa rtn e rs hip be twee n UEA a nd Hote l Chocolat, will gra nt thi s o ppo rtunity to wh oe ve r ca n co m e up with th e mos t c rea ti ve, ye t pra cti ca l, id ea s for a bus in ess.

Pri zes o f £100 ea ch have a lrea dy bee n a w a rd e d in th e fir s t round to Thomas Eth e rin gto n (CMP) , Be n Fa ira ll (NB S), Pa tri ck Ha rdin g (ECO), Sim o n Lloyd (810) a nd Ma rk llilditch (NBS) . Th ey wi ll a ll be comp e ting in the fin a l s tage a long wit h another five fina li s ts : Cla ri ssa 13ac rc nfac nge r (D IN), Dav id Dun ca n ( LAW) , Emmi Ha ll (ENV), fa n Ho bbs (NBS) a nd La urc n Raza vi ( PSI) .

Th e firs t pri ze is a n a ll ex pe nsespa id o pportunity to d eve lo p th e ir id eas in ll ote l Choco la t' s Ra bo t Es ta te in St Lu cia. Th e winn e i ~ to be se lec te d o n th e 3 1s t Ma rch, w ill a lso rece ive a bus in ess s ta rt-up package worth £4, 000 fro m Ba rclays Ba n1,, Lo ve w e ll Bl a ke Cha rte red Accounta nts, law firm Mill s & Ree ve a nd Th e Click Des ign Con s ultants.

Opp ort uniti e s for inte rn s hips with ll o tel Choco lat in the UI< wi ll al so be a va il a ble a s prizes for tho se coming seco nd a nd third .

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www.concrete-online.co. R- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - • co n cr ete.news@l uea.ac. u k

Scottish students may face tuition fees •

Education cuts hit Scottish and Welsh universities as they may set high e r fees.

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Universities Scotland says that a graduate contribution could be set at just over £3,000 per year.

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Catherine Martin News Re porte r

Unive rs iti es in Sco tland m ay introdu ce tuiti o n fees, if th e numb e r of places ava ila bl e is to be s us ta in ed , it has bee n a nn o un ced .

Universities Scotland, an orga ni sati o n re prese ntin g unive rs ity principa ls, has indi ca te d th at unl ess tuition fees o f up to £13 ,000 a rc introduced , th e numb e r of s tud e nt places th a t a re curre ntly avail a ble would not be s us ta in a ble. Th e £1 bi llion d ec rea se in Scotl a nd's budge t for2011 -1 2 w ill re s ul t in a redu ct ion of £67 milli o n from Scotland's unive rs ity secto r.

Th e orga nisa ti o n see ms co nce rn ed a bout th e Sco ttis h unive rs ity syste m in co mpariso n to Engla nd 's sys te m w hi ch, ow ing to ri s ing tuiti o n fees a nd in creased loa ns to s tud e nts , will he be tte r resourced th a n Scotla nd 's.

Owing to th e budge t cuts, Scottis h uni ve rs iti es a re a lrea dy pre pa rin g to lose hundred s of pos ts a nd cut co urses. For 2011-1 2, th e numb e r of s tud e nt pl aces w ill not cha nge, but tea ch ing sa la ries wi ll be l'educe d by 1 1% . According to Un iversities Sco tland, this cou ld continue fo r more th a n on e yea r only a t "a se ve re s tretch".

Th e re have been atte mpts in the pas t to introdu ce tu ition fe es to Scotl a nd, but eac h tim e th ese a tte mpts have fa iled; fees w e re a bo li s he d in 2000 a fte r th e Bla ir Gove rnm e nt tri e d to es tab lis h th e m two yea rs be fore, a nd three yea rs ago Scottis h mini s te rs did aw ay w ith a g ra du a te e nd owm e nt fee o f £ 2,000.

Universities Scotland has proposed th a t a g ra duate co ntribution cou ld be s e t to £3,290 a yea i ~ w hi ch is th e curre nt Engli s h le ve l. Th e o rga ni sa tion says it is fair to ex pect gra du a tes "who re a li se

s ub s tantia l priva te be ne fit as a res ult of a un ive rs ity edu ca ti o n" to pay thi s co ntributi o n. H o w e v e i ~ it w o uld no t be pa id by g ra du a tes w ho ea rn a "re la ti ve ly low" sa la ry.

In Wa les, Edu ca ti o n Mini s te r Le ighto n Andrews has de te rmin e d th a t We ls h s tud e nts will pay a bas ic fee leve l o f £4000, £ 2000 less th a n in Engla nd.

Andrew s ex pla ine d th a t thi s d ec is io n was "base d o n th e co ntribution he be lieved hi ghe r e du ca ti o n s h o u l d

jus tice . a nd sector".

feedb ac k

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H o weve i~ th e upp e r fee limit will be £9,000, the sa me as in Engla nd, but uni ve rs ities mu s t s how a co mmitme nt to pro mo tin g hi ghe r edu ca tion be fo re be ing a ll ow e d to cha rge a ny mo re th a n th e bas ic fee.

Below: St. Andrews Univers ity in Scotland, which could start charging

Mark Shea d

Nominations open for Union elections

KAOS set for fashion show Becky Hazlewood Ne w s Re po rte r

Nomin a ti o ns fo r th e Uni o n e lec ti o ns have o pe ne d, and wil l re ma in o pe n until Spm o n Frid ay 11th Ma rch.

Th e e lec t ion s th e mse lves wi ll run from 21 s l March until th e 29 th Ma rch, with ca mpaigning ta kin g place fr o m 2 1s t Ma rch.

Th e re a rc fo ur full tim e pos iti o ns ava il a bl e: Co mmuni ca ti o ns Office r, Fin a nce Offi ce r, Aca d e mi c Offi ce r a nd Co mmunity a nd Stud e nt Ri g hts Offi ce r. In a dditi o n to thi s, thirtee n pa rt-tim e pos iti o ns a re a va il a bl e , fo ur no n-p o rtfo li o in cludin g o ffice rs.

No min at io ns fo rm s a re ava ila bl e fro m t he Uni o n ll o usc rece pti o n a nd Sc hoo l rece pt io ns.

Th e form s ca n a ls o be found o nl in c a t w w w.u eas tud e nt.c o m, a lon g with furth e r info rm a tion a bout th e pos itio ns ava il ab le.

Davina Kesby

Nex t month sees th e fo urth annu a l I<aos Fas hi o n Show ta kin g pl ace: the b igges t fun dra is in g e vent of th e ye ar run by t he 1</\0S so c ie ty.

Th e I<AOS s o c ie ty (I< id s Action Ove r Seas ) a im s to ra ise a wa re ness of global inju sti ces, w ith a pa rti c ul a r fo c us o n th e hea lth a nd e du ca ti o n o f c hildre n. Th e socie ty fundra ises for s tud e nt -le d pro jec ts , w hi c h a re s upp o rte d by loca l co mmunity initi a ti ves . Thi s s umm e r I<AO S ha ve projects in Uga nd a, Ke nya, Gha na, Za mbi a a nd Ta nza ni a.

Ti cke ts fo r t hi s yea r's s how a re £4 in a dva nce a nd a ll proceed s go to w a rd s th e loca l co mmuniti es wh e re pro jec ts a re be in g run .

Proceed s w ill go towa rd s thin gs s uc h as buy ing teac hin g ma te ri a ls for sc hoo ls o r la pto ps for IT e du catio n in c hildre n's ho m es.

Ove r 100 m o d e ls (m ostly UE/\

s tud e nts ) will s ho w case th e works o f a ra nge o f fas hi o n d es ig ne rs, includin g m a ny loca l Norwich d es ig ne rs .!\ hu ge va ri e ty o f d es ign s w ill be di s pl aye d w ith o utfits from Future Co uture, Da isy & Lola's , Poppy Va le ntin e 's , Revo lu tion , Ga ll yo ns a nd Shhhh ex pec te d to b e m od e ll ed a t th e e ve nt. !\ ra nge o f s tud e nts fr o m a ll co urses ha ve bee n in vo lve d in thi s yea r's eve nt. Ma rin a Vin ce nt, o ne o f t he eve nt's orga ni se rs, sa id : "Alth o ug h it ta kes m o nth s to o rga ni se a nd is a lo t o f ha rd w ork, it is so rewa rdin g in th e e nd. lt ma kes yo u rea li se how imp o rta nt tea m wo rk is. Yo u a lso ge t to ge t invo lve d with thin gs yo u' ve ne ve r d o ne be fo re s uc h as m od e lli ng a nd s tage ma nage me nt".

Ma rin a w e nt on to say th a t "th e Fas hi o n Sho w is d e finite ly the eve nt o f th e yea i~ a nd is a g rea t s uccess eve ry tim e".

Th e s how w il l ta ke p lace o n 20 th Ma rc h a t 7 pm in th e LCR.

UEA Law Socie ty has a nn o un ced th a t Max Mos ley will be lecturin g o n Protec t io n of Pri vacy on We dn esd ay 2 nd Ma rch, a fte r th e lec ture was can ce lle d las t te l'lll .

Mr Mos ley, fo rm e r Pres id en t o f th e go ve l'lling body o f For mul a On e a nd so n o f Sir Oswa ld Mos ley, fo und e r o f th e Briti s h Un io n o f

Fasc is ts, has bee n a t th e ce ntre o f a row w ith Th e Newsofth e World s in ce 2 00 8 . Th e ne w s pa pe r pub lis he d d e ta ils o f hi s in vol ve m e nt in a sex ac t w ith severa l pros titutes. lt has s in ce bee n rul e d th a t prac tices s uch as th ese a re not a m a tte r of pub li c in te rest a nd Mos lcy s uccess fu lly s ue d fo r £6 0,0 0 0.

Th e lec ture will be he ld in the Th o m as Pa in e Lec ture T hea t re , a nd w ill begin a t 6:3 0pm .

ISSUE 253

7

Tuesday 1st March

Derby Day posters come under fire David Murphy News Reporter The Union of UEA Students has kicked off its campaign for .Derby Day 2011 with a set of posters that have been met with mixed reviews.

The new posters depict students from many of UEA's sports teams posing for the camera in their team's uniform. While there is no doubt about the athletes' ' sporting prowess, students on campus feel the images don't send an intimidating message to Derby Day opponents, the University of Essex.

Students have criticised the posters for looking "unprofessional" and say that the plain white background used for most of the images

is not exciting enough. They have also drawn comparisons to Essex's D!'!rby Day posters saying that our rivals have better captured the competitive spirit of the day.

After speaking with students on campus, many have their own ideas on how the photos should have been done. One student told Concrete that "the Ziggurats would have made a better background for the pictures.

They would have felt more individual for us then". In their photos, Essex have used their distinctive tower block accommodation to create a menacing background for their athletes.

When this reporter passed some of these criticisms on to the Union, the Communications Officer,

Tom Dolton, said he was "surprised" as "all the comments that we have received on the Derby Day posters have been positive".

He said that "the Union always welcomes feedback" and invited students to put forward their criticisms ·of the Derby Day campaign using comment cards which are available in Union outlets or by emailing Finance Officer Rob Bloomer directly.

Derby Day kicks off on Wednesday 23rd March and this year sees the biggest event in the University's sporting calendar take place in Norwich. After losing 3015 in Colchester last year, UEA will be looking for strong performances from all of its teams and a definitive win on home soil.

The UEA posters versus Essex's ...

Fortner polytechnics set to charge an "average of £7., 500" A report into tuition fees carried out by The Times has revealed that some lowerranking universities are planning to charge an average of £7,500 in tuition fees.

Several new universities and former polytechnics indicated their proposed fee. level to The Times in a report publish~d on Monday. Only Swansea Metropolitan said

that their fees would be below the £6,000 lower cap.

According to the report, universities in the Russell and 1994 group, which includes UEA, are likely to charge £9,000, with universities that offer more specialised courses also demanding the top amount These findings come despite the fact that David

Willetts, the Universities Minister; said this week that very few universities would be justified in charging the full amount. He said: "Unless universities can prove that there will be a commensurate and very significant improvement in the education on offer; it is difficult to see how such an increase could ever be justified".

.'

I

ISS UI·: 253

www.concrete-online.co.uk

Tuesday 1st M<Jrch

INTERNATIONAL

8

Visa and Immigration This issue, Concrete Internatio nal's Rachael Lum, lsabelle Carty and Ines Guita exam ine the dilemmas and proble1ns surrounding visas and internationa l immigration

International Immigration lnes Guita lntc mational Write r Eve ryo ne has heard abo ut th e curre nt revolution s in /\rabi c countr ies such as Tunisia, Egypt and Bahrain. The difficu lti es of deve lopm e nt afte r co lonisa tio n have led to b1·ain d rain (especia lly from India to the US/\): the most educa ted students travel and work in developed countries, in stead of ben efi ting th e ir own nation with t heir s kills.

So, co lonisa ti on is o ne of th e nldi n ca uses of in te rn at iona l immi gratio n. Th at is why po pul a ti on s fro m poo r co untri es (a bove a ll /\fri ca, Latin /\ mc ri ca a nd /\s ia) mi gra te to ri ch co un tries. Th ese mass ive fl ows of popul a ti o n a re moti va ted by th e Europ ea n drea m o r th e /\m c ri e<1n drea m. Th e numb e r of mi gra nts a ll ove r t he wo rld has bee n growin g. Th ese migra nts ho pe for a bette r life th a n fr o m th eir ow n co untry fo r reaso ns such as wa rs, dictators hips, low life leve ls, etc.

Inte rnationa l im mig ration is <1 rea lly important issue worlclwicl c beca use, w hatever th e popuiJtion, peop le want to (or eve n have to) lc<lVe th e ir o riginal count ry. Th e re are ma ny reaso ns: s tudy, work 0 1~ above all, a bette r life.

In ge ne ra l, th e motives match with the type of

co untry of de pa rture: a s tud e nt fro m th e EU may go to th e LJ S/\, a famil y fro m Mo rocco may go to Fra nce, etc. So, mobility is s upp osedly quite easy fo r a 13ritis h stud e nt but yo u mu st take ste ps to ca rry o ut admini st ra ti o n, such as vi sas o r pa ss po rts, month s (and eve n years) befo re your depa rture.

To avoid o r limit ill ega l immi gra tio n, interna tional immi gration is regu la ted by seve r<ll diffe re nt orga ni za tion s a t loca l, nation al and inte rn ational leve ls. De pe nd ing on the counu·y you <ll'e from and th e o ne yo u arc goi ng to, th e re a rc gu id elines to fo ll ow fo1· th ese imm ig1·a nts.

Within th e Europea n Un io n, there is a co mm o n immi gration poli cy thil t co ns id e rs fa mi ly re unifi ca ti on, s tud y a nd training, wo d<, a nd ill ega l immi gratio n. /\sylum -scc kc rs a re a lso pa rt of immi gra ti o n issues. The EU tries to fi ght aga inst both s mu ggle rs a nd traffi cke rs to stop fuellin g illega l im migratio n.

Europe also inte nd s to combine econ omic and de mogra phi c needs of a region w ith t he influxes of imm igra n ts.

In th e US/\, th e re arc la ws rega rdin g immigr<lti o n a nd naturaliza ti o n, es pec ially s in ce th e 9 j 11 a tta cks. For exampl e, th e 199 0 Immigra tion /\et limit s th e annual numb e r or

Visa proposal blow for international students

immi gra nts to 700,000 : fa mily rcunifi ca ti o n a nd e mpl oyme nt- rela ted immigrat io n a rc th e most im po rta nt crite ri o n. /\ nt i-tcrro 1·is m, deat h pe nalty, ill egal im migra tion a nd immi grant res pons ibi lity arc dealt w ith in othe r acts.

On a global scale, the United Natio ns foc uses o n num e ro us in itiali vcs to handl e inte rna ti onal mi gra tion . it inte rro ga tes deve lopm ent iss ues linked to immigrati o n ca uses a nd studi es how to improve coope rati o n betwee n th e UN a nd oth e r inte rnati o nal age ncies, by crea tin g gro ups or

The challenges of migration lsabelle Carty In te rnationa l Writer

Rachae l Lum Inte rn a ti o nal Write r Th e new vis<l propo sals wou ld ad ve rs ely affec t th e re ve nue of Ul< univers ities bu t intc rnation <ll stud e nts are es pec ia lly fee lin g th e nas ty pin ch of t he re forms. Immigra ti o n Mi nis te r Dam ia n Gree n ex pl a in s that the gove rnm e nt pl<ln s w ill reduce t he num be r o r ove rse as s tud e nts who can e nter t he Ul< as th ey mu s t be "se lecti ve abo ut wh o can com e he re IBrita in I a nd ho w long th ey ca n stay".

Acco rdin g to th e proposal s, future ove rseas <lppli ca nt s would ha ve to de mo ns tra te a hi ghe r profi cie ncy in En gli s h, <J BZ g rade as opposed to its pre viou s B1 grade. Thi s wo uld res trict a la rge numb e r of stud e nts from furth e rin g th e ir edu cation in th e Ul< . INTO would s ulf'c r th e mo s t from thi s cha nge.

Th e iro ny in thi s is that som e students e nte r th e Ul< w ith th e purpose of improvin g th eir l~ n g li s h . Thi s is und e r th e sam e prin ciple t ha t s tud y in g a language in its country of o ri gin proves to be more be nefi cia l. In LJEA, for in s tan ce, th e re a re la nguage sup port progra mmes an d cou rs es to aiel t hese stud e nt s. The new rcfo n11 wo uld de te r fu t ure

stud e nts.

Curre nt inte rn a tiona l s tud e nts are more co nce rn ed by t he am e ndments in t he pos t-s t udy wo rk pe rmits. /\t t he mom e nt grad ua tes a rc a ll owed to re mai n in t he Ul< to wu 1·k for two yea rs. The new cap wo uld e ns ure t hat stude nts w ill re turn to t he i1· hom e countri es afte r th eir pe rmitted s tay in Brita in .

The gove rnm e nt cla ims th a t th is w il l reduce ill ega l wo rk mi grants from abu s in g th e s tud e nt visa sys te m as so me peo pl e e nte r th e Ul< und e r th e pre te nce of be ing a s tud e nt.

Unfo rtu1wtely, thi s mo ve wo uld be da mag in g to leg itimate inte rn a tion al s tud e nts.

Ma ny beli eve tha t th e impl e me nta ti o n would a ffe ct future job prosp ects. Regardless of th e ir a biliti es, po te ntial e mpl oye rs might be di sco uraged fr om hirin g th ese s tud e nts clu e tn th eir tim e limit in th e co untry. it is likely that UJ< would ex pe ri e nce a hi ghe r innu x of' stud e nt <lnd work-related visa a ppl ication s thi s yea r w ith all th e an xie ty.

Alth o ugh th e pro posa ls have not ye t bee n fi nali se d, t hi ngs arc not lookin g too good.

In te rna tiona l s tud e nts hilve mu ch to fear for w ith th e govern me nt's rea ssess me nt of th e st ud ent im migra ti o n sys te m.

<lSSc mb iiCS. /\I I th ese migra tory po licies have dev iated to a ris e in na ti o n;Jiis ms a ne\ racis m in Eu rope.

For exa mpl e, in foriln ce, the Natio nal Fro nt, t he mos t importa nt fa r-ri ght, na ti ona list po liti ca l pa rty, is dangero us ly growing in po ll s.

Inte rn a tion al immigra tion mus t defi nitely be regulat ed a nd co ntroll ed to avo id il legal po pul a tions a nd de mogrilphi c problem s, but it does n't justify racism, natio nalis m or xe nophobi a. Th e in s titution s that deal with immi gration iss ues have to strike a bal a nce be tween th ese two ele me nts.

There arc ma ny reaso ns why peopl e might migrate from o ne country to a noth c1: ll owevc r, ed uca tion is o ne of th e most all uri ng facto rs.

Peop le mig ht pi ck a co untry to move to for ;1 w hole host of reaso ns in cl ud ing its ed ucatio n syste m, jo b pros pects, li vi ng sta nd;m ls <llld medi cal ca re. Ultimate ly, rega rdl ess of th c i1· reaso n fo r mov ing, migrants ca n be sc pa 1·a ted into two groups; te mpora ry a nd pc1·man e nt.

Pe rm a ne nt imp lies that th ey inte nd to st<lY in th e new country and poss ibly obta in citize ns hip, wh e reas te mpo ra ry migra nts o nly inte nd to stay fo r a limited a mou nt of tim e.

Th e majo rity of s tud ents who choose to study in a no the r co untry fall into t he 'tempora ry' migra nt catego ry.

Gath e ring a nd compl etin g a ll th e a ppli cati o n fo rm s to a pply fo r a s tud e nt vis<l ca n he a long a nd co mplica ted process yet on ce yo u have bee n acce pted it und o ubtedly co mes as qu ite a reli ef. Thi s is th e first a nd most impo1ta nt ste p towa rds movin g to a noth e r co untry to s tudy. Howeve r, th e re <1 rc a numbe r of th ings to think about on ce yo u ilrc certa in tha t you wi ll he movi ng. To beg in wi th , acco mmodation pla ns must be made.

Stud e nts must also co ns ider how th ey wi ll ge t fro m t he airport to th eir fin al destina tio n.

Curren cy con ve rsio n is probably bes t don e in th e s tudent's home country as rates a t th e airport w ill te nd not to be filvourablc.

Lea rning th e lan guage of the cou ntry is also a n impo rta nt ste p a nd cil n be qui te di fficu lt for som e- espec ia lly if th ey have never been expose d to it before. Most instit uti ons have classes to help stud e nts with this, as we ll <lS ass istin g the m w it h wri ti ng essays a nd sitti ng exams. Upon a iTi val in th e new co un try som e stude nts may unfo rtunately exper ie nce 'culture shock' - a sc ns;ltion tha t can be brought about by ex pe 1·i e ncing someth ing un ex pected. Leaving home a nd tra velli ng to study in a new co untry ca n he a stress ful ex pe ri e nce a nd tho ugh stud ents may find th e mselves s urpri sed by t he effects of th e cha nge, it might he helpful fo r th e m to realise th at thi s ex peri e nce is quite no rma l.

Culture s hock can be brought o n by diffe rences in soc ial h e havi o lll~ climate, food, la nguage, dress, rul es of behav iour a nd mo1·a \ valu es and though th e re are ind eed ma ny diffe re nces betwee n cultures a nd countries there is <liso a ge ne ra l se nse of curi os ity a nd 1·cspect that goes hand in ha nd wit h that. Wh e the r s tud e nts choose to expe rie nce som ething new or to stick to thei1· ow n cus toms, t hey a re gua ranteed to e nj oy exploring th eir new e nvim nm c nt at least until th ey a1·c re<ldy to 1·c turn hom e.

ISSUE 253

9

www.rttltrrcttâ&#x20AC;˘Âˇonlinc.co.iâ&#x20AC;˘li

Tuesday 1st March

Pre-university advice: sage or silly?

My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding: This weekend Prince William and Kate Middleton headed back to the place where their romance A rebuttal blossomed, the University of St. Andrews. With this in mind, Bell Thomas looks at the wellmeant advice family and friends probably gave you before university, including that age-old myth that university is where you will meet the love of your life.

Bell Thomas Raise your hand if you were ever offered sage advice from your family and friends before you left for uni?

Yes, I'm guessing that's everyone in the room. So many people get lots of advice that range from the very cool like "Hugs not drugs" to the very kooky like "Always carry around the rape whistle your dad and I got you".

Yes, we always get advice from our loved ones, be it voluntary or flat-out forced.

So what profound advice did my parents give to me? Well, that's easy! My dad said to me: "Read your books, get a degree, get a job". Rubbish, right? Sorry to disappoint you guys, but my dad

isn't as cool as Randy Marsh from South Park.

Even though I will forever have those snappy words of wisdom etched at the back of my brain, the advice that stuck with me the longest was from a friend's mum.

She said: "Uni is where most people find their life partners and get married, so keep an eye out".

Definitely sound advice coming from a lady that met her husband at university, right? I wasn't going to doubt her; she was living proof things like that happened. And truth be told, I've always been a secret romantic, who isn't? Anne Robinson got ma rried twice didn't she?

I'm now in my fina l year of university and I think the closest to a life partner I'm ever going to get here is my electric kettle. I've had it for four years . That's like dog years in celebrity marriages.

At this point, you must be wondering: "Is there a point to

this ?" Yes. I'm trying to clear the air and bust a few myths in the process. After four years, I have realised that university is an extension of High School.

now in my final year of university and I think the closest to a life partne r I'm ever going to get here is my electric kettle." ~Tm

Nothing's changed, except lectures are not compulsory!

University is not bursting with eager eligible bachelors and the LCR is not where you're going

to find your Prince Charming. If you're a hopeless romantic and don't believe me, see for yourself; dress your best and head on to the LCR on a Saturday night.

I cannot promise that you'll find your "soul mate" in there but I can, on good authority, confirm that the burger van will be awaiting your departure should you leave alone, drunk and hungry and feel the need to have a midnight snack.

The point I'm trying to make here is: Do not take pre-university advice too literally. We are only young once; our parents went to university; they understand.

Enjoy your student experience for as long as you can, (couples, singletons and people on the prowl) because one day you're going to graduate and you probably don't want to realise that the longest relationship you ever had was the one with your kettle.

Miha

Klement In the previous issue of Concrete it was argued that there is no way we can criticise values of other cultures, referring to Channel 4's program My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding.

The article said that while women in Western cultures may not see a family unit controlled by a strong, patriarchal figure as a worthy aspiration, we should not judge such a family arrangement according to our standards.

This view is rather common these days a nd goes by the name of cultural relativism - the idea that diversity of cultural values means that they are all equal. Demanding the proud denizens of an ancient gypsy culture to conform to our view of gender equality would be culturally imperialistic.

"We know enough about human we ll-bei ng to co ndemn such bla tant mistreatment of women regardless of its cultural origin" This 'tolerance" of moral differences enables abject failures of compassion evident in the article. The young age at which girls are married, the low literacy rates among them and subjugation to male dominance was deemed acceptable in the article as long as the women are 'happy' with their situation. Clearly these women value the wrong things in life.

Is it not clear that their practices cause them unnecessary suffering? Their cultural practices perpetuate a view of women as being the property of men and keep women blind to the possibility of real equality and communication between the sexes.

Are we therefore not in a position to say that the treatment of women in traditional gypsy societies is generally bad?

Absolutely we are and we have a responsibility to state the obvious.

We know enough about human well-being to condemn such blatant mistreatment of women regardless of its cultural orig.in .

The views in Comment and Opinion represent those of the individual writers and do not necessarily reflect those of Concrete

ISSUE 2S :>

10

co ncrcte.o pini on@uca.ac.u k

Belgium: A coalition scare story?

With British eyes firml y set on the future of our own coalition Gove rnme nt, di scussio n in nati on al newspap ers of the ever-growin g ten sions in Belgium h as been scarce. Pia Langeheine looks at th e situ ation fac ing a state on th e edge of fracture a nd as ks what issues it raises?

Pia La ngeheine Be lgium is a country with a po p u latio n of nearly 11 mi lli o n.

Alth o ugh t he ma jo ri ty of th e na tional cit ize ns (a bo u t 6 milli o n) a re Fl e mis h, it is es tim a te d th a t a pprox imate ly 77 % o f th e hou se ho ld s in Bru sse ls, th e ca pita l, a rc Fre nc h s pea kin g.

Up u nt il WW II , Wa ll o ni a - t he so uth e rn Fr e nc h sp ea kin g reg io n - was t h e more p ros pe rous reg io n o f Be lg ium , du e to its ex te ns ive coa l a nd iro n indu s tri es .

Tod ay, how eve 1 ~ pro du c tivity pe r inh a bita nt is sa id to b e 20 % hi g he r in Fla nders - th e north e r n Fle mi s h s pea k ing reg io n - t ha n in Wa ll o ni a, w he re un e m p loym e nt a pp ea rs to b e tw ice as h igh as in Fl a nd e rs.

He nce th e Fle mi s h pe opl e a re di sco nte nt w ith hav in g to pay fo r Fra nco ph o ne w e lfa re be ne fit s a nd not see ing th e taxes in ves ted in t he ir ow n reg io n. Su c h d is pa ri t ies a re t he ca uses for t he c u rre nt po liti ca l di s pute.

Be lgium is a hi g hl y co mpl ex co untry. it is a fe d e ra l s ta te co mpri s in g o f Fl e mi s h a nd Fre nch

com m un iti es w it h a s m a ll Ge rm a n min o ri ty. Mu ch like Brita in is s p li t in to four prin c ipa lities, Be lgium is s plit into three reg io ns- Fl a nd e rs and Wa llo n ia , whi ch a re Fle m is h, and Fre nc h s pea kin g res pecti ve ly, w h ile th e ca pita l reg ion o f Brusse ls is b ilin g ua l.

Aga in , like Brit a in , re g io ns have va ri o us po li t ica l powe rs s uc h as tra ns p o rta tion o r c ul tura l m a tte rs. Th e Fl e mi s h pa rti es ge ne ra lly fa vo ur mu c h la rge r reg io na l a uto no my, whil e th e Fra n cophon e pa rt ies te nd to favo u r more s ta te co nt ro l, be ing awa re t ha t th ey be ne fit fro m publi c ex pe nditu re. na t io na l Th e po liti ca l in s tituti o ns a re not pure ly id eo log ica l. Mos t po lit ica l powe r is o rga ni sed a ro und th e n eed to re p rese nt th e po liti ca l a nd lin g u is ti c in te res ts o f t he co mmun it ies . Su bs equ e nt ly, m os t p o li t ica l pa rt ies a re e xc lus ive ly Dutc h o r Fre nch s pea kin g.

Th e m a jo r confli ct ce ntres a ro und a di s tri ct ca ll ed Bru sse lsHa ll e-Vilvoo rd e (BHV), whi ch e ncompasses t he b i Iingu a I Bru sse ls a nd t he m ono ling ua l Fla nd e r s re g ion . Th e latte r co nta in s seve ra l mun ic ipa li ti es w he re Fre nch s p ea ke rs form a con s id e ra bl e pa rt o f t he po pu la tion. Th ey a re g ra nte d s pec ia l pri vileges s uch as

// Currently Belgium has been without an official governm ent fo r over 250 daysthereby setting a world record for the lengthiest govern ment formatio n process, having overtaken Iraq."

'ex tra te rr itor ia l' vo tin g ri g hts w hi ch me a ns th at Fran cop ho nes ca n vo te in th e Wa ll o n ia reg io na l eve n th o ug h t hey e lecti o ns res id e in Fl a nd e rs . Th e Fl e mi s h in s is ts on th e co mmunity mo no lin g ua l na ture o f Fl a nd e rs a nd wa nts to d e ny t he Fre nc hs pea ke rs th ese ex tra ri g h ts, w hil e th e Fre nch co m m un ity is ge ne ra ll y in favo ur o f re ta in ing th e s ta tu s quo .

Th e po liti ca l c ri s is bro ke out in th e s umm e r o f 200 7, fo ll ow in g th e e lectora l victo ry o f th e a lli a nce o f Fle mi s h Chri s t ia n De m oc ra ts a nd se pa ra t is ts w ho s upp o r te d w id es p read s ta te refo rm a nd t he imm e di a te s plit of th e BHV reg io n.

Back th e n it too k 149 days to fo rm a ne w gove rnm e nt. Curre ntl y Be lgium has bee n with o ut a n o ffi c ia l gove r nm e nt for ove r 250 days - s in ce s umm e r 2 01 0 - t h e re by se ttin g a wor ld record fo r th e m os t le ng thi es t gove rnm e nt fo rm a t io n pro cess , hav in g ove rta ke n Ira q s in ce 17th Fe bru a ry.

Th e Ju ne 2010 ge ne ra l e lec tio ns sa w a vi c tory by th e se pa ra t is t Ne w Fle mi s h Alli a nce ( NVA), b ut w ith o nl y 27 o u t o f 150 pa r lia m e ntary sea ts. T he re fo re th e NVA need e d to fo rm a coa liti o n w ith a numb e r o f o th e r pa rt ies in o rd e r to go ve rn . H oweve 1 ~ du e to

t he ir ra d ica l a mbiti o ns a nd s t ro ng po liti ca l oppo s itio n, it has b ee n ex tre m e ly pro bl e m a ti c to fo rm a n a ll ia nce . He nce nego ti a ti o ns to fo rm a ne w go ve rnm e nt have b ee n d ea dl oc ked e ve r s in ce a nd Be lg ium is be in g gove rn e d by th e s o ca ll e d ' la me du ck' Pro vis io nal Gove rnm e nt un d e r Fle mi s h Ch r is t ia n De moc rat lea d e r Yv es Le te rm e . li ng uis ti c di vis io ns Th e w e re fir s t s pa rked in th e 19 6 0s w he n Fle mi s h s tud e nts a t th e 'Unive rs ity of Le uv e n', loca te d in Fla nd e r s, cla im e d t ha t th ey w e re u n d e r p ri v ilege d co mp a re d to t he ir fe ll o w Fre nc h s tud e nts.

Co nse qu e ntl y th e Uni ve rs ity was divi de d a nd th e ne w Fre nc h s pea kin g exclu s ive ly of Lo uva in' was ' Uni ve rs ity fo und e d in Wa ll o n ia.

Now, fifty y ea rs o n, s t ud e n ts a rc a t th e for e fro n t o f m ass d e m o ns tra ti o n in s upp o rt o f a unit e d Be lg ium . Th e qu es ti o n is wh eth e r t hey will b e h ea rd by th e pe tty- mind e d po liti cia n s, o r w he th e r Be lg iu m is d es tin e d to s p lit u p e ve n t ua ll y. So fa r, howe ve r, no o ne ha s co me up w it h a reaso na bl e s o lut ion to th e m os t co ntrove rs ia l iss ue - wh a t ha pp e ns to bi lin g ua l Bru sse ls s ho uld th e country se pa ra te?

Is it time for Trident to take a backseat?

In li ght of we ll -doc umented spen d ing cuts in all secto rs, sh o ul d we st ill be spe ndin g bill io ns o n a n uclear defen ce p rog ra mme?

James Dixon con siders the deb ate associated with Trid ent and th e qu estions it fo rces us to as k.

james Dixon

T he coa litio n Gove rnm e nt have cur re ntly reac hed a fo rk in th e road as to how th ey s hou ld re place the ag ing Tride nt nuclea r w ea po n sys te m.

Tride nt has offe re d a co ntinu o us a t-sea de te rre nt, whi ch mea ns havin g o ne nu cl ea r s ub ma r in e a t sea fo r eve ryd ay o f t he y e a 1~ Thi s is a n ex tre me ly cos tly meas u re to prese rve Bri ta in's cla im to be ing a nucl ea r powe r a nd is curre ntly und e r re vie w as Trid e nt is re placed.

Th e cu r re nt Defe nce Secre ta ry, Liam Fox, has in s is ted that 'l'ricl e nt is re pl ace d with a 'like for like' sys te m.

Fox's di s missal of any alte rn a t ive course of ac ti o n, s uch as Ia ncl-basecl wea pon s, has ca used controve rsy cl ue to Fox's Lib e ra l De mocrat de pu ty, Ni ck Ha rvey, s pea kin g o ut in favo ur of co ns id e ri ng a lte rn a t ives.

At a prim e ti me fo r de ba te ove r Brita in's nu clear future, th e coa liti o n has bee n disa ppo intin gly close- mind ed a nd has ba re ly broac he d t he s ubject of nuclea r a r ms redu ction.

Nu clear wea pon s are re now ned for th e ir te rrify ingly des tr uctive na ture a nd have o nly bee n used aggress ive ly twi ce in th e ir exis tence.

To co m pl ica te ma tte rs, tod ay's nu clear w ea po ns a re mu ch stro nge r tha n pas t inca rn a tio ns.

The ho rrify ing images of Hiros him a a nd Nagasa ki a ppea r to be qui ckly cast asid e by th e coalition

w ho cl a ims th a t n uclea r wea po ns ac t as a de fe nce syste m in t he fo rm o f a de te rre nt.

Whi le this cla im is dubi o us, th e possess io n o f nu clea r w ea po ns o nly se rves to en co u rage o the r co untr ies to de ve lop the ir own a r ms to s it o n a leve l pla in . To co nt inue to purs ue a Tride nt s ty le wea po ns sys te m is to ac t hy pocr iti ca lly as Brita in a tte mpts to di ss ua de o th e r co untri es fro m crea tin g nu clea r wea po ns. If ow ne rs hip of nu clea r a rm s is a dete r re nt aga in s t nuc lea r wa r the n w hy di d Bla ir fee l the need to in vad e lraq 7 The logic of n uclea r wea pon s is co nfu sed.

As ide fro m th e m o ra lity of nu clear weapon s, there is the

eco nomi c iss ue of in ves t ing heav ily in a reso urce we w ill mos t like ly neve r use. Offi cia l cos ts of re plac in g th e Trid e nt sys te m a re un c l ea 1~ but Gree np eace ha ve es tim a te d th e cos t to be ÂŁ75 bi ll ion. This is a p he nom e na l a mo un t of mo ney that co uld b e used to s u ppo rt pu blic se rv ices and lessen the econo my's de fi cit.

If te n pe r ce nt o f Trid e nt's cos ts we re s pe nt o n sc hoo l edu ca ti o n in fo re ig n la nguages pe rh a ps peo pl e w o uld fea r t he ir fellow ma n less.

We loo k ba ck o n Pose ido n a nd co nfin e him to th e rea lm of mytho logy. I wo ul d like the sa me to be sa id fo r Trid e nt a nd nu clea r w ea pons.

ISSUE 253

Tuesday 1st March - - - --'------

Cameron, convicts and European conventions The past couple of weeks have put pressure on the coalition Government to settle their differences on Europe and civil liberties. Last week MPs voted against the right of prisoners to have the vote. James Schofield and Nick Murrelllook at the issues at stake here and question the role of Europe in modern Britain.

Prisoner's rights or wrong?

James Schofield

British sovereignty, human rights and the principles of democracy are just three heavy political issues that are currently being debated since the decision of the European Court of Human Rights, which stressed that the Government must allow prisoners the right to vote.

In 1979, John Hirst was convicted of manslaugltter after killing his landlord, which was deemed not to be murder on the grounds of diminished responsibility. After serving a total

of thirty years in prison for various crimes, he was released and began his campaign championing the right of suffrage for those serving time at Her Majesty's pleasure.

In 2004, the European Court of Human Rights ruled that the British Government was in breach of Mr Hirst's and other prisoner's rights, and has recently given the Government a deadline to implement changes satisfactory to the ruling.

The Daily Mail and other likeminded publications have once again brought euro-scepticism to the forefront with an increased frustration over the loss of British sovereignty. This debate could in fact be one which has considerable implications for the issue of human

rights, and more crucially the legitimacy of the electoral process.

Arguments agaihst giving prisoners the right to vote include punishing offenders and enhancing civil responsibility and respect for the law. Although it is my view that rehabilitation should be emphasised much more in prisons than punishment, prisoners should still be remanded and made to feel remorse for their actions. It is through this that they can begin their path to becoming a reformed citizen.

The issue revolves around a poignant question: is voting a human right? The act of voting gives each member of a society an equal say in how society is constructed and maintained, and

it allows a person to help dictate how institutions should be run and how the budget is spent Society functions best when all within it work together to maintain order and aid its running. Crime disrupts this process.

If one breaks the laws of the land, then they can hardly be trusted to help deliver a better society. Voting is a privilege, not a right. By causing harm and damage to the lives of others, a person displays the inability to work for a common good, and this privilege should be duly taken away.

The Government must reject this notion in order to preserve the integrity of the British judicial system, for the sake of sovereignty and for an effective prisons system.

Do we need a British Bill of Rights? that membership is supposed to guarantee.

Parliament has been told over Nick such things as prisoners' votes, a Murrell prospect that made David Cameron feel physically sick, that it The European Convention on must follow the court Human Rights, created immediately or face having to massive after the Second World War was pay of necessary. to protect civil liberties amounts from tyranny before and during compensation.

The question World War Two. must This challenge to restrictions on that asked, liberty is embodied by the section of be the Berlin Wall in front of the court. therefore, is, The need for Britain to be a part of whether the ECHR. and our this has, however, diminished.

The European Court of Human will to implement Rights has shown in recent months the courts decisions, that it has no problem overriding benefits Britain? the will of a democratically elected Breaches of civil liberties Parliament; a degradation of are hardly a problem in our free our democracy, without any of and democratic society, with the the gain for our civil freedoms only people genuinely benefiting

being those with repatriation and the pretensions of Royal power orders after committing crimes or in temporal, in order to subject prisoners who may now win the themselves to unchaiJengeable right to vote. With a British Bill of rulings by unelected judges".

This has been exemplified in Rights and the scrapping of the Human Rights Act, British courts the recent decision by the High will be free from European Court rejecting prisoners' claims to jurisprudence, with the compensation as they recognised Government able to Parliament's supremacy in this put more stringent area. The pressure, however, from limits on judicial the European court is still there, power, limiting even after this substantial rejection.

There should be the protection ~~ their interpretive scope and of rights in . this country, but thus securing . there is no reason why we need a the supremacy European court, with the power to of Parliament, overrule our democratically elected a crucial aspect Parliament, to do this. The Bill of of democracy and, Rights would probably take a very therefore, liberty. As per similar form to the ECHR, as all Lord Bingham, former Lord Chief the rights it contains are needed in Justice: "The British people have society, but it would be under our not repelled the extraneous power control, with whatever limits we of the papacy in spiritual matters, wish to place on it.

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Muscular liberalism joe

Lack Brace yourselves, because David Cameron's "muscular liberalism" is coming to beat you up.

Like a sinister speed dating host, it won't allow you merely to put up with people you don't like in a law-abiding way. It will force you to fall in love with them and decide to use the Big Society bank to set up a community minded -yet adequately profitable - luncheon club for the elderly.

Perhaps this Government is so liberal that it will ban illiberal thoughts, or speech, or popular dissent in general?

I(Mr Cameron

sometimes forgets to feed his liberalism its greens" The state too is getting liberally slippered, but this is fair, because it didn't plan its work properly last term. You will gaze in adoration as the headmaster confiscates the money of local authorities, rescuing you from the bullying of public services, leaving you free to pay extra for alternatives you like better- where available.

Mr Cameron However, sometimes forgets to feed his liberalism its greens.

In his speech to the Munich Security Conference, he talked of protecting British borders and "collective identity". Nationality is an exclusive concept, regardless of his argument that the national collective culture should be the active welcoming of d ifferent cultures.

He also felt "physically ill" at the prospect of giving some prisoners the vote, which is surprising, since it is not o~ly a liberal idea, but one which could have won him some loyal voters.

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12 FEATURES

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Unprecedented" was the only word that Council of Foreign Relations professor Robert Danin could use to describe the unrest in the Middle East in late January. The rise of the demonstrations in the Arab World had by that point spread from Tunisia in mid-December through Egypt and Algeria to Yemen and Jordan. Today, a month on, the West looks on as the almost inevitable domino effect takes hold, igniting dissent from Bahrain to Iraq, covering the map of Arab territories in a blanket of discord.

At the time of going to print more than 3000 have died (eight through self-immolation) and Tunisia, Jordan, Yemen, Sudan, Iraq and, as has been covered extensively, Egypt have seen some form of regime change (or the promise of a change of government at forthcoming elections).

Pictures from Egypt during the eighteen days of major p rotest against former President Mubarak enthralled Western audiences, glued to the BBC in a way never before seen and, while the optimist might claim this owes to a greater social conscience in the West in the 21st century, the realistic observer can point to a key factor in Western society's interest - scale. With an estimated 750,000 taking to the streets of Alexandria on February 3rd alone, it became alarmingly clear that not since the fall of the Soviet Union in the late 1980s had public anger spilled over to this extent. Along with this, though, the interest in developments has been spurred on by a shift in the consensus on a region so often the victim of stereotype.

Western perception of the Arab World.has changed fo r good; not just because of new regimes or the sense that something has finally changed, but instead through the work of a new, intelligent and socially aware generation in the organisation and execution of large scale dissent.

This, combined with the typically hard-working stubbornness of the working-classes, those living in abject poverty and fee li ng t he full brunt of the regimes, has created a cocktail all too potent for the states left to sip them.

One factor widely credited with being a catalyst for this new movement is the international rise of social networks. Twitter and Facebook in particular have provided a framework for organisation and a means of communication unavailable in previous de.cades; the impact that 21st Century technology has had

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concrete.features@uea.ac.uk 13

on protest has been profound. This is not just in its ability to allow thousands to organise and share, but also in its immense ability to baffle and panic governments.

When this was coupled with the Al-)azeera television network and its unrivalled ability to rile the ruling elite, the Egyptian Government in particular was left to fight a war on too many fronts, predominantly against an invisible enemy. Whilst China has proved how effective censorship can be when done brutally and unceremoniously, it is fair to say that Egypt, without the reliance on state television that once permeated the population, was helpless to the use of the Internet, in spite of numerous attempts to disrupt mobile phone and Internet signals. Dissent was widespread, and no ringleader could be pinpointed.

A new approach by a new generation gâ&#x20AC;˘vmg us a new perception could well be vital not just in the continuing revolutionary movements in the region, but in the process of rebuilding and establishing new forms of government in the wake of the protests. The natural reaction of the right wing is of course to conjure up images of fundamental Islam taking the region by the throat while it is vulnerable. Indeed, the Muslim Brotherhood, the trans-national party promoting the conversion to non-secular Islamic states, had for a long time been considered as the primary opposition to Mubarak in Egypt and is immensely influential in a number of nations now in the throes of unrest, most notably Bahrain and Jordan. However, to expect such a move to the right in these countries would be na"ive given the primary nature of the unrest.

"Because we live under the spectre and the shadow of the Islamic revolution of 1979 [in which a power vacuum led to the rise of Ayatollah Khomeini and the establishme!_lt of a Muslim theocracy in the Iran], everybody seems to see Khomeini round the corner, as if in Egypt there's a Khomeini waiting to pounce," said Professor Ali Ansari of the University of St Andrews. To those on the right, a repeat is inevitable.

However, according to Professor Ansari, "there's no evidence of this at all."

Khomeni . himself this week described the current movement across the Arab world as an :Islamic awakening', much to the disapproval of many political leaders locally and worldwide, and

and Facebookin particular have provided a framework for organisation and a means of communication unavailable in previous decades. This is not just in its ability to allow thousands to organise and share, but also in its immense ability to baffl e and panic ~~Twitte r

governm ents.~~

much to the surprise of those who witnessed the brutal crackdown on protesters in wholly similar anti-Government activity in Iran less than two years ago. But such at tempts to twist the ideals of the moveme nt are not just baffling, but plainly incorrect. Professor Ansari said: "If you look on the ground and you look at social discontent, the problems are very basic ... people simply want accountability and they're not intereste~ in these ideologies."

That is not to say that lessons cannot be learned from the events in Tehran some thi rty years ago to leave a power vacuum so great in a nation so populous is playing with fire and the consequences, though often inevitable, can lead to a system more malevolent than that which it replaced. But it is here that this new generation have their opportunity to seize a new identity and establish a progressive democracy. â&#x20AC;˘ Much has been made, quite rightly, of a new wave of pride in Egypt since the first sparks of unrest that has not defined itself by nationalism or religion. Placards in Tahrir Square bearing the slogan 'N-ow I am proud of being Egyptian' have been shown worldwide and paint a clear picture of an awakening not of a religious bent, but ra ther a social and community based nattu¡e.

With the Internet and liberal media, the population are able to expose themselves to a wider range of opinions than they may have been thirty years ago, breaking down the idea of an educated ruling class with a small number of controllable dissenters and instead bringing in an intelligent and opinionated majority. Wit h censorship of the media going out with the Government, the hard work has largely been done on this issue and the chances of a rightwing Government filling the space in government has, one hopes, all but disappeared with it.

But where does this leave us?

Can the new generation of socially aware democrats in the Arab World change the perception of our own governments as well as our people, or will the West succumb to the same patronising paternalism that has dominated foreign policy since imperialism and has done little more than increase tensions?

Tony Stair's comment that Mubarak was a 'force for good' in the region shortly before his timely fall, demonstrates an attitude in the United Kingdom that still p rides itself on the charade of

stability in the Middle East and North Africa at the expense of liberty, equality and democracy.

Yet the widespread conde.mnation of the former Prime . Minister's comments, in many places falling in to the realm of plain ridicule, shows that the vast majority realise the flaws and hypocrisy of the 'old guard' and support development over despotism. Of course, David Cameron and William Hague's vague public disapproval of the Mubarak regime was little more than a sound bite, but it demonstrates at the very least that they can judge t he public mood better than Blair, whose role as Middle East Peace Envoy falls further into the absurd with each passing event.

For us, at a time when students have arguably lost their voice in a de-politicised age and struggle to be recognised and represented on issues so relevant as the future of education itself, there may be a great deal to learn from both the stubbornness and organisation of the Middle Eastern and North African movement in which the student population played a large role.

If and when the dust settles on these events, and there is little doubt that there is more to come, we may well be looking at a more progressive and democratic Middle East and North Africa. Small steps these may be, but the precedent has been set.

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14

espitebeingoneofthe ten richest countries in the world, there are more than 500,000 homeless people in the UK today. It's a shocking ~tatistic; this figure is almost double the whole population of the Greater Norwich area. But who are these forgotten people, those often perceived merely as a government statistic?

Many may think that homelessness is a far away issue t hat isn't really that applicable to them. Beyond being approached in the streets by a Big Issue seller or a panhandler, students as a species feel quite separate from the world of the streets. It's a huge surprise, therefore, to realise that 4 7% of homeless people across the UK have qualifications of some kind.

48% of them have GCSEs, 16% A-Levels, 15% degrees and 13% professional qua lifications. Can you imagine a life on the streets after university?

The reasons for a person becoming homeless a re often very complex and diverse in nature.

The charity Shelter identifies a set of personal causes and structural causes which contribute to a person becoming homeless, notably outlining drug and a lcohol misuse and involvement with crime as important factors. Other causes, such as relationship 路 breakdowns and debt, particularly payment of a mortgage or rent, however, are much closer to home and could affe ct most people in some way.

Structural impacts include unemployment, poverty, lack of affordable housing a nd the structure or administ ration of housing benefit. Factors such as these are generally perceived to be beyond individua l control, and the responsibility of the government to address. Where to lay the blame,

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www.concrete-online.co.uk

however, is hardly the immediate concern of most homeless people; they're just trying to survive, to get through another day.

Shockingly, 'rough sleepers' i.e. those sleeping on the streets at路 night - have an average life expectancy of .just 42, with the national average for both men and women being upwards of age 74. It's astounding to think that a relatively large section of society is suffering from such ter rible conditions. Most homeless people do not visit a GP or receive any medical care, and a 2003 Crisis survey found that rough sleepers are three times more likely than the general public to suffer from chronic chest and breathing problems. 路 Despite this, homeless people are entitled to a lot of help, including visits to the doctor.

A home.less person will still be entitled to vote, to receive benefits, to obtain medical care, to pursue education (through Adult Education evening classes and through access to a library and its services, for example) and perhaps most importantly, they are entitled to help from the local council housing department. The latter service provider is legally obliged to provide advice, assistance and sometimes accommodation to a homeless person. Any homeless person is also entitled to free services from a Jobcentre if they are unemployed, though notably a lack of address and no money for bus or train fare can be an obstacle here.

In addition, there are a variety of charities and religious organisations that operate in the UK, and indeed all over the world, with the aim of helping homeless people and providing care and safety to them. One of. these charities, The Big Issue, does more

Shockingly, those sleeping on the streets at night have an average life expectancy of just 42, with the national average for both men and women being upwards of 74."

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than provide shelter or food for the homeless; it provides them with a means of earning an honest living and a purpose, a reason to get up in the morning.

The o rganisation's tagline 'a hand up not a hand out' is a significant and positive one, and one that the British Government doesn't seem to have grasped in attempting to tackle the problem of homelessness. Rather than simply providing a magazine to sell and reimburs ing for any magazines that are unsold, The Big Issue provides 5 copies of the magazine free of charge to each seller and then offers further copies at 拢1 each. The seller is essentially selfemployed, having to figure out their finances and work as a salesperson until they've sold their magazines.

The Big Issue says: "These skills, along with the confidence and selfesteem they build through selling the magazine, are crucial in helping homeless people reintegrate into mainstream society." Beyond this, the charity also connects homeless people with state services in housing, benefit, education and more in order to make positive changes in each person's life.

Related Government policy since the Conservative/Lib Dem coalition came to power has been concerned with reducing homelessness through changes in the welfare system and making the repossession of homes a last resort.

The real areas that seem to need attention, however, are education and unemployment - areas in which the current Government has been unclear in its plans. Perhaps a new national initiative and set of guiding policies specifically for local authorities is needed in order for the homeless issue to be effectively dealt with and the situation to be improved.

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15

THE INTERVIEW· MARTIN 11

I've got my dog, my van and The Big Issue. That\ all I care about. That's all I need."

These are the words of Ma rtin, 49, who works on the UEA campus selling copies of The Big Issue. Most students see Martin every day, perhaps have a chat with him and stroke hi s dog, but his life and his story are elements often bypassed. Concrete caught up with Martin to find out more about him.

Sitting in Zcst with a meal, Marlin outlines the basics of how he got here. He moved to Norwich eleven years ago as a salesman for Hritish Gas. lie lived in a caravan on Norfolk Showground. When the work at British Gas stopped, he got a 13anksman Ticket qualification allowing him back into the building trade. He worked all over th e city as a subcontractor; he even helped to build Chapelfield back in 2004/2005. By 2008, he was making good money - in the region of £1,000-£2,000 per week - but was suffering alcohol problems during the breakdown of a relationship.

Soon afterwards, the company he was subcontracting for went under. " I was left with nowhere to go and no job ," he expbins. " I sold th e caravan and I bought a van. I sti ll live in it now."

As th e Government instructs, Martin wentto a Jobc e ntre Plus and looked for work with the 'help' of the unemployment professionals.

The jobs they offered him were temporary or unsuitable. With no

viable alterna tives, h e ended up se lling The Big Iss ue.

"If a job came up Lomorrow, me and The Hig Is sue would shake hands and wave goodbye," he says.

"Bu t there are no construction jobs in Norwich at the moment. J\ncl I need a job with a three month contract minimum, otherwise I'd rather carry on se lling The Big Issue."

Last year, Martin did so me contract work at a chemical plant for an agency, but got ill from the c hemica ls and had to leave for health reasons. He went back to The 13ig Issue. Since, h e has been offered work for a couple of weeks but feels there isn't any point in losing his UEA spot for the sake of such temporary work.

"We like it here. Nice people, friendly atmosphere. We've got friends here," he says with a grin.

"I ge t phone ca ll s if I'm running late saying 'Martin, where are you'?' I tell them, 'I'll be there soon, we're on the bus 1'" He's also heard about welding work in Iraq, and after The Big Issue helped him pay for a 1 0-year passport, it's a definite possibility.

"13 ut I have a dog, and I love her to bits. She wouldn't be able to come to Iraq. The Big Iss ue ha s allowed me to be with my clog."

But selling '/'he Big Issue is no free ride. Martin buys his issues eve ry morning at the magazine office for £1 each. it' s his job to se ll th e m all for £2 each - and there's no returning them if they don't sell. "This is my living," Martin says. ''I'm a self-employed

sa lesman. That's how I sec it." it's amazing and inspiring to hear that Martin approaches life with such a positive attitude in alternative and chall e nging circumstances. But what about his life before Norwich? "''ve had the house, the wife, the family, the money- it all comes with a tariff of stress and problems," he sJys. "I felt like I was just a meal ticket." lie pauses for a mom e nt and then continues: "I s till speak to my daughter. She C<lllle with me to Norwich, but she lives in London now. She's go t a good job and her own flat. She always says to me, 'Dad, come and live with me'. I like being on my own. I just want ,1 s imple life."

Despite his positivity, he admits it's sometimes a struggle to afford food, and the van gets very co ld in the winte1: "I tend to go in a pub every so often and h<we a me<ll for about £6. There's an open fire, it's warm. My dog loves it."

"B ut I don't owe anybody anything. I live within my means," he conc lud es. "I came into life with nothing, I'll go out of life with nothing. Everything in between is loaned to me. I don't need bricks and mortar - I'm happy with a van."

You'll find Marlin se lling copies of The 13ig Is sue outside th e UEA's Waterstones every day, accompanied by his gorgeous Labrador doggy named Issu e.

Track him down, buy a copy of the magazine and have a chat- he really is one of the friendliest faces on campus!

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16 , LIFESTYLE

\\'\\'\\'. roncrete -onlittt'.rcutk

ISSUE 253

concrete.lifestyle@uea.ac.uk

The unusual purls of life in a modern city Concrete explores the lastest graffiti craze spreading across cities around the world: Graffiti Knitting or 'Yarnstorming' as it has been termed.

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James Dixon Lifestyle editor

Graffiti and knitting are two pursuits that usually fall in very different categories of interest.

Graffiti inspires thoughts of sneaking around in the night, covered in spray paint, while knitting conjures thoughts of elderly women making gifts for their grandchildren . These stereotypes can be cast aside though in the flick of a knitting needle as a young new wave of knitters have revolutionised the hobby's image through their unusual pursuit of graffiti knitting.

This is the covering of objects with multi-coloured wool to improve upon its aesthetic image. A select group of women known as 'Knit The City' (KTC) have popularised the graffiti knitting movement with the their colourful exploits around London's sprawling metropolis.

The group refer to their hobby as 'yarnstorming' and have been active since February 2009. The popularity of the movement has grown slowly and it has only recently had to adopt a public face to its underground activities.

Their 'woolly war on the mundane' has been received positively by the media who can't help but be charmed by the warmth of this novel approach to graffiti.

Their mainstream presence is felt through the group adopting

a website which can be found at www.knithecity.com. This creates a paradox in that their underground activities have become so mainstream and accessible. it seems that KTC have only remained underground due to the sheer practicality of maintaining a small network of members who can communicate and organise more easily than a large disjointed group of knitters.

Past achievements of the group include covering a London telephone box in a patchwork of coloured wool, strategically positioning miniature farm animals around photo opportunities and giving a flamingo statue a bright yellow moustache.

KTC's novel approach to street art forces society to question their perceptions of street art.

Inevitably, the fundamental question of what is art arises. This proves to be a rather subjective question though, as artists such

"KTC's work will allow people to see cities in a different light..."

I

as Banksy and Shepard Fairey (the man behind the popular 'Obey' image) are publically lauded and praised; however stencilled street art remains an illegal and fringe activity. KTC, on the other hand,

have only been stopped by the police once whilst tackling the aforementioned telephone box.

After informing the police that they were performing a craft project they were allowed to continue.

KTC's popularity and mainstream acceptance may stem from the fact that their street art is semi-permanent rather than permanently painted onto the canvas that the street provides. lt also could be said that there is a distinguishable divide between street art and the simple tagging of objects with a can of spray paint.

KTC will continue on with their 'nefarious knitting' and may even inspire others to join them in their pursuit of a very woolly world. KTC, and their dedication to yarnstorming, force knitting to transcend its borders from the purely functional to the purely aesthetic. Their unique brand of urban artwork provides an interesting commentary on city life where inhabitants are preoccupied by the use value of urban objects.

Through their knit work, they remind Londoners and fellow city inhabitants of the unappreciated beauty of simple urban objects. A city truly is an unfinished canvas, and that is where its beauty lies.

Hopefully, KTC's work will allow people to see cities in a different light that exudes warmth with and without a colourful woo ll en cover.

-路

I've been working really hard on my dissertation lately but have realised that I've neglected my girlfriend because of it. I'm thinking of making one big romantic gesture to make it up to her. What would you suggest?

Me and the lads are thinking of going on holiday this year, looking to enjoy a few beers and maybe meet some nice females, where would you suggest going?

Clive says:

I hope you and the lads have your passports ready because my suggestion would be Ibiza! Sun, sand and beer combined with the nightlife makes this one of the most popular holiday resorts fo r young people.

There are fl ights fro m Norwich too.

Whatever you decide to do, I hope you and the lads have a fa ntastic holiday. Enjoy yourselves and take care.

It sounds like you both need to spend some quality ti me together. May I suggest a very romantic meal with candles, a nice bottle of wine and a nice bunch of flowers for the very special girl in your life? I hope I have been some help! Take care.

Clive says:

ISS UE 253

LIF6STY LE 17

''''''w,cunci'Utu·unlhm.ro.ult

Tuesday Lst March

Jnity in religious diversity

Perfect Pancakes

Willia m )o nes Lifestyle writer Rece ntly, Westmin slc r Ca thedral, the church at th e heart of Englis h Catholi cis m, saw th e ordin ati on of three fo rmer Angli can bis hops as Catholic priests. The men had go ne ove r to Lh e Cath oli c Church s pec ifi ca lly ove r· th e Church of England's pla ns to all ow th e a ppointme nt of fe male bis hops; the Ca lh olic priesthood is, by co ntras t, a female- free zo ne. Th e bis hops, togethe r w ith seve ral more An glican co ngrega tions, have join ed Lh e Catholi c Chu rch as pa rt of th e Ordin ari ate of Our Lady of Walsingha m, a ring- fenced section of th e Cath oli c Chu rc h crea ted es pecially to acco mm odate Angli ca n disse nLers.

But what will th e impli cation of th ese events be on s maller Chris ti an communiti es Lhroughout th e country, such as that at UEA? Will th ey be a poin t of uni ty or dissent ? Concre te s poke to Fr. Darren Thornton, UEA's An gli ca n cha plain. Fr. Thornlon was wholly with out rese ntm ent; ins tea d he

most importa nt co nsid eration as the s piritu al contentm e nl, or oth erwi se, of those involved. If going over to th e Cath olic Church was what il Look Lo ac hi eve this co ntentm ent, th en th at was a goo d thing.

UEA's Chapla in cy offers spiri tual se rvi ces to stud ents of many faiths a nd denominations Angli can, Budd hi st, Muslim, Jewis h, Orth od ox, Quaker; Rom an Ca th oli c- the list goes on. lt see ms the ve ry model of emphasising points of commonali ty betwee n th ose of different beli efs, rather than thal whi ch divid es th em. Thi s s mall -sca le religiou s coo perati on is a mi crocos m of to lera nce a nd

coo peration ac hi eva ble on a la rge r sca le. We might see Lh ose jo inin g th e Ordina riate as re prese nting a parti cula rly conse rva tive, eve n bord erlin e mi sogy ni sti c, porti on co mpa rati vely li beral of th e An glica n Church. But if so, we must li kew ise recogni se th e ex islence of th ose many foll owers of th e Cath olic Church wh ose vi ews are mod ern a nd con s pi cuously progress ive by compa rison to the co ntrove rs ial attitudes a ll Loo ofLen expressed by th e Vatica n itself.

Th e UEA Chap lain cy provid es a pos itive lesso n in how Lo avo id letting doclrin e get in the way of coop eration Lhrough s hared huma nity.

Chris tin e O'Sulliva n Lifestyle writer IL's Lh a t tim e of yea r aga in .

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ISSUE 253

18

concrete.editor@uea.ac.uk

UEA Glee Show Choir celebrate

success with 'The Soul Within'.

Beth Wyatt UEA Glee Show Choir On 25th February, the LCR played host to the UEA Glee Show Choir and their performance of The Soul Within.

Developed by president Rachel Folley and the Glee committee, The Soul Within portrayed, through song, the struggles of five central characters. The show choir had previously performed at a UEA Music Society event, and sang a rendition of 'I'm Yours' in the Hive, but this was their first fu ll -length show. Howeve1~ they need not have worried - the 150 plus audience was entranced as soon Bon jovi's 'Keep the Faith' began.

After each of the various numbers, the audience whistled and cheered loudly even clapping along during the encore to the beats of 'Live and Let Die'. The overwhelming success of the society's first show is due to itc; committed members, who had rehearsed for months to perfect the thirty songs which featured.

Now it is hoped that the club can continue to grow. What makes UEA Glee different is that it does not matter if you can sing or

not - t he cliche of 'it's all about having fun' is true here. There are also roles in the band and for budding choreographers too. Warmups include the pronunciation exercise 'All l want is a Proper Cup of Coffee' and the game 'Whoosh!', or the alternate "Ave it!', which provides the laughs. Members can put forward song suggestions, and music from various genres has been incorporated - including Queen classics, musical numbers, and recent favourites such as Lady Gaga's 'Bad Romance'.

... it does not ma tter if yo u can sing or not- the cliche of 'it's all about having fun' is true All of these factors combine to create an amazing society. The committee are busy planning exciting events for the rest of the university year and it also remains to be said that you don't need to watch Glee to join (but be prepared for dramatic gasps from current members!)

For more information on UEA Glee, visit the facebook page: UEA Glee Show Cho ir.

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ISSU E 253

19

Tu esday 1st March

Keeping it cool - Camping USA

Atmospheric Amsterdam

Greg Lewry head s Lo summer camp to ge t in volved in a great Am eri can traditi on , takin g up th e responsibilities of a ca mp coun se llo r, giving swimmin g lessons, rea ding stori es and kee pin g co ntrol.

I

Lauren Razavi

Trave l Write r

The s tereoty pical Am eri ca n s umm er ca mp of movies such as American Pie and Th e Parent '/'rap, with idyllic fores ted s urroundings, rebell ious kids and ra ncly co unsell ors, is familiar to most. Whil e the majority of nega tive perceptions are un true (forget Friday the Thirteenth) , during my s umm er as a cam p co un se ll or at Ca mp Sloa ne, Con necticut, it beca me cl ea r that th e reali ty of the great Am erica n tradition that is 'Camp' is n't too far from its big-scree n portrayal.

You ca n find a job as a swimming instructor with the help of BUNAC, a Britis h travel club that arra nges summer camp place ments. Sta rting in New Yo rk, yo u trave l up from the Big Apple towa rds rural Co nn ecti cut and soon realise that there are many different types of s umm er ca mp in Ameri ca ranging from private to und er-privil eged, Chri sti an to Jew ish and oth ers in betwee n.

Placecl at a large res idential YMCA ca mp, famed for its long hi story of trad itio nal ca nvJs tents, which offe red eve ry activity fro m wa ter-skiin g to horse-riding, my jo b for the summ er was teaching kids of all ages their daily co mpulso ry swimming lessons, eith er in th e ca mp's swimming pool or it · own lake eac h clay. Thi s included looking after a tent of 10-11-yea r-old boys who yea rned for piggy- bac ks, loved being rea d // any Potter every ni ght and who never fa il ed to s ur pri se

with their crazy anti cs a nd bi za rre qu esti ons - 'Do yo u use anti-age ing crea m'?' being pa rti cularly abs urd.

Whil e th e chi ldren may be enterta ining in themselves, the oth er co unse ll ors make s ure th at you have the time of you r life. Work ing at a summ er ca mp is n't a job for th e faint hea rtcd. Yo u'r·e a parent, a teacher, a cl imb ing-frame, an enterta iner, a mentor; a rol e model, hut every coun sell or works togeth er; producing an environm ent where you' ll make fri ends for life.

For days off, a roa d trip is always the best option and a night out on the tow n with a hu ge party in Manhatta n co mes w hen ca mp brea ks up.

"You're a parent, a teacher, a climbing-fra me, a n entertai ner, a ment01~ a rol e model ..."

After nine wee ks of e<1rly morning wake up ca ll s, and memori sing kid s' names, it was fin ally tim e to take to the open road and ex plore th e oth er sid e of an Am eri ca n s umm er: Thus. th is writer a nd three oth er co unse ll ors decided to visit th e his tori c city of Boston for a few days, strutting around Harva rd Unive rsity pretending we were stud ents there befo re headi ng to Six Flags theme park a nd ex periencin g

so me of th e best roll ercoasters in th e world .

Fro m Massachusetts you ca n se t off on yo ur own self-crafted Greyhound bus tour of th e Eastern States La ki ng in th e wond ers of Richm ond, Nas hvill e, New Orlea ns, Atlanta, Sava nnah, Was hington DC and Prov idence in seven gru elling ye t fascin ating days and nights.

Greyhound offers a seven-day 'Discove ry' pass for a round £1 60 which all ows yo u to travel on any bus to anywh ere in Ameri ca. it's best to make th e most of the night buses th at tra ns port ordi nary Am eri can s from state to state. Th ough it does mean wak ing up eve ry morning on a rattling bu s, sitting next to a comp lete stranger: At leas t yo u ca n watch th e sunrise illuminate the looming city ahead, wai tin g to be explored.

Th e las t wre k in Ameri ca was a littl e more sta bl e, spent betvvee n fr iend s in l~ h o cl c Isla nd J nd Co nn ecticu t. In fac t, of the entire eighty-fi ve cl ays th at this writer s pent in America, on ly one night was pa id for in a hotel, proving that extended travel is poss ible for a nyo ne wa nting to see the wo rld on th e chea p.

Th e final destinati on was a solemn one, being s pent in New Yo rk on th e ninth anni ve rsa ry of the 9/ 11 attacks. Th e ee ri e sil ence of one of th e wo rld 's grea t citi es was a so mbre end to a seaso n of story- telling and swimm ing lesso ns, a dras tic change fro m the innace nce of summ er ea m p.

it's midnight on a Friday, a nd afte r a co uple of half-co nsidered turns, yo u're face d with a peculi ar sce ne.

Women of all ra ce, age a nd s ha pe writhe behind glass window panes fac ing out onto the stree t, ready fo r any of the intern ational sur plu s gathered outside to become th eir nex t customer. Th e whole street, a nd ind eed streets s plittin g off from it, a re like thi s; surround ed by crowds of men ga ping at their ladi es of choice. Welco me to Amsterda m.

The infa mous Reel Light Di stri ct as id e, th e oth er ac ute feature of th e city is a breed of havens labell ed "coffee-s hops". Des pite the name, you're unli kely to find a doub lemoc ha -soy- Ia tt e- w ith -whip pe el crea m behind these doo rs. A far cry fro m the stereo typ ica lly siniste r d rug dens one may imagi ne, J va ri ety of bas ic tea a nd coffee blends MC ava il a bl e alongs ide a s pec iality menu of cakes J nd ciga rettes w ith J "special" twist. Drugs are enj oyed ca ndid ly here and by a s ur prisin gly cl iver·se array of peop le.

Am sterd am may have a re putati on for s in a nd debauchery,

bu t below the s urface is a city brimming with cu lture and hi story. Ca nal crui ses serve as a grea t introdu cti on, and showcase a se lection of th e som e 2,5 00 houseboa ts currently se rving as peo ple's homes here. Countl ess mu se um s and galleri es arc dotted th rougho ut th e city, and aga in , th ere's plenty of choice, from the Van Gogh Ga ll e ry to the Rij ks rn use um to the world -fa mous Sex Mu se um .

The Albert Cuypmarkt in th e De Pi jt area of th e city is a grea t place to sa mpl e loca l produce -wheth er it be foo d, cloth es, jewe ll e ry or fabrics that ti ckl e yo ur fa ncy, this wo nd erful market area has it all, a nd th e prices a rc d irl chcJ p.

Undern ea th the highly pu bli cised cl oud of s moke a nd sex, Am s terda m is a place full of rema rkable his tory, architecture and culture - it's just a matter of look in g for it.

A Nice place to visit?

Marc Fan·ant Trave l write r Nice (p ronoun ced 'ni ece') mi ght not be the fi rs t des tination on your list of places to visit in Fra nce, let alon e Europe. ll owcvc r, unli ke oth er so uthern des tinati ons like Sa int Tropez with its glitzy image, Nice is a fa irly large and crowded city. Eve n in mid Se ptember it fee ls busy and vibrant, and on arrival, wit h th e sun out and s himm ering on the Medi terranean, yo u soon feel impell ed to head to th e beach. Surprisingly, th is looks more like Bri ghton se<lfront th an the bea uti ful sa ndy shore lin e yo u may expect. Th e cha rac teri sti c pebbl es he re, that stretch th e entire length of th e Prome nade de Anglais, are so na med afte r Engli sh holiday makers as far back as th e nin etee nth ce ntu ry who used Ni ce as a winter r·eso rt.

A s hort wa lk along the beach a nd yo u ge t to Nice's old tow n: a bea utiful co ll ecti on of mea nderin g streets, market stall s, restaura nts, amaz ing ice crea m pa rl ours and cl rastica lly co loured tow n houses.

One particul ar loca l deli cacy, Pissaladiere, a sort of onion and a nchovy pizza, is definitely wo rth a

try.

If yo u do find yourself getting bored of s un-seek ing and . eating th en a short bu s ri de away fro m the ce ntre vi ll e and up in to the hill s that s urround th e city will take yo u to th e Matisse mu se um whi ch is we ll wo rth a vis it. If Ma ti sse is n't yo ur s tyle th en Marc Chaga ll. who also res id ed in the city, has hi s ow n muse um neJ rby. Nice's ar ti stic pedigree is zr lso prese nt in th e modern po rti on of th e city, with fa ntas ti c scu lptures th at ri se up out of the se<lfron t promenade.

Overall th e n, Nice is a surpri sing and interestingly di ve rse city we ll wo rth a visit. Ind eed, it's eve n bette r th an its na me suggests.

I_

20

TURF

www.concretc-onlinc.co.uk

I

Tim Miller Turf Reporter

David Cameron has condemned the coalition Government's plans to sell off 637,000 acres of state-owned forest on February 16th, humiliating his Environment Secretary Caroline Spelman.

The notion of selling off £250m of public heritage into the hands of those who would turn our forests into pulp, holiday parks and bio-fuel seems to have struck a nerve in the public consciousness, prompting hundreds of thousands to gather and oppose the plans, and giving the opposition a chance to score some brownie points. Groups that have mobilised around this issue already include Woodland Trust, Save Our Forests, Save Our Woods, Save Britain's Forests, Greenpeace, WWF, National Trust, Ramblers and The British Horse Society.

The power to make the decision still rests in the Government's lap, but they dare not make the push for fear of destroying their already fragile public image on the matter.

This turn-around says something about both the power of protest and the lack of constancy shown on the issue of our forest by the Government.

All is not well, however, as campaigners in the Forest of Dean said they would still seek a guarantee that their woods would remain publicly owned and managed; and last month the Forestry Commission received a blow of

-·

ISSUE 253

concrete.turf@uea.ac.uk

400 announced job losses. Meanwhile, our natural heritage is still being threatened by monoculture forestry.and damage to wildlife.

It's a sad reflection on politics when the public have to physically fight for things to just not get worse.

One thing all political parties have in common is that they want to get re-elected a close eye will need to be kept on Britain's woods as the maelstrom of media attention and public outrage dies down over the most unpopular policy advanced by a British government in years. The plans were never well conceived, however, as the privatisation of the forests would only slowly bring in the £250m over ten years by selling forestry thought to be worth around three times that figure. A thin veneer placed over the policy to appease a disillusioned public also wore thin - how could anyone believe that "big society" could step up and buy their own woodland at £2500-£3000 a hectare?

It is interesting that such a dramatic response to this policy has been witnessed, yet job losses in the environmental department and inaction about climate change seem to continue unabated.

The public clearly care about the environment, but perhaps a less abstract threat to that which we depend on is needed to incite such change. The successful resistance mounted against the threat to our woodland should show us that we're capable of fighting for the planet and winning.

Queensland's recovery is tnake or break for Australian PM • The worst of the floods may be over, but the pressure on Australia's minority Government is yet to reach its peak. as Drew Senior reports

Drew Senior Turf Reporter

-.

The newly-elected Labour minority Government, led by PM julia Gillard, already faces the biggest challenge of its premiership: to rebuild Queensland while not breaking its election promise to bring the federal budget back into surplus by 2012/13.

Preliminary estimates from the Australian Treasury indicate the floods witnessed across Queensland, over New Year 2011, have amounted to A$5.6bn (£3.5bn), an unwelcome addition to the A$57.7bn budget deficit.

Gillard's 'Flood Reconstruction Programme' is billed with winning this challenge. It is comprised of a 'flood tax' and substantial environmental spending cuts that aim to ensure Australia does not borrow further, while pushing a discourse of fairness to give the programme a measure of political immunity. The tax will only impact on those earningaboveA$50,000.ln an attempt to raise A$1.8bn, people earning between A$50,000 and A$100,000 will be charged an additional 0.5%, and those earning above A$100,000, 1%. Although it has been noted by political analysts in Australia that the sections of the population the tax targets are not typically Labour voters, the measures issued have been dubbed a 'mate's tax', as donating between

A$1 and A$5 a week is seen as affordable and fair to help those in need. The remaining A$5.6bn bill will be funded through structural and environmental spending cuts, which considering Parliament has dismissed many bills proposed by the minority government, will require the support of every Independent to get it passed. The support of Green MP Adam Bandt may be hard to rely on due to the environment cuts and project snowballing. however.

What is apparent between the countries affected by large floods in 2010 and 2011, however, is that Australia's recovery is, if anything. more political than humanitarian.

30 fatalities were recorded across Queensland from the beginning of the floods, whereas in countries such as Brazil, Pakistan and Sri Lanka, calculating the final death toll is guess work. The recovery is far from over in Pakistan, despite the floods occurring over half a year ago, and it is still in a state of emergency. The 25-year civil war in Sri Lanka left the displaced population vulnerable to natural hazards, and widespread mudslides in Brazil ripped away many impoverished rural settlements.

The secondary impacts from the floods include the prices of essential commodities rising: food, fuel and raw materials are just some examples, yet despite these concerns, the mood surrounding the Australian

economy remains optimistic. Matthew Circosta, an economist at Moody's Analytics in Sydney, predicts the overall impact will be "negligible".

"We're going to see a hit to exports and production in the first quarter... it is a shortterm headwind. The longer term prospects are favourable. We're going to see strong export and production growth given the

robust outlook for China and emerging markets."

The situation could not be more of a contrast for Pakistan, whose primary state of emergency is still prominent. With little Government aid, and the threat of disease a real problem, the population in Pakistan face not a political battle, but a humanitarian crisis.

ISSUE 25 3

SPORT 21

www.concrete-online.co.uk

Tu esday l st March

Hockey have momentum broken Sam Tomki nson Sports Corres pond e nt UEA Hockey Women's I Warwick Women's I

WEDNESDAY 23TH FEBRUA RY 2011 Basketba ll UEA M1

50-88

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Footba ll UEJ\ Ml

4-0

N'ha mpto n M1

Go lf Nott ingha m 2

5.5- 0.5 UEA 1

Rugby UE A M1 UEA M2

20-12 15-7

Nott in gha m M4 Leices te r M3

Te nni s UEA Ml

10-2

Oxford Brookes Ml UEA Wl

Birmingha m W2 12- 0

This ga me was always going to prove to be a diffi cult co ntes t for UEA llockey Women's I. Table-topping Warwick have bee n in ::,ci ntill ating form th is year in the BUCS League and UEA were a largely depl eted side, due lo in juries and priot: co mmitm ents. The hosts du ly saw th eir two-ga me home winn ing strea k snuffed out in dra mati c fas hio n.

Warwick left th e Sports park with a dese rvedly resound ing victory, havi ng hardly bee n tested in defence all ga me- an uutgunned UEJ\ managi ng just one shot.

Fro m th e outset it was Wa rwick who looked the more determin ed team, and despite an even opening pe riod where both sides' ce ntre ha lves were breaking lip the pl ay with case,

Chris King documents UEA's fortunes in the pool

THE concrete INDEX We 're runn iny " W II IIJrl ra live table oj Ulj l's .\ IJOtL\ tew m as listed on the BUCS website, www. bucs.o r·g. uk Tlt e toiJie compares the vonoos teoms UEII fields i11 1111iversity sporL1. Win perce11 toge (Jurth e.\t -r(cjht , colum11 ) ts the prinwry means ofsorliny the teams.

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- Sheffield Summary -

Com ing up t h is wee I< at UEA: The majority of our s porting teams a re on their travels thi s wee k, but there is ti ll plenty of ac ti on dow n at Co lney Field s as Footb a ll Ml , MZ an d Wl play a t home. All ga mes sta rt at 2pm.

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the visitors showed th eir clin ical edge aftet· 17 minu tes wh en a break clown th e right saw a cross turned in fro m two ya rds out.

This was a sign of what was Lo come for UEA as barely thirty seconds late r Warwick almost cloubl ecl th e lead, preve nted only by a scramb led cl ea rance.

A routine sho rt corner saw Wa rwick take a 2-0 lead in to the break with UEA struggling to contai n the pa ce, movement a nd tenacity of their opponents.

The seco nd half sta rted as the first had finis hed, with UEA unable to keep the ball for any rea l period of ti me and instead find ing th emselves under a barrage of Warwick pressure. Th e goa ls sta rted to pile in as a fad ing UEA began to fo ld all he bac k with Wan.vick abl e to co ntrol a nd move th e ball as they pleased.

UEA have ta ken th ree wins a nd three defea ts from six ga mes at th e Sports park so fat; and will look to fini sh on a high note in their las t home ga me of the seaso n when they entertain

I

UEJ\ trave ll ed to She ffield to co mpete in the BUC:S Lon g Course Swimm in g Cha mpion s hips, co ming away with a nu mber of imp ress ive ind ividual and tea m performa nces aga inst stron g com petit ion, in clud ing tw ice Oly mpic go ld medalli st Rebecca Adling to n.

UE A pa ir Cha rl olle llumphreys and Nico la Bu cha na n, highly impress ive in th e ir ope ni ng heals, comp eted in th e fin al of the Wo me n's Open 50m 13 utterfly, fi nis hing 6th and 8th res pecti ve ly with exce ll ent tim es of 29.3 7 a ncl 30.44 seco nds.

Furth er pla udits were yet to co me, as th e UEA lad ies reco rded a competition -hes t fo urth place in th e 40 0m Medley 13 Fin a l.

UEA's men's tea m also pe rfo m1 ed we ll in th e 400m medl ey, co min g home in seve nth .

Blues not just cannon fodder for the Gunners Obafemi Martins scored "the easiest goa l" of his career two minutes fro m time to stea l Birm ingham City a famous Carling Cu p victo ry.

A fatal miscommunication between Gunners ce ntre back Laurent Koscielny and goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny led to the ball bobbling to a wide-open Martins in the midd le of the penalty area, who duly pounced to give City a 2-l lead.

Arsenal striker Rob in va n Persie scored the goal of the game - a bea utifully-executed volley just before half-time - to cancel out Nikola Zigic's opening goa l.

The Blues were on the back foo t thro ughout the seco nd half as Arsenal pressed fo r the win ner, before Martins's late strike.

Arsenal have not wo n a tro phy since 2005 .

Simon O'Meara reports as UEA Athletics step up to stiff com petition on the track at the BUCS Indoors Athl etics descended upon the BUCS Indoor Ath letics Champion shi ps in Sheffield know ing that qualifi ca ti on for th e finals wo uld be a chall enge, give n the pre -ence of nati onalsu nd ard athletes, but also that there was a poss ibility for records to he broken <J mongst such high-quali ty co mpetition.

The women's relay race was th e pick of the weekend, Ruth Mcl<ellar ancl Ei mea r McGee han joined by first yea rs Moji Adegbi le and EmmaLou Wagslaff in the 4x2 00m race. Th e quartet s mas hed UEA's previous reco rd best by 1.8 seco nds, co ming home in a surprisingly quick tim e of l :53.21 seconds thanks to a co mbin ation of ra pid sprinting and sea mless baton pass ing.

This was McGeehan 's a nd Wagslaff's seco nd broken reco rd of th e clay, hav ing clocked perso nal besls of8.82 seco nds and 8.69 seconds res pective ly in th e inclividual 60 m race.

Emerging ta lent Mike Cann on, ye t to fin d his preferred event, also doubled up on personal bests in both th e BOOm and 1500m runs, co ming

ho me in 2: 08 and 4:33 minutes respectively.

Ca nn on's visible physical co mmitment to both races was matched by club presi dent Sim on O'Mea ra, who achieved a magnificen t perso nal best of9:09 minutes in the 3000 m ru n. /\ mar angha a nd Ch<lrlie Roe t<Ickl ed the no torio usly gruelling 400 m race, com prising two laps of the ind oo r track. Th e ft mner's im posin g long stride saw him co me close Lo qualifyi ng for the se mi -finals wi th a time of 52. 19 seco nds whil st Roe clocked 55. 14 seco nds.

J\ll in all it was an extremely successful weekend for Athleti cs, with eight personal bes t ti mes ac hieved and num erous records s mas hed. Alth ough no UEA ath lete qualified fo r th eir fin als, th e performances showed a willingness a mongst th e squad to step up in th e face of hi gh class co mpetition. Derby Day is now ideally placed to all ow for further train ing, whi ch wil l no doubt have been energised by this pos itive weekend .

ofthe weekend

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ISSUE 253

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concrete.sport@uea.ac.uk

•

Olympics and Derby Day: dates for your diary

I I

Chris King Sports Editor

Norwich City's knack of coming up with crucial late goals has, in recent weeks, helped to keep them in the thick of the Championship promotion race.

They needed no such fortune against Barnsley, however, easing to a comfortable 2-0 at Andrew Crofts

__,

a header from Marc Tierney's cross, and his an second excellent firsttime

fourth, eight points behind leaders QPR. The Canaries' late goal record did continue against Doncaster Rovers at Carrow Road, yet unfortunately it was at the wrong end; Adam Drury (left) gifting the visitors an unlikely equaliser seven minutes from time after Grant Holt had opened the scoring.

Prior to this City faced a Leeds United side still smarting from the Canaries extraordinary comeback last season, which saw them claim the League One title.

Luciano Becchio put the hosts ahead early on before Henri Lansbury drew Norwich level in first half stoppage time. Wes Hoolahan's deflected 69th minute effort gave City precious lead but David Somma replied instantly, volleying United level with his first touch.

City manager Paul Lambert admitted that he faces an uphill battle to secure the permanent signing of

Lansbury, who has impressed on loan from Arsenal. Lambert has managed to bolster the Canaries' defence, however, bringing in Blackpool defender Rob Edwards until the end of the season.

Ipswich Town's unbeaten run under Paul Jewel! came to an abrupt end after two successive defeats in the space of a week.

Portsmouth came away from Portman Road with a somewhat fortuitous 2-0 victory at the weekend.

After dominating the first half, the hosts paid the price for their wastefulness when David Nugent converted

free-kick just prior to the hour mark, before the roles were reversed for Pompey's second, Cotterill netting with 13 minutes to go.

A few days previously the Tractor

Boys had faced a difficult trip to Loftus Road to take on league leaders QPR, and suffered a narrow 2-0 defeat after conceding twice in the last fifteen minutes. Strikers Jason Scotland and Conor Wickham were kept quiet by the QPR defence, whilst Clint Hill and Heidar Helguson scored the goals to inflict Town's first defeat under Paul Jewel I. This was a marked departure from the Tractor Boys' 6-0 annihilation of Doncaster Rovers at the Keep moat Stadium a week earlier. Wickham netted his first ever hat-trick, whilst Colin Healy, Gareth McCauley and an own-goal from Sam Hird secured Town's biggest win of the season. Three days later, Town drew 1-1 at Portman Road against Hull City, Jay Simpson cancelling out Scotland's opener late on.

To compound the disappointment for Ipswich, midfielder Healy (left) could be out for some time after tearing a stomach muscle in the 2-0 defeat away at QPR.

UENs winning eleven cruise past Cambs Oli Platt Sports Correspondent UEA Football Women's I 11 Cambridge Women's I 0 UEA Football Women's thrashed Cambridge Women's in an astonishing 11-0 triumph at Colney Fields, thanks in no small part to a superb five-goal haul from striker Aisha Shuaibu.

Cambridge began the game reasonably well with some neat passing in midfield, but home goalkeeper Axelle Courlander remained untroubled. lt took less than ten minutes for UEA to take the lead - Shuaibu dinking the ball past the Cambridge goalkeeper - and after this the hosts never looked back. Leanne Stubbings quickly doubled the lead, converting right-back Wiweke Reymert's cross.

Cambridge struggled to cope with UEA's adventurous 4-3-3 formation throughout the game,

which allowed Beki Fisk, Stubbings and Berndette McSharry to control proceedings in midfield and Shuaibu, Louise Chadwick and Ashley Johnston to interchange dangerously up front.

Johnston was the next name on the scoresheet, converting from just inside the box after Stubbings' halfvolley had been blocked.

Shuaibu completed her hat-trick before half time, firstly tapping in after unselfish play from Stubbings, before finishing confidently from a tight angle to make it 5-0.

Despite their substantial lead at the break, UEA kept up the pace in the second half, playing their best football of the game in spite of the muddy conditions. Stubbings pulled the string in midfield, setting Shuaibu and Chadwick free, both of whom were denied by excellent saves from the visiting 'keeper.

The home side couldn't be kept out for long however, Chadwick scrambling in McSharry's cross from the right. Shuaibu bagged her fourth and UEA's seventh goal, latching on

to a ball floated over the defence.

Courlander, a spectator for most of the game, was finally called into action midway through the half, palming a lob wide of the post. By contrast, her Cambridge counterpart was continually called into action, saving at Johnston's feet after good work by McSharry.

Shuaibu added her fifth and final

goal to make it 8-0 before centreback Sophia Charalambous added her name to the scorers list, heading home from a corner. Despite the increasing downpour Fisk and Stubbings - creators of countless opportunities for their team-mates -each added a deserved goal to put UEA into double figures and round off an incredible performance.

Dominant: Vania Alves moves the ball forward in yet another UEA onslaught

Chris Teale Sports Correspondent

The 2012 London Olympics countdown continues, with the release of the full day-by-day schedule of over 640 sessions of play in London and across the United Kingdom, due to take place between 25 July and 12 August.

Women's and Men's Football kick off the competition on 25 and 26 July respectively before the Opening Ceremony, to be held on 27 July in the Stratford Olympic Stadium.

British medal hopes, including Mark Cavendish, Rebecca Adlington and Tom Daley, will be put to the test early on. The potential showdown between Michael Phelps and lan Thorpe in the Aquatics Centre is also worth looking out for.

Athletics' biggest event, the men's lOOm final, will take place on 5 August, concluding a frantic weekend in which Jessica Ennis will go for gold in the heptathlon. On 12 August is the Closing Ceremony, where London will hand over the Olympic flag to Rio de Janeiro for the 2016 Games.

~~By

the evening either UEA or Essex will have claimed bragging rights until Derby Day 2012" Derby Day, the annual sporting competition between UEA and the University of Essex, has also seen its 2011 schedule released. Both universities will compete in 32 different sports across what promises to be a hectic day on 23 March.

American football, boxing. taekwondo, tenms and golf kick off Derby Day in the morning. At lunchtime hockey, athletics and netball, as well as UEA's highlysuccessful table tennis team, are all in action.

The programme of football fixtures begins at 12:30pm, as does the cricket at Bats & Balls Indoor Activity Centre in Ipswich. The final matches to kick off are men's rugby, scheduled to begin at 5pm and futsal forty minutes later.

This exhausting schedule draws to a final conclusion at 19:00, by which point either UEA or Essex will have proved their sporting prowess, and claimed bragging rights until Derby Day 2012.

ISSUE 253

23

Tuesday 1st Marc h

So You Think You Know Snetterton'?

I Sports correspondent Josh Rayman previews the n ew season at Norfolk's recently- renovated prem ier motor racin g circuit Snettcrton was once again filled with th e piercing sound of racing engines, retur ning to th e No rfolk ci rcu it fol lowing a major redevelopment.

A selection of s ingle sea ter formu lae went testi ng last week and track day dri ve rs hit the track over the co urse of the weeke nd. Exte nsive improve me nts to both th e circuit's layout and facilities were carried out during th e 'off-season', and co mpl e ted in und e r te n weeks.

The track now stand sa t2.99m il es long, with two new co nfiguration s; ye t despite this th e majority of th e circuit re mains unchanged. The multi -million pound inves tm ent by ci rcui t owner Jonatha n Palme r was

first <Jnnounced in 2005 a nd finally given th e green light last Septembe r.

Ju dgi ng by the pictures of th e new layout and on board video taken from a n F2 car, it seems that the circuit has a prom ising year ahead.

Reports from dri vers who have alrea dy sampled th e revis ions have bee n favoura bl e <1nd it appears that th e motor racing community is eage rly anticipating to see wh<~ l th e reborn Snellerton has to offer /\Iter completing the first motorcycle laps of th e new layout las t week, British Superbike ch<lmpion Steve Brogan told Molor Cycle News that th e tra ck had bee n "tran sformed".

Setting the pace: the revamped track now has more chances to overtake "The new circuit has been tra nsfo rm ed and it will definitely produce more exciti ng racing," he said. "\ was n't expect ing such d diffe rence and this will be one of the top tracks in th e coun try now."

Snetterton's 20 J 1 cale ndar is gradually fillin g up, with th e main even ts already in place. British Touring C11·s. Flritish Supe r Bikes and British GT / F3 are booked in for Augus t, July and May respectively,

England sticking to the Grand plan I

Keiren Cordery Sports Correspondent

In tile most <Jnti cip<lled l ie of the 2011 Six Nation s tourn ;11nent so far, age-o ld rivalries were ren ewe d <l l Tw icke nham as England ca me up agains t France, a nd triumph ed

17 '!.

The m:Hch pmmised to he <l tight and ha rd -fought .If/air <~nd it ce rt <li nl y didn 't dis a ppoint.

Th e French - w ho we re perh.1ps s li ght underdogs in li ght of th e ir recent un co nvin cin g di s plays successfu lly managed to stifle Engi,HHI's creativi ty in th e first halt. 1\ ga me plan which revo lved

a rou nd physical play in the forward s was ev id e nt by th e way France imp osed th e mse lves upon th e ga me in th e first fo rt y minut es.

They were unable to make a ny s uch .1 dvantages co unt , howeve r, as Toby Flood turned in <l nother so lid kicking performance which saw th e teams go in level dt th e h,i\f.

England came out stronger al'll•r th l' rl' s Url , appe<lring visibly renewed after presumably rece iv ing <1 seve re dressing down by man;1ger Martin John so n during the break. lt took a moment of sheer physical dete rmill <ltion

by Ben Foden, capping off a we ll -

crafted move by the Engi<liHI back lin e to power over th e try lin e, to hand victory to the ho s ts.

"The French perhaps s light underdogs after recent displays - successfully stifled England's creativity in the first half" The rest of this highly ant icipated round of fixtures

proved si mil a rl y gripping, as the co mp etition pas sed its halfway mark . ll<liy co ntinued to impress in Ro me takin g Wales a ll th e way in ano th e r closely fought ga me, a lth o ugh ongoing iss ues with leadershi p and conce ntrat ion sure ly mean they w ill now be fighting it o ut with Sco tland for the wooden spoon.

Thl' Scots tlll'mselves were <liso impressive in dcf'eat but un a bl e to staged comebdlk at Murrayfield, Ronan O'G<11.1's second half try a ll ow in g the Iri s h to capita li se o n their one mdn .lllvanl.Jgl' .IS the 11 ighlandL•rs werl' made to suffer for thL•ir ill-discipline.

UEA bat Scots aside in playoff race I

Freddie Magee Sports Correspondent

UEA Table Te nnis I ~ Andrews I

13 4

liE/\ T<1h le Tennis Men's I need on ly a wi n a t Leeds next week to secure a pidLe in the BLJCS Premiership nex t year, after victory oVl' r St. /\ndrl'Ws set up a mouth-watering tie wi th th e north ern outfit. johnny 13isp ham, l<it \.o we, Tony Zeqiri and President Mall II.Jynes made light work of their Scott ish coun te rpa rts, who s uffere d a comprehensive 13-4 defeat.

With 17 points up for g rabs th e hos ts mc1de a bright s tart, Bispham, Zeqiri and IIaynes all sec urin g victori es in th e singles. This alone would have bee n e nough, but Lowe

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Smash hit: UEA's fantastic four made short work ofSt Andrews' finest h<J d set out to he une rringly ruthless, il ed ting all his o ppo ne nts- including St/\ ndrews' number one seed.

Th e doubl es match cou ld have provid ed ~o m e co nsol a ti on for th e visitors, and one may have forgive n UE/\ taking th e ir foot of the g<lS, but

instead they chose to complete a co nvin cing rout. lt has been a hard-fought jo urn ey to the pl ay-o ff's for UE/\, w ho fended off tough com pe titi on in the form of Birmingham, Oxford a nd Loughborough.

Succl'SS dt Leeds nex t Wednesd,Jy would no\\' see Table Tennis promoted to the Premiership, thus confirming their position .1s the highest r.1nked BUCS team <ll the uni\crsit} - iLing on the cake aftL• r .1 s Jwci;J\ sL'ason fo r the team.

Should they Sl'<li promotion to th e top division, UE/\ are ex pected to fare we ll , w it h the m<lJOi'ily of the current tL•am set to rem.1in at the University ove r the next co upl e of years.

Furthermore, the club itself conti nu es to grow, having s igned up .1round 30 new members this yeai; wit h all teams play in g in loca l leagues. it see ms the higher echelons of FllJCS Table Tennis had bette r get used to the sight of th e blue a nd yellow of UEA

alongs id e a host of sma ll e r car and bike club events.

The circuit also has a large selection of track day operators, allowing anyone with a dr iving li ce nce and a car the chance to drive the circuit. Th e opening eve nt of the seaso n - the ·~oo· Season Starter will be hosted by Motorsport Visio n's racing di vis ion on 19 and 20 MMch. The lin e up for this race we~ke nd includes severa l stock sa loon se ri es, the Lotus Cu p and Elise Trophies, a nd th e inaugural race for th e newly formed MSV F:~ Cup. Moi·e del<~ils a bout the circuit and the full race calendar are available at www. s netterto n.co.uk.

Bah-humbug: Fl opener cancelled Fans of Formula l are going to have to w;1il an extra fort night for the opening race of the season.

The Bahr<lin Grand Prix, which was scheduled to be held on March 13th, has been postponed due to the continuing violence plaguing the Midd le Eastem nation. In addition, the planned weekend of testing at the Sakhir circuit on March 3-6 has been cancelled.

Formula 1 ringm<lSler Bernie Ecclestone, perlwps mindful of the financial implications of the move, h.1d delayed m<lking any delinill' decision, hut earlier this week the Crown Prince of 8ahrain, Sheikh Sa\m;m bin llam.1d ai-Kh;liifa, announced that the fixture \\.JS being postponed. lie confirmed that the Gulf kingdom would "focus on immediate issues of n;llion.ll interest and leave the hosting to a l<1ter d,Jle", ,1s reported by the llllC on 21 February.

The final pre-season test will be re<;cheduled to Barlelona's Circuit de Ct~talunya, where Formula J 's teams have been based tor the past fortnight, but the race itself m;1y prove more dlfTicult to move.

Red Bull Racing chie f Christian I lorner is among lll<lny in the paddock who don't see where a re-sclleduled Bahrain Grand Prix would fit "lt will certainly be a challenge to ccommoda~,· Homer told BBC Sp L

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Jtb 11 UEA annihilate Cambridge 11-0 at Colney in a superb display of attacking prowess

y y/Oiy IJ I Concrete presents a guide to the key events of Derby Day 2011 and the Olympics, following the release of dates and times for both events

UEAladies lead the way

Hockey thrash Notts I to edge closer to title • Five different scorers for UEA, who easily dispatch Nottingham with BUCS league title victory in sight

I

Henry Kilmister Sports Correspondent

UEA Hockey Men's I Nottingham Men's V

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5 0

As struggling Nottingham V travelled to Norwich on Wednesday, a strong win was essential for UEA against the league's bottom side.

The hosts went into this match topping BUCS Division 38 with three games left in the season, and difficult matches to follow away at Nottingham Trent and at home to Bedford.

The home side duly delivered and after the usual opening exchanges, they had the ball in the back of the net early on, Sam johnson benefitting from woeful goalkeeping to open the scoring.

The first half was not all plain sailing, however. At times UEA were far too casual in possession, allowing the visitors to counter, but Nottingham showed little creative ability of their own.

The only problem for UEA was scoring, being lazy with the final killer pass or ignoring teammates' calls for the ball. Even short corners, usually a particular strength for UEA, refused to be put away.

After a bland first half performance, UEA came out and played the kind of hockey that showed why they are top of the league, slotting home two goals quickly from successive short corners, Tom Ross and joseph Broad bent the scorers.

These goals broke Nottingham's confidence and suddenly UEA were on a different level, upping the tempo and intensity, and running the visitors ragged.

With fresher Rob Turnbull adding the fourth goal, the game was over; yet there was still no respite for the visitors. As Nottingham went down to ten

lfricky: Sa m Johnson (pictured) Jnd UEA gave ~ott'i the run-.1rouncl after the break, <Ind remain to lot their BtJCS divtsion men with a player yellow carded, UEA assumed complete control.

With the pressure off, they played their best hockey of the afternoon, the fifth goal coming from James Fanger after good work through the centre of the pitch.

After such a dominant performance, the whole hockey club will hope this form continues

until the end of the season, bringing the title to UEA with it.

UEA Hockey Men's remain top of the BUCS Division 38 on 19 pomts, one clear of the University of Bedfordshire (Bedford) Men's I. Men's Club Captain Barns Abraham described his delight at Hockey's season so far: "This has been a really great year for Men's

Hockey, and our BUCS team in parttcular.

They made It to the quarterfinals of the BUCS Cup, and are currently top of their sues league with only two games left.

Promotion has been narrowly missed out on for several years, but it now looks like we're finally going to make the well deserved step up."

Beth Robertson Sports Correspondent

Following several recent wins, UEA Women's Rugby are set for promotion, currently sitting undefeated at the top of their league.

Thanks to an influx of new players, hard work and excellent coaching. the team have rapidly climbed up the league, and are determmed to contmue their winning streak.

UEA recently took on Bed~)rdshire (Luton) Women's I one of the division's most challenging sides - away from home. llaving already beaten Luton this season, UEA were determined not to break their winning streak, and racked up an impressive 45-10 victory.

ThegamesawUEAdemonstrating some highly effective 'pod' work, and, despite Luton putting up a strong fight, a win was on the cards from early in the contest. Commendation went to hooker Laura Haddon and full-back Rebecca Hone.

A week later, UEA were back at home to face Anglia Ruskin in the SUCS Cup quarter-finals. This encounter proved less challenging. however. UEA demonstrated their impressive defence skills, strong pack, and well-orchestrated back lines, cruismg to a dominant 103-0 victory.

UEA's use of pods and combmation of strength and speed in both their forwards and backs rendered Ruskin helpless as their defence repeatedly fell victim to UEA's forward momentum.

Flanker Lottie Vale and winger Stephanie Creasey both scored multiple tries, while several other members of the team were also praised by the visitors after the game.

With SUCS Cup semi-finals and Derby Day also imminent, UEA are perfectly poised to take this year's SUCS League campaign all the way, with the prospect of promotion on everyone's minds. The squad's biggest remaining challenge comes on Wednesday 2nd March, when they face Nottingham Women's If. Demonstrating the team's confidence, club president Kiki Oyemhen told Concrete:"I couldn't be happier with the progress the team have made:·