gair rhydd - Issue 938

gair rhydd Monday November 29 2010 | freeword – Est. 1972 | Issue 938

The good, the bad and the ugly: Housing week special 2010

Students fight back

Inside this week:

Housing horrors News investigate your housing horrors as part of Housing Week 2010. gair rhydd speak to students about their house-hunting experiences News, page 02

Royal wedding Are you annoyed by the mass coverage of Will and Kate’s engagement? One Opinion writer certainly is. Read the full story inside...

Opinion, page 11

Sex ed with Pope?

The Pope has recently declared that condoms are acceptable.

One of our Opinion writers examines the changing view of the Catholic Church Opinion, page 12

Happy and know it Politics examines the proposals to instigate a ‘happiness measure’ in the UK. What will this mean for a country in need of a economic boost?

Politics, page 15

PHOTO: ALEX CLOW

Making a stand

Pippa Lewis News Editor Cardiff students ended their 24 hour occupation of the Shandon Lecture Theatre after the Vice Chancellor agreed to meet with representatives from the occupation.

Protesters occupied the lecture theatre in the Main Building as part of a National Day of Action against the proposed cuts in fund-

ing to higher education and rises in tuition fees.

The occupation formed part of a larger protest in which students rallied outside the University’s Main Building in an effort to put pressure on the University to publicly oppose a rise in tuition fees and higher education cuts under the wider association of Action Against Cuts: Cardiff.

The original rally then saw protestors storm into the Main Build-

ing chanting outside of the Vice Chancellor’s Office and then occupy the large Shandon Lecture Theatre.

A breakaway group then began peacefully marching around the town centre while fully co-operating with police. No arrests were made.

The occupants released a list of demands to the University and local media, which were jointly agreed upon by protesters and stated that they would not leave until these demands were met.

Upon ending the occupation, protesters told gair rhydd that a meeting had been arranged between the Vice Chancellor David Grant, the Students’ Union President Olly Birrell and representatives from the occupation.

However, at the time of print this could not be confirmed by the University.

Continued on page 4

David Cameron caused a stir in China recently by wearing a poppy. One of our Politics writers explains what happened and why...

Politics, page 17

More than accord After the perceived failure of the COP15 conference, Science investigates the next UN meeting which is due to start in Mexico this week Science, page 19

All Blacks talk Sport bag a chat with the New Zealand All Blacks about the their British tour Sport, page 29 And more, in Wales’ number one independent student newspaper

02News

gr EDITOR Sarah Powell

CO-ORDINATOR Elaine Morgan DEPUTY EDITOR Dom Kehat SUB-EDITORS Anna Redbond Isabelle Roberts Hannah van den Bergh NEWS Morgan Applegarth Miranda Atty Pippa Lewis Ben Price Hannah Pendleton FEATURES Zoe Bridger Laura Brunt OPINION Holly Howe Chris Williams POLITICS James Dunn Oliver Smith COLUMNIST Henry Burton SOCIETIES Bianca London LISTINGS Sarah Powell SCIENCE & ENVIRONMENT Tom Clarke Jack Parker SPORT Alex Bywater Lucy Morgan Alex Winter CONTRIBUTORS Caleb Woodbridge Samantha Parker Caroline Dadd Henry Davies Guy Kelly Yaz Langley Sophie Gidley Phil McNally Jenny Lambourne Elizabeth van den Bosch Christina Tran Ayushman Jamwal Mark Jones Richard Herlihy Louice Tapper Jansson Harry Hunt Rose Savage Dazz Wong Alanna Tregear Laura Peart PROOFREADERS Laura Amey Georgia Gratton Heather Arnold Maya Acharya

Monday November 29 2010 • gair rhydd • news@gairrhydd.com

Students speak out over housing hell Cardiff University students voice opinion toward letting agencies Morgan Applegarth News Editor Cardiff University students have come forward expressing their issues regarding some of Cardiff ’s most popular letting agencies.

Speaking to gair rhydd, a Keylet tenant said: “We have experienced quite a few problems, such as the house hadn't been cleaned when we moved in.

“We raised the issue with Keylet, who told us to contact our landlord, but we have no idea who she is.”

The student went on to list how 'a window frame had completely separated from the window, a shower head had broken’ and that ‘light bulbs were blowing’ just a week after moving in.

In a bid to sort out the problems, the students reported that it took 'two e-mails and three phone calls before the issues were sorted by the agency.'

“We found Keylet very slow on the uptake, as we have had to call them several times to get anything sorted and we also find the staff very rude,” the student continued.

A third year Mathematics student explained how Keylet, ‘didn’t explain the process we had to go through to get our bonds back.’

Another popular letting agency, CPS, were criticised by one student who accused the agency of ‘being vague’ on certain issues.

One student related specifically to a leak in his window: “I called CPS twice regarding the issue, who

told me that they would inform the landlord but I didn't hear anything for about a week."

"Our landlord made an impromptu visit, so I asked him about the issue and he claimed that he had not been contacted by the agency."

records up to date.

"We require permission from landlords before work is to be carried out because it is their money that we would be spending."

Keylet were unavailable for comment.

As members of Association of Lettings and Management Agents (ALMA) - a ‘self-regulating organisation encouraging best practice in the lettings’ industry throughout South Wales’ – Keylet and CPS are expected to provide quality custom to tenants.

In response to the complaint, a CPS spokesperson told gair rhydd: "I am not aware of such a case, we keep a tight record of tenant complaints and I have every bit of confidence in my staff to keep these

A current DJ Skinner Property Services tenant revealed: “I have been living in this house since August, and we’ve already had leaking radiators, windows that wouldn’t close and a front door that doesn’t lock. Though these issues have now been sorted.”

The tenant continued to note how ‘an oral agreement took place with the landlord regarding the fixing of the house boiler and removal of mould.’ However, the agreement has yet to be fulfilled despite the

concern being flagged back in September.

In defence, a spokesperson from DJ Skinner claimed that ‘no approaches had been made to the agency regarding any issues over housing conditions, as all maintenance issues are to be dealt with by the landlord.’

The spokesperson continued to note that ‘any tenant who is unhappy with their landlord is encouraged to go direct to the agency who will deal with any maintenance issues within 24 hours.’

"We are fair, honest and very concerned for students. We do all we can to make students avoid agencies who repeatedly receive criticism as we are extremely sympathetic toward student welfare.”

Last month, gair rhydd reported how Cardiff University's Advice and Representations Centre (ARC) had received over 350 cases from students withe regard to privte housing, with 72% claiming that their letting agent did not provide good value for money.

According to the survey, Horizon came out as the most dissatisfactory letting agency.

The complaints come at a time when many students begin their hunt for new residences during the upcoming academic year.

For more information and advice on looking for accommodation, or what to do if you have any problems with current accommodation, turn to our Features Housing Week Special on page 6.

Your Thoughts: First time tenants

Marcel

Jennifer

Olivia

Rory and Jordan

Although we haven’t started looking for our house yet, we’re definitely feeling the pressure.

I’m generally leaving it to my friends to sort out, I’m not that aware of the different agencies out there.

It’s been quite a stressful process.

I just hope that we don’t panic and end up settling for one we’re not completely happy with.

We don’t really feel that much pressure to find a house immediately, we just wanted to get it out the way.

We’ll probably go through the Union rather than an external agency as they will be experienced with dealing with students and less likely to pressure us into signing anything.

My main worry though is that there’s a big group of us who want to live together and we’ll need to look early if we’re to find a house big enough.

I can imagine the letting agencies might try and take advantage of our fear and to pressurise us into signing a contract.

Although letting agencies might try and encourage us to sign a contract quickly, we’re not going to compromise when it comes to finding the house that we want.

News03

Monday November 29 2010 • gair rhydd • news@gairrhydd.com

Sedative drug study Propofol to be used in experiments into light sedation Ben Price News Editor Cardiff University’s School of Psychology has asked volunteers between the ages of 18-50 to take part in a study that involves the use of the sedative drug Propofol.

The potentially harmful drug, which is only available for intravenous administration, will be given to volunteers as part of an experiment into its effects on the brain during light sedation.

Propofol is usually used to induce a coma-like state in a patient who is normally confined to the operating room, intensive care unit or an emergency department.

At a low dose, before the patient is fully unconscious, Propofol may induce a sense of euphoria similar to that experienced with other sedative agents.

After receiving a dose of the drug, each volunteer will have their brain scanned using functional magnetic resonance imaging (FMRI), electroencephalography (EEG) and magentoencephalography (MEG) while they respond to different stimuli under light sedation with Propofol.

These will include watching a screen, listening to sounds and feeling sensations on your skin.

Some medical experts have stated that the major danger with many drugs, including propofol, is that people vary in their response to a given dose, and this sensitivity is unpredictable.

A dose that causes a “high” in one person may be the same dose that causes respiratory depression, and may lead to death, in another person.

It has also been said that even when used properly Propofol can

cause respiratory depression.

A spokesperson from the Cardiff University Brain Research Imaging Centre said: “Like most medical drugs, if it is used in the wrong hands or in the wrong settings, complications can occur.

“However, for research involving anaesthetic drugs, the Cardiff University Brain Research Imaging Centre (CUBRIC) has been set up to the highest national standards.

"Any such research is undertaken in the presence of at least two experienced anaesthetists, full equipment is in place for monitoring volunteers and to manage any adverse effects.”

According to the School of Psychology, all voluntary spaces available for this experiment have now been filled.

Above: Cardiff University's Main Building Above: the sedative drug Propofol

Record grants will boost economy The University has received an unprecedent amount of research funding Louice Tapper Jansson Reporter

Above: Cardiff School of Medicine's research laboratory

Cardiff University has received research grants that are worth approximately £150 million.

The grants, which in total consist of 780 awards, are the highest funds that the university has ever been given.

This year has seen a 36% rise in funding compared to 2008-09, during which the University received £110 million worth of grants.

The grants come from a variety of different funders, including UK research councils and the European, UK and Welsh Governments.

These grants are significant for the future of research projects like ‘Developing New Low Carbon Technologies’ and ‘New Technologies for Stem Cell Science’.

The funding provided means that these projects can continue to make discoveries that could benefit the wider society.

The awards are claimed to contribute to an improvement of Cardiff ’s research, which in turn could promote a better Welsh economy.

The main winner is the School of Medicine, which received almost 200 new grants and contracts, worth £74.3 million.

The Cancer Stem Cell Research

Institute has received more than £1 million from Cancer Research UK and Professor Julie Williams was awarded £1.1 million for her discovery on the genetics of Alzheimers.

Welsh Assembly Government Higher Education minister Leighton Andrews said: “Success at gaining external R&D funding is essential to competition in Wales in thte future, and is an absolutely crucial element of our Four Our Future agenda and Economic Renewal Programme.

“This achievement is a major boost for the Welsh economy.”

Foreign students face fierce cuts Harry Hunt Reporter The University and College Union (UCU) has warned against Home Secretary Theresa May’s proposal to restrict the number of students and academics entering Britain.

The coalition government is moving to limit the amount of student visas available in order to reduce net immigration.

Currently 300,000 internationals study in the UK each year, including 3,411 in Cardiff.

The government is proposing to cut this by around 40%, by only allowing applications for degree

level courses.

The main reason for the reduction in visas is an attempt to reduce so called ‘bogus colleges’.

These institutions exploit desperate immigrants who are willing to pay extortionate amounts to gain phoney qualifications in order to pursue work in the UK. Whilst the UCU does condemn such organisations, it has said that an ‘arbitrary cap’ on student numbers will harm the whole industry. A spokesperson for the UCU said: “this could damage the UK’s proud reputation for educational excellence.”

If pre-degree student numbers

are cut, many colleges will face a large reduction in funding.

A Cardiff University spokesperson said of the proposals: “foreign students are about more than just fee income. International students add enormously to the multi-culturalism, diversity and vibrancy of the university.”

“A cap could undermine the growing global reputation of Wales,” continued the spokesperson.

However, no decision has yet been confirmed, as the proposals need to be fully considered during a consultation period.

Above: UCU members protest

04News

Monday November 29 2010 • gair rhydd • news@gairrhydd.com

"No ifs, no buts, n Hundreds of students from Cardiff University and local Continued from front The Cardiff occupation was just one of approximately 18 occupations around Britain which saw students oppose government proposals on higher education and formed part of a larger day of action.

One protestor who wished to remain anonymous told gair rhydd that they “believe that to get the University to listen, direct action needs to happen because the processes for mediation are just too slow”.

Another told gair rhydd during the morning of the occupation: “So far the University has failed to enter any meaningful dialogue with us, while we do understand that they wish to discuss matters with the elected representatives of the Students’ Union, we believe that they should also come to speak to us.

"They are essentially trying to provoke us by not agreeing to anything, by not allowing us to go to the toilet and participate in the protest at the same time.

“They’ve also refused to allow the BBC to film on campus twice, once yesterday, and again today, which is clearly anti-democratic and antifreedom of speech so they cannot claim to be following democratic processes when they don’t even let the mainstream media on campus.

“Yesterday they restricted lecturers from entering the lecture theatre to take part in a ‘teach-in’.

However, eventually they did allow it, and for a brief period of time they allowed us to use the toilet and get drinks and food.

"They have stopped us from doing this now, and we are having to get food and drinks through the window.”

Cardiff Students’ Union issued a statement during the occupation stating: "The Students' Union does not support any rise in tuition fees or any cuts to Higher Education and therefore supported yesterday's action in as far as agreeing with its key message.

"However, the occupation is currently coinciding with students' lectures that they are unable to attend because of the continuing action.

"As this is not action that has been agreed by students through Student Council or a general meeting, then the Union cannot support the disruption of other students lectures. We therefore urge those involved in the occupation to leave and work with the Union for a solution."

A Cardiff University spokesperson said in response to the occupation: “The University fully respects

The #cdfdemo on Twitter tombfowler contact Vice-Chancellor to protest treatment of students fighting for their education 029 20 874835 FarnhamS@Cardiff.

GdnCardiff Confirmation from @swpolice that no arrests were made at #cdfdemo and police officers have now been stood down

Thiefree I hear that Cardiff uni has been pressured by other universities to allow toilet breaks, thank goodness

MediaCSU "We'd like no rise in fees, and access to the toilet!"- negotiations continue

CDFUniOccupied loving all the messages of support! Hope they are getting through to those still inside! I certainly feel it was worth staying overnight!

samcoatesuk Remaining students now being allowed access to toilet, noone else allowed in.

carlwebber Loving the protests at Cardiff uni today, its a pity the goverment is too fucked up to listen

iammarcthomas Whether you're against or for the student protests, Cardiff students are v boring: an overnight teach in?!

elganjohn Well done to everyone involved in the action in cardiff demo (and others) you are an inspiration @ CDFUniOccupied

Thiefree They left to chanting, BBC cameras, and spaghetti bolognese. #cdfdemo is over. For tonight. Next teach-in tomorrow 11am, shandon theatre!

the right of peaceful protest and freedom of expression for all its staff and students.

“University representatives have talked to those concerned and have requested that the occupiers leave the building.

"The University is restricting any further entry to the lecture theatre. All those currently occupying are free to leave to access toilets, water and food.

"The University has observed that the occupiers appear to be supplied with food and drink.

“The occupiers have no legitimate booking for the room and as such the technical facilities that accompany legitimate bookings are restricted”.

It is believed that 50 people started the occupation however this number gradually fell and just 11 people left the occupation on Thursday November 25.

Occupants on leaving the main building were met by a rally of support and the BBC news cameras where a statement was made. gair rhydd was approached by students inside the occupation who felt that it had been overtaken for the Socialist cause, which undermined the real message.

They withdrew from the protest after arguing that students had turned the protest into a political party event without letting other ideologies speak.

Protestors expressed a message of solidarity, not only for others who were taking part in occupations but to all those fighting cuts more generally across all sectors and departments.

Criticising senior University administrators for not consulting with students throughout the occupation, protesters stated that “these people do not represent students or staff, they have no mandate to implement these cuts.”

Speaking of the meeting with the Vice Chancellor and Students’ Union Executive the protestors promised: “If our demands are not met, more action will follow.”

Protestors were however unwilling to discuss further plans for action as it ran the risk of undermining meetings.

Occupants have expressed that the success of the occupation should urge all students in Cardiff, no matter which university to come together and resist the cuts.

The information in this article stands correct at the time of print.

Photos by Alex Clow Above: Student protest enters University's Main Building.

Left: Students make themselves heard. Right: Cardiff students take a stance against the proposed cuts and rise in tuition fees.

News05

Monday November 29 2010 • gair rhydd • news@gairrhydd.com

no education cuts" colleges unite in a day of protest against proposed cuts freewords EDITORIAL est.1972 Sarah Powell Head of Student Media Upon entering the occupied Shandon lecture theatre on Thursday November 25, I couldn’t help but feel a sense of pride in witnessing the group who, bedraggled and cold as they were, expressed their determination to remain in occupation. Despite the lack of access to food, water and toilet facilities (although the artful protesters found a way to overcome these hurdles) there remained a sense of defiance amongst the group which I found rather heartening.

And this defiance seems to have worked, with a press statement from the protesters confirming that the Vice Chancellor of Cardiff University has agreed to meet

Cardiff Demo: The demands The student protesters democratically agreed upon a list of demands to present to the University. gair rhydd obtained this list from one of the protesters who stayed overnight in the Shandon lecture theatre.

- No victimisation of those involved in the occupation and in previous and future actions against fees and cuts.

- For Cardiff University to issue a public statement opposing any rise in fees.

- For Cardiff University to issue a public statement opposing any education cuts.

- Full disclosure of University finances.

- Meaningful student and staff participation in bugetary and financial decisions.

Direct action needs to happen because the processes of mediation are just too slow Exclusive footage from inside the occupied Shandon lecture theatre can be found on Twitter @MediaCSU and @GdnCardiff. Full coverage of the day's events can be found under the tag #cdfdemo.

- Cardiff Student who occupied the Shandon

with them and discuss the issues raised.

If anything, this protest shows that Cardiff students are mobilising to effect change in their circumstances. This group of students have joined together in an attempt to take control of the situation in which Cardiff, Wales and the UK currently find themselves in, and I can do nothing but commend their efforts.

While news reports flood in of students occupying their institutions for days and weeks, Cardiff has traditionally had a more problematic relationship with protesting in general. Since the two-day occupation which saw Cardiff University divest its investment in BAE systems and the infrastructure arm of General Electric back in 2008, Cardiff student protests have been thin on the ground.

And so, visiting the occupied lecture theatre on the morning of the occupation and witnessing firsthand the passion and dedication of Cardiff students, my belief in

the power of peaceful protest was re-ignited.

Whatever you say about this protest, it has certainly been peaceful, and it is a credit to the students who organised themselves in a democratic manner to produce a set of demands which were presented to the University.

However, I feel that the protest attempted to place too much pressure on the wrong target. While I understand the protester’s desire to try and get the University’s backing against the cuts, I can’t help but feel that until the Welsh Assembly Government announce their policy on the proposed cuts that the University’s hands seem to be tied.

Although I am caused to question the likelihood of any immediate change arising from this protest, I do strongly believe that it marks the start of a bigger movement which has the real potential to make a difference. And that’s all we can ask for at the moment.

'It was just an excuse to get a day off school'

gair rhydd News Editor recalls the student protests in London Hannah Pendleton News Editor As students descended upon London for a second time around to stand strong against the coalition’s plans to hike up university tuition fees, yet again scenes of chaos emerged amongst what was intended to be a peaceful protest.

But this time round, a younger generation became visible as I made my way through Whitehall.

Teenagers from across London walked out of their classrooms to stage their fight against cuts to EMA and rising fees.

Within minutes of arriving at the scene, I witnessed several youths being marched out of the crowd by police, one brandishing a sharp piece of wood. Jeering and chanting filled the street and various items battered police vans. As

the day went on the protests became more intense and whilst disagreement with the cuts was made clear, the whole point of the day’s demonstration was consumed by the actions of a minority.

It seems the violence that erupted was led by rebellious individuals clearly attending for the drama alone in a shameful attempt to match the violence that ensued from the first demonstration on November 10.

Did all of the protesters there have a genuine passion for the movement against the changes to Britain’s education system or was it just the perfect situation for opportunists who thrive on causing a stir?

Undoubtedly for most teenagers it was just an excuse to acquire a day off school.

Housing Special06 Welcome to the Features housing special; four pages of advice, stories and information to make sure you find the best house possible for next September.

Getting Started: A checklist Look around plenty of letting agencies. Don't get pressurised into going with the first ones you come across I’m Rose, your Welfare, Campaigns and Communication Officer. Myself and the team are here to make sure your University experience is what dreams are made of !

Having just graduated in Sociology and Social Policy, I can officially say these past three years have been the most immense three years of my life: a definite life shaper and character building exercise throughout.

And now my job is to make sure that you guys all have an amazing time too!

As part of gair rhydd's housing special, I was asked to give my top ten tips for finding a house. The first five are aimed at freshers who have yet to experience the panic that is created in the rush for houses.

The second five are some tips that apply to everyone, no matter what year you are in.

Finding a house needn't be scary or hectic, there are so many houses out there and there is no need to panic. The most important thing to do is to take your time.

Looking for and bagging a house: 1. Don't rush: There are way more houses/rooms than students...look around and find the best.

2. Use an accredited landlord, they're more likely to adopt best practice and give you a good service.

3. Understand your rights and responsibilities. i.e. Is your deposit protected?

Read your contract; make sure you understand it.

4. Check the house is up to standard: No damp, waste facilities, safe locks, fire safety etc.

5. Make sure you really do LOVE everyone you're moving in with.

When you move in: 1. Check the condition of the house is what was agreed on in the contract, the inventory and that any outstanding bills are cleared.

2. Pay your rent on time.

3. Make sure you have contact details for your landlord or a way of getting in touch.

4. Be a responsible neighbour, you may be living next to the elderly or a family.

5. Lock up: Be aware of your safety and personal belongings.

Go onto google maps and check the various streets in Cathays / Roath and which ones would be best for you Chat to second and third years who have already gone through the housing process Talk to the people who are currently living in the house you're looking at. Would they reccomend it?

Don't rush into anything; there are thousands of houses Make sure you are 100% sure of who you want to live with Don't feel peer-pressured into signing for a house that you're not sure about

Be sure to know your rights Student housing is renowned for being shoddy. With mouldy walls, broken taps and dodgy electrics, there aren't many people you meet who will admit to having a perfect house.

Changing houses every year means that we don't bother to report the problems. In a few months we'll be moving out and then it will be someone else's problem.

Cardiff Council is very much on our side when it comes to student housing. They have a number of licensing laws applicable to HMOs (houses in multiple occupation)

which ensure that students are provided with good quality housing.

HMO licensing is a mechanism for controlling, managing and improving standards in certain types of private rented accommodation.

It seeks to ensure that: • Landlords and managers are 'fit and proper persons'.

• HMOs meet standards for kitchen and bathroom amenities and fire precautions.

• The standards of tenancy relations management and property management are satisfactory.

• Where landlords are unwilling

(4 Bedroom) Student House /0298/ Richmond Road CF24 3BX VAT NO. 357 3967 22 TILL 3 19:28 RECEIPT 29 NOVEMBER 10 MONTHS 1X ELECTRIC @ 12.00 1XWATER @ 09.00 1XGAS @ 08.00 1XRENT @ 240.00 1XFOOD @ 100.00 1XGENERAL @ 200.00 --------------------------------------Per Person TOTAL= 580 --------------------------------------RECEIPT NO. 07/6946 ORDER C73 CASH £580

to or unable to meet the required standards, councils can step in to manage properties.

• Vulnerable tenants, particularly in HMOs, can be protected.

• High risk HMOs and their landlords are identified, so that enforcement action can be targeted on the worst cases using the Housing Health and Safety Rating System.

All of these regulations are there to ensure that students are not treated poorly as tenants and that we are given housing that is fair and safe.

Cardiff Digs (www.cardiffdigs.

co.uk) is a brilliant website that lists all of the rules and regulations for student houses.

Things like the number of bathrooms, the number of fridges, cookers or emergency exits are all vital aspects of student houses, and if your house doesn't meet the regulations then your landlord could be eligable for a fine.

For more information including a definition of what a House in Multiple Occupation (HMO) is, visit www.cardiff.gov.uk

Housing Special07

gair rhydd • Monday November 29 2010 • features@gairrhydd.com

Your (housing) Space.

We want to hear your stories: anything goes. Just drop us a line on features@gairrhydd.com. This week Mark Jones tells us about his experiences of finding a house.

Above: there are plenty of lovely houses in Cathays and Roath

F

inding any sort of housing can be daunting; so many letting agents, a sea of flyers and seemingly everybody telling you about their house that they signed for weeks ago. But when you’re on your own, it can be just like gazing into a crystal ball.

There are many students who somehow find themselves without accommodation; freshers who go through clearing who don’t get a place in halls, or other returning students left out of a house or just want a change of housemates.

Housing is made out (mostly by the letting agents) to be some massive stampede-like rush, and that students should part with their cash as soon as possible before all the houses get suddenly snapped up.

This, of course, is not true, and as my journey has taught me, there’s always somewhere out there for you, and it’s you that always has the upper hand.

Towards the end of my first year in Senghennydd Court, I was left without a house after my flatmates eventually decided not to live together. As it would for anyone who’s never been in this situation, panic immediately set in as I found absolutely nobody I knew to live with.

All I knew was halls – all I knew were these people here, and that’s the only answer I could find.

I re-applied to Residences after it appeared certain I’d have to look outside of my friendship group to get somewhere to lay my head for

the entire second year. I remember feeling nervous about the procedure – the embarrassment of having to explain to people that I still live in halls.

Eventually, Residences offered me a place at Talybont South for my second year, which with a degree of reluctance, I accepted, and paid the pricey £200 non-refundable prepayment.

Second year began, and I found myself in a quiet second and third years flat, with a house full of unknown name faces. Going back into halls means an entirely new friendship group, which was destined to be a strange experience.

However something didn't feel right; the ‘halls’ atmosphere I’d experienced in Senghennydd just wasn’t there. It felt like I was alone, an outsider, in my own flat. So, in the November, I decided to move into a flat with first years. Was I mad?

Probably. It was the biggest gamble I’d taken in my university life, at the sum of £20 for a “transfer administration fee”, but I don’t regret it.

The new flatmates seemed like lively enough people. It felt a lot more homely than my old flat did, and everyone there accepted me a lot more for who I was. But there was that big fear brewing up in my stomach… would living with these new people be enough to get me into a house for third year?

Of course, finding year 3 housemates was one of my motives for moving. However housing time came, and as I predicted, I was left

out as they all decided to go their separate ways or were retuning to halls. But this time, I didn’t feel any of the worry I did the year before. I was determined to get out of halls.

The first thing I did was go to the Union’s Advice and Representation Centre (ARC) on the 3rd floor. I found their advice very helpful, as they told me not to worry and there were far more houses and 'housemate wanted' vacancies in Cardiff than people actually looking.

I signed up to their house-search list, which enabled groups with vacancies to contact me, which worked extremely well. I viewed a few of the houses and met some nice potential housemates, but it was nearing April and I still hadn’t got my name on any dotted line.

As a back-up measure, I did reapply for halls, and I also viewed the private halls owned by Liberty Living, although I was slightly put-off by the high price tag.

However, after telling all my friends that I was looking, after putting up adverts and scouring the internet, a friend informed me of a group of people who were looking for a new housemate… just one day before my deposit for halls was due!

I met up with them, and I found out they were the sort of people that I wanted to live with. After viewing the house, I decided to sign the contract and cough up the bond and £70 agency fee.

I have to say it has been a challenge each year in forming totally new and separate friendship groups.

It’s definitely not been impossible and I’m very lucky to finally be in a good house with people I enjoy living with.

If you’re after a house, ARC’s housing lists are a good way of finding somewhere to live, as are online sites such as Gumtree and Facebook. If you’d rather go for the halls experience, then there are the private halls such as Severn Point, Cambrian Point and Victoria Hall, although these are rather pricier than University-owned residences.

There’s far more choice than I ever thought there was.

“

There's always somewhere out there for you and it's always you who has the upper hand

I'm Zoe, one of gair rhydd's features editors this year. I am in my third year of an English Literature degree, so I have gone through the process of looking for a house twice now.

I remember the panic that spread around Talybont as slowly but surely poeple began to waltz around halls, casually dropping into conversation their amazing houses for the next year.

It becomes a quest akin to 'crystal-maze', involving letting agencies, fees, landlords, houses, flats and house viewings but sadly without that strange man with the slap-head, and the crystal of course.

The closer it gets to December; the more frantic the searches get and by the time you go home for Christmas you have signed up for a shitty three bed house with mould on the walls and a bathroom the size of a box.

I lived in a flat in my second year with three friends on Richmond Road. We booked a few viewings with Cardiff Student Letting (on the ground floor of the Union) - mainly because they had no agency fee.

They drove us around Cathays, and in the end we all fell in love with a huge flat on Richmond Road. But when we went to sign the contract it turned out that a group of people had got there before us and the house was no longer free.

We were gutted. It was such an amazing flat and it was easily the best one we had seen. So we went back to Cardiff Student Letting in a bad mood.

In the end we carried on looking around Cathays, found another flat just as nice and moved in the following September.

I would advise everyone not to panic - everyone says it, I know, but it really is true. There are thousands of houses in Roath and Cathays and there are always a whole load of places left over, so you will never be without a home.

Don't set your heart on somewhere like we did, it only makes you feel disheartened if you don't get it. Think carefully about who you want to live with and where you want to live and don't be pressurised into doing anything you're not sure about. Also - don't worry about living right next to the Union, sometimes the houses a little bit further away are much nicer.

08Housing Special

gair rhydd • Monday November 29 2010 • features@gairrhydd.

Your housing stories The Good by Caleb Woodbridge

I'm Zandra and I work for Cardiff Union's Student Advice and Representation Centre.

Getting advice about your housing at the right time can prevent difficulties at a later date.

At this time of year, many students are planning to find accommodation for the next academic year. ARC suggests that if you are looking for accommodation, take your time – don’t rush in – ask questions and understand your rights and responsibilities ARC produces a housing booklet with useful information and tips.

You may have housing questions and need help in finding the answers. The kinds of questions I hear frequently are:

Don’t be scared! When it comes to student housing, horror is the dominant genre. But while bad news makes for better stories, that doesn’t reflect the full reality.

I’ve been pretty lucky with my accommodation. I’ve got on well with all my housemates. We’ve never had any issues getting our bond back at the end of the year. I’ve had a few problems – a leaking shower, the occasional mouse on the loose – but nothing resembling the tales of woe and crumbling masonry that occasionally make the front pages of this paper.

ARC can also: 1. Provide general advice and information on a wide range of other issues including debt problems, finance and utilities You can either: Drop-in: ARC SU 3rd Floor Monday – Friday 10am - 3pm EXCEPT Thursday 1pm - 3pm Telephone: 029 20781410 (Appointments are available) Email:

advice @cardiff.ac.uk

Check us out online: Cardiffstudents.com

ten years, which was nice. Another was rather reluctant to fix the shower which was leaking onto our television below, which wasn’t so good. Agencies can be helpful, but sometimes they’re more pain than they’re worth.

Moving into a house where friends used to live can be a great way of knowing what you’re getting, and can help you beat the rush for good houses. On the other hand, it’s important not to rush: there’s plenty out there, so don’t be pressured into signing up for something you have doubts about.

Many students have decent accommodation, with only minor problems and issues. It’s just that most people don’t spend time swapping stories of letting agents who are polite and helpful, answer queries promptly and deal with problems efficiently. Heated discussions down the pub about good landlords are rare, not just because of a scarcity of good landlords. “Mine’s alright, really” isn’t nearly as fun as having a good old moan.

The Bad by Samantha Parker

How do I find accommodation?

Does the house have to meet certain standards?

Is the tenancy agreement alright?

What are my legal housing rights and responsibilities?

ARC can: 1. Provide advice and information on your housing issues 2. Explain your rights and responsibilities 3. Offer advice and guidance 4. Help with complaints 5. Suggest and signpost specialist legal and or support services

My current house is great – just the right size for us, easy distance to the university, with enough room to have a good crowd of friends round.

The landlord is a friend who moved away from Cardiff after qualifying as a doctor, and my entire househunt consisted of one conversation in January. “I need somewhere to live next year.” “Really? My house will be empty from May.” “Great!”

I’ve managed to avoid letting agencies, renting from private landlords. One of them was a nice old lady who seemed to have forgotten to raise the rent for the last

Above: The wet rot growing in Caroline's kitchen floor.

When you sign papers for rented student accommodation it is never because you want to live in the property, it is because you think that you can cope with what you are taking on. It’s liveable. Everything will be fine you tell yourself. And then you move in.

When moving boxes into my new room I noticed that the walls were nicotine-yellow, stained dark in places from cigarette smoke. Whoever lived there previously was obviously a heavy indoor smoker despite the strict ‘no smoking’ rules.

Next I discovered that the sashwindow in my room was broken.

It opened okay but the top pane of glass dropped down behind the bottom one making it difficult to close.

I was promised that these issues would be rectified before term began. They were not.

A number of weeks after we legally became the tenants of the

property, I received an email informing me that the letting agency would be happy to clean, paint and fix my room. There was one condition however: I had to come back to Cardiff and move my boxes out of the decorators way personally.

As the autumn term was still a month away, I had to travel four hours by train in order to do this.

Arriving at the property I found that my room had already been painted. However, my window was still broken and my front door key didn’t work.

One problem had been corrected ,but I had discovered another two to take its place.

A number of weeks later one of my housemates moved in. There was no electricity.

Upon contacting the letting agency she was told to ring the electricity provider and sort the issue out herself.

She established that the property was run off a meter, something we had not been told, and that the agency themselves did not seem to realise. The agency was unable to locate the meter. She spent two days in the property without electricity.

So far we have encountered numerous problems with our property. The windows have still not been fixed but we have managed to win a number of small, yet significant, battles.

Through continued nagging we have had our filthy curtains replaced, new kitchen cupboards and a number of extra desks removed from the living room.

Student properties have their problems but if you complain enough to your letting agency and remind them that they have an obligation to you as their tenant, then the major issues you have can be resolved.

But he has that problem where he just can’t quite be bothered.

Now to be fair, I’m a little like that. Deadlines are put off, extra reading never done but always intended, early morning starts to get on with your work don’t materialise as the snooze button gets pressed six or seven times. But this isn’t just some essay that needs to be handed in; this is five girls living in a house that is cold and wet, with fungi growing in it. It’s a little more important than some extra reading.

In a strange way, we’re lucky. We can deal directly with our landlord rather than having to go through our letting agent, that most wonderful of all agents, CPS. Some friends of mine have the misfortune of living in a CPS-run house, and it has been a hell of an ordeal trying to get them to sort out the ridiculously long list of problems with their house.

They have a very unsafe front door, damp on the walls, many dubious stains that seem to have appeared over the summer, oh and a

tiny problem with water coming through the ceiling from the leak in the bathroom. When they rang up to get it dealt with, they were told that having a large leak in the bathroom didn’t qualify as an emergency and were forced to wait until Monday with a large bucket sat in the living room over the weekend.

The silver lining of the huge dominating grey cloud was that three of the people living in the house are law students who don’t take no for an answer. Despite this, it still took many weeks of persistent nagging to get them to solve any of the issues in the house. They had been fobbed off with too many excuses about not having things on file or the problems being ‘looked at in due course.’ If you take nothing from this article, then please take these words of wisdom. Don’t rent a house through CPS. Even if the house looks great and seems to have no problems whatsoever, the minute you have any, CPS will be as blind to them as a cyclist is to traffic signals.

The Ugly by Caroline Dadd Ah, the joys of student houses. Far from being the home from home where you can go back and relax after an epic session in the library, or more likely an epic night out, it ends up being that place full of problems, drama and ‘issues’. And who wants to have to go back to ‘issues’, I ask you?

When I say issues, what I mean is things like whose turn it is to do the huge stack of washing up that has somehow magically grown within the last few days; or should the heating get turned on as early as October because some of your housemates are wusses when it comes to the cold. Then of course there’s the issue of the wet rot growing on the floor of your kitchen. Or is that just my house?

For those of you who don’t know, because I sure as hell didn’t, wet rot is a kind of fungi caused by damp. This means that not only do we have something very disgusting looking growing in the place where we cook food, (very hygienic) but we also have a damp problem. Joy. Just what I wanted to learn as it starts to

get very cold and very wet outside.

Apparently, the reason for this new addition to our household is that water is running down the inside of the wall causing mass patches of damp.

And guess what? That’s not all.

The room next door to the kitchen, surprise surprise, has damp as well and let me tell you, the smell is not pleasant! It got so bad at one point that the girl whose room it is couldn’t even sleep in her own bedroom. And, of course, a week later we discovered that the room above hers also had damp. In fact, it was covered with it, with an added bonus of a little mould growing as well. Lovely.

The cause of all this? A hole in the outside wall. A huge, round, gaping hole. Has it been fixed? Of course not. Now my landlord assured us all that it would be sorted out as soon as possible. That was two weeks ago. The problem with my landlord is that he’s lazy. He’s a really nice guy, always obliging, seemingly concerned if things are going wrong and willing to help.

Housing Special09

gair rhydd • Monday November 29 2010 • features@gairrhydd.com

An interview with Huw

Huw Gronow works for Cardiff Council

H

uw, what exactly is your role at the council?

I am an environmental health officer with Private Sector Housing. The role of private sector housing is to look after the health and safety of anybody renting from a landlord in Cardiff. Essentially we have two main teams: the licensing team that I work for, who deals with HMO Licensing (Houses in Multiple Occupation) Act of 2004 and we have the reactive team that deals with everything else.

Do students who are having difficulties with their landlords and/or letting agents often approach you?

The reactive team deals directly with complaints, and we do receive a fair number of complaints from tenants. Over the years that I have been working here, standards have improved. Usually the biggest concern is fire safety.

In September and October we receive a large number of calls from

tenants and their parents, often saying that the property is unclean and that there is work that needs to be done. Sometimes it is easily fixable and sometimes we go in to find that the landlords have really dropped the ball.

For students who are renting for the first time, there is often a general consensus that the landlord has more rights than the tenant. This isn’t the case, is it?

No it’s not. Tenants do have a lot of rights and there is a lot of support for students. The problem is that students don’t know about them. I’ve been doing this for fourteen years and it’s always the same: I go to the properties and tell them what they are entitled to do and they have no idea. There is a lot of protection for tenants, which the Housing Advice Unit deals with. We deal with disrepair, fire safety etc.

There’s a lot of advice out there but it’s a case of knowing where to look.

What can be done to change that, do you think? It seems the

Useful Contacts www.cardiffdigs.co.uk

www.arla.co.uk

www.cardiff.gov.uk

www.cardiffnightline.com

Nightline: 02920 870555 Student Advice and Representation Centre (ARC): 02920 781410

tell you where to look...

I couldn’t really say. However, as a general rule I don’t believe the agents will make us known to you.

This isn’t necessarily because of any underhand motives and some of the agents out there are very good so they don’t need to. Some don’t think to and some would rather avoid letting tenants know because they think it will mean more hassle and more money.

It is really important to get information out to students. I think the Union needs to make tenants aware that we have various websites. There is Cardiff Digs (www. cardiffdigs.co.uk) and the council website (www.cardiff.gov.uk) for example for students to have a look at to learn their rights.

So it’s quite easy for students to find out what they are entitled to and what they are not.

For example, I was surprised to learn that landlords don’t have a right to kick you out if miss your rent?

Yes, I’m no expert in contract law but there is Section 8 and Section 21 Notices Grounds; it is a far more complicated process than people think. Landlords do not have the right to kick tenants out with a weeks notice.

Freshers will be told to start looking for houses soon. What would you advise them to be aware of ?

My first suggestion is to always look for a regulated agent. There are a number of organisations that regulate their members. ALMA is the Association of Letting and Management Agents which is supported by the council and based in Cardiff.

There are a number of members and they operate to codes of practice and certain standards that are agreed with the council.

Other than that there is the Association of Residential Letting Agents (ARLA), which is a national organisation, the National Association of Estate Agents and the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors.

There’s also the National Landlords Association, specifically for landlords, not agents.

This is not to say that there aren’t others, but it is very important to have a regulated agent because it means that there is something to fall back on if something goes wrong.

The other thing I would say is if students see a house which they quite like the look of, there’s no reason why they can’t call up Private Sector Housing and ask what we can tell them about this particular property and its landlord. Some of the stuff we have is public information.

For example if we’ve served a Notice on a landlord to do repair works than that is a public document. So if the landlord has been prosecuted for not doing the repair works, we can inform tenants of this. It may be information that

they would take into consideration when making their decision.

The other vitally important thing, is that as soon as students move in, they should go round the property themselves and note any defects that are there and take photographs of them, store them and make sure every tenant has a copy.

I deal with problems all the time where the landlord is trying to take money off the bond for damage that the tenants swear they didn’t do.

The problem is that they don’t have any evidence. It’s absolutely vital ,and such a quick and easy thing to do.

You must deal with a lot of issues to do with deposits. What can students do?

The majority of students don’t seem to know about the Deposit Protection Scheme. Basically within fourteen days of receiving the bond, the agent must notify the tenants of where their bond is protected. The bond has to be protected externally from that agent. In the past we’ve heard so many stories about how the landlord won’t give the tenants anything back, or take off £50 for this and £50 for that. The tenants are usually stuck. With the deposit scheme there may be a quibble over £50, but they get their bond back.

What is the role of the letting agent?

Typically, there are two things that letting agents like to say. One is ‘you had better take something quick because there is not a lot out there and it's going fast.’ This is wrong.

The other thing that they do is take potential tenants out to three properties; two of which are absolute dives and one of which is slightly better, which is always shown last. Then the tenants think this is the best they can get, and feel, pressure to sign for it.

I must stress, however, that are some very good letting agents and some very good landlords out there.

Equally, there are some awful tenants!

Tenants have responsibilities too - things like cooperation in fire safety. We find that often students prop open their fire doors or take the hinges off. This can be very dangerous.

“

How many letting agents do you think there are in Cardiff ?

50?

More like 160

I'm Sarah, head of Student Media and editor of gair rhydd.

When I first started looking for a house during first year, I remember feeling completely overwhelmed by the hype that surrounded the entire process.

Rumour somehow seemed to whisper through Talybont that if you didn’t have a house by Christmas then you were going to be faced with a fate worse than death: a shitty house.

Crippled by fear and a desire to avoid such a grim circumstance, I quickly gathered seven of the friends who were standing closest to me at the time and rushed them into various Cathays letting agencies. (Okay, so it wasn’t really that haphazard, I’m definitely more of a planner than I like to let on, but in hindsight the whole experience sure felt rushed to me.)

After trawling through what felt like a thousand awful houses, listening to a fair few dodgy landlords, I felt dejected. After a few days of similar treatment, my friends and I were completely fed up with the whole thing and consequently allowed ourselves to be pushed into what was, with the glorious wisdom of hindsight again, a complete hovel. Out of tiredness and fear that we’d never find something better, we pleasantly ignored the blue-tacked wallpaper, and the fact that there was only one bathroom for eight of us. We waltzed past the lack of cooking space and sellotaped washing machine, and we were only mildly concerned about the visible presence of damp in one of the bedrooms.

Okay, so we had shit in our eyes. Clearly. And what followed was a lengthy battle to get out of our contract and have our rent refunded. The stress that followed was incredible. Lesson learnt.

We were left looking for a house in August, almost a year after we signed for the hovel. In the end, we found a wonderful place that we called home for the next two years, so I guess all’s well that ends well, right?

What I’m trying to say is that there is definitely no need to rush into finding a house. When letting agents and friends push you into looking for a house before Christmas, don’t listen. We found our place in August, and it was so much nicer than any of the awful abodes we were shown in the previous November. So, take your time and don’t let yourself get messed around, you’re better than that. Pep talk over.

Opinion11 The Royal Engagement Yaz Langley Opinion Writer When the subject of Will and Kate’s engagement comes up, the general responses are ‘who?’, ‘no one gives a shit’ or ‘I thought they were already married’.

In fact, the only things that people are concerned with is whether otrnot we get the day off (we do) and if we have to pay for it (we do).

Although the two families have agreed to foot the bill for the wedding (how very noble) it will be us, the taxpayers, who will be paying for transport and extra security.

First of all, walk- it’s like twenty minutes away- and secondly, do they even need security? When was the last time someone tried to assassinate a member of the Royal Family? Times have changed and people are aiming their bullets at presidents and dictators- those who actually make a difference. There is no real threat to the Royal Family anymore simply because no one really cares.

I’m not having a go at them (honestly) but the fact is, people just don’t see this engagement as a big deal. Gone are the generations of little girls who dream of being princesses; instead their heads are filled with aspirations of becoming WAGs. And to be honest it’s no surprise. I’m in no way condoning a life ambition of a footballer’s wife, but the realities of being a Princess don’t seem much more appealing.

It was bad enough when I first came to Cardiff and discovered around 90% of the people I met had

been to private school and their daddies were doctors. In the olden days this sort of ‘mixing above my class’ would be seen as climbing the social ladder but to be honest, it kinda sucked. Coming back from a Christmas spent stacking shelves, I would get to hear about their month skiing; I’d see them ‘slob’ around in Jack Wills, playing on their Blackberries and showing me pictures of their gap yaa. To then go out with the bloody Prince would be total overload. Imagine having to meet the parents. I can’t honestly imagine swapping my student life of Pot Noodle and Gassy Jacks for Swan L’Orange and Buckingham Palace.

You would have to spend valuable drinking time meeting and making small talk with the world’s most boring and pretentious aristocrats; it would be fish eggs for dinner; time would be spent standing around waving and going to Polo matches; there would be no popping to Domino’s in your Uni trackies or crawling to lectures hungover and, worst of all, (although Phillip gets away with it) you would have to be careful what you say. About anything. All the time.

Although going to University a normal student and coming out (nearly) a Princess should be the ultimate modern day fairy tale, it’s not. Kate was actually brought up in a (almost) middle class family and is the first 'commoner' to marry a Prince in such close proximity to the throne in 350 years. Does this show how unimportant the lives of the Royal Family are to some people?

However, because of this lack

of fascination, journalists have instead, for some reason, started attacking the couple. Googling the story for research, all I got were headlines such as ‘the marriage will fall apart’, ‘Kate’s dress as bland as her’ and ‘Royal Family is a PR machine’. And all because a young couple in love want to make it official. I can understand people not caring but to be ‘against’ the idea of two people getting married is ridiculous. It seems that people are doing it for the sake of making

the engagement interesting. Let’s face it, they’ve already been together forover eight years, they’re the same age, neither of them have done anything scandalous or news worthy, it is just the media shit stirring to get a story out of something that should be a story on its own.

Apart from this unnecessary abuse, the main burden for Kate is that she will always, always be compared to Diana - as if mothers-inlaw are not enough trouble. Yet no matter what Kate does or how she

does it, she will never win. Not only is her competitor dead (therefore impossible to beat) but she existed at a time when people still regarded the Royal Family as the heart of the British culture. Nowadays, unless you’ve appeared on Big Brother or X Factor, you’re worth diddly squat.

Maybe it is sad to see the Royal Family fading away, maybe it’s just how times are changing; either way, for the majority, this Royal wedding means nothing more than four day weekend piss up.

Murdoch deemed a "corrosive" influence Jenny Lambourne Opinion Writer He has dominated the media realm for decades and established himself as a quintessential media baron, a mogul who has amassed assets spanning the globe from newspapers to film studios and all with a driven determination to succeed.

But Rupert Murdoch has not managed this without inviting the wrath of other media corporations.

His latest move, to buy out the remaining shares in BSkyB that News Corporation does not already own, has stirred his competitors into calling out for the deal to be blocked to preserve media plurality, with some publications branding him a “corrosive” influence.

It is not easy to overestimate the sheer influence that News Corporation holds. His portfolio spans three continents and its contents include 20th Century Fox, The New York Post, the Wall Street Journal, The Times, The Sun, The News of the

World, Sky Deutschland, Sky Italia and The Australian and that is only a fraction of his assets. If you needed proof of the scale of the empire that Murdoch has built for himself, consider the following: Murdoch’s British publications reportedly account for 37% of the country’s press. The British Sky Broadcasting Group PLC, otherwise known as BSkyB, has two thirds of the total subscribers to pay TV and nearly 40% of it is already owned

by Murdoch. It is his bid to buy the remaining 60% that has riled his competitors to speak out against the prospect of a media monopoly. The annual revenue of BSkyB combined with his British publications will reach a predicted £8bn. Its nearest contender, the BBC, has an annual revenue of £4.6bn. By introducing paywall services for his newspapers such as The Sunday Times, Murdoch could introduce Sky packages to include these subscriptions.

It is no wonder then, that nearly all non-News Corporation owned

companies in the UK, including the BBC and the Campaign for Press and Broadcasting Freedom (CPBF) have all signed up to submit their arguments against the proposal to Ofcom. The Church of England has even stepped forward to offer its support of the blocking of the proposal. Needless to say, they’re all making quite a stir about it and with good reason.

The CFBF have declared that Murdoch has "played a thoroughly corrosive role in UK politics with governments, fearful of antagonising him, shaping policies to win or hold on to his support." By allowing News Corporation to consolidate their position, it could eventually become untouchable. This position of dominance could become an instrument of political support or damage and that thought should you make you pause. Sky News, previously a minor competitor of the BBC, was vital in pressurising politicians for live debates to be televised. Its influence cannot be

ignored. Not that Cameron would pander to the whim of such an individual as Murdoch. And of course his bid to strip Ofcom of its powers wouldn’t be supported by Murdoch in any way. It must have been a different R. Murdoch that was the first guest to 10 Downing Street after the election. Oh no, wait a second.

Whether or not you agree with the political influence that Murdoch is deemed to hold within the pages of his publications, it is clear that there is more at stake here. It is the preservation of media plurality, of the right to balanced viewpoints that is at risk. If News Corporation were successful in their bid for the remainder of BSkyB, it would place Mr Murdoch as the owner of an extensive share of the media market in the UK. British broadcasting and publication has previously prided itself on its diversity, such a move would create a monopoly of the likes of Fox Television and News that dominates the American media.

The decision now lies with Ofcom to examine the risk against media plurality and if taken in opposition to the bid, will result in the matter being referred to Vince Cable who will then make the decision whether or not to step in on the basis of public interest. With the combination of Cameron’s intentions to limit Ofcom of its decision making powers and the voraciousness of Murdoch in his business empire, public interest needs to be preserved. Whilst in other situations it may not be appropriate to slate Murdoch for his capitalising on Sky’s success when he provided investment at a time when it was seen to be failing, this is different in that it presents an acute risk to media plurality and diversity. The sheer range of opposition to the proposal shows how threatening Murdoch’s position already is. This move would push News Corporation over the boundary into a media monopoly and would jeopardize the integrity of the entire industry.

Opinion12

Monday November 29 2010 • gair rhydd • opinion@gairrhydd.com

Sex education from the Pope Guy Kelly Opinion Writer Prior to last week, 2010 had been intensely depressing. With the economic crisis repeatedly punching us in the face, government cuts spitting in that wound and Katie Waissel’s failure to perish; things were looking glum.

Thank God, then, for some distractions from the impending doom. Blanket coverage of the culturally and politically significant but not-at-all-dull royal wedding came first, inspiring Daily Mail readers to violently wield union flags in public, weep at the sight of a red bus and slap on a foreigner.

Next was the phenomenon that is Gillian McKeith. Looking like a startled owl regretting liposuction, McKeith panicking is the most enjoyable piece of schadenfreude in at least a fortnight. And finally, in an unprecedentedly cheery seven days – the Pope approved the use of contraception. Hurrah!

Except he didn’t, really. Pope Benedict XIV last week adjusted the Vatican’s position on the use of artificial prophylactics yet progress on this subject is painfully slow. The Catholic Church has been against contraception for as long as can the denomination’s history can be charted, yet it was the first pandemic of AIDS – almost 30 years ago – where its vilification was particularly scrutinised as being misguided, ignorant and anti-life. The Popes statement, then, is belated and confused.

With a fickle and befuddled ambiguity, akin to Jim from The Vicar of Dibley, this sudden backtrack

from the Pontiff had the hallmarks of a long stride in the right direction. Yet is is more of a tipsy baby step towards sensibility. Frankly, it’s maddeningly easy for commentators (myself included) to ridicule those who take their sexual creed from an 83 year old virgin yet one has to accept that the Catholic Church provides solace and guidance to millions of people each day.

Any shift of the Pope’s stance must be taken seriously.

Originally condemning the use of any prophylactic, Benedict XVI has now stated that condom wear could be a ‘responsible’ thing to do, especially in the case of male prostitutes. This is hardly a sweeping change of stance but does seem to suggest a hint of modernity with regards to thinking within the Vatican, and seems to imply that this will be a gradual shift. Baby steps may be better than nothing but when thousands of people are being needlessly infected with HIV due to his backwards commands he really ought to get a jog on.

The remarks have not gone without question from within his own church, as strict Catholics erred over meaning and pondered how dramatic a U-Turn this was.

Frankly, clarification is needed as it remains unclear whether the Pope is genuinely relaxing Church teaching. Is he saying that where sex brings the risk of transmission of death condoms can be used, or merely that male prostitutes can use condoms because there is never a risk of procreation involved in such a relationship?

Such mixed messages are scarcely a help, and instead of marking a move towards an end in these bigot-

ed ideas, they underline them. With each passing year and each passing controversy, the Catholic Church gradually becomes more and more absurd. The Pope’s lack of disgust at molestation accusations in Ireland for example, only served to highlight the church’s penchant for burying its head in the sand whenever called to order.

So, in such an antiquated and conservative denomination, any progress should be classed as significant progress. Merely opening a dialogue and having the Vatican na-

mecheck HIV and AIDS as serious threats that could be helped by the use of condoms is revolutionary.

Just last year, Pope Benedict XVI suggested that education and chastity were the only cures to the pandemic and that contraception only aggravated the problem. The Pope’s comments show a more humane side to the Church, though movement on the issue of homosexuality remains a long, long way off.

Ultimately, I would rather listen to Lauren Pope from The Only Way Is Essex address me on condom use

than the actual Pope. A man who deliberately distances himself from any forms of modernity seems an unlikely choice of lecturer on such delicate 21st century topics, but I suppose he’s kind of a big deal still.

As a final thought: maybe, just maybe, Pope Benedict XVI meant none of these things. The comments were, after all, made through released excerpts from a new journal released by the Vatican. It could all a marketing ploy; that bloke would say anything to shift another book.

The new saviours of the world?

Yaz Langley OpinionWriter If you’re not clued up with Ireland’s current economical climate, then fear not: the genius that is Westlife’s Nicky Byrne is here at hand to educate you that ''things are very bad’'. Well if Westlife said it...

However, at least they are just stating the obvious and are not trying to go above and beyond by coming up with a solution. And at least they are, well, Irish. Not like Eric "Merchant-Banker" Cantona who, having no clue about economics or banks in general, came up with the ingenious would-totally-workin-reality idea of a mass cash withdrawal in protest. Nice idea Eric, but stick to what you know.

Unfortunately, with fame and fortune (mostly fame), comes an enormously large head which, in turn, produces this notion to celebrities that they not only have a right to

bore people with their thoughts and opinions but that these opinions are worth more than anyone else’s.

These celebrities that try and get involved in topical issues they know nothing about is almost as ridiculously funny as askingthe opinion of Nikki, 22, from Newcastle in The Sun’s 'News in Briefs'. Or those D-list ‘celebrities’ who have their own column (which, of course, they write all by themselves) in magazines telling everyone what they’ve been up to and what they think of the latest headlines.

Unfortunately, that is the society we live in. The Jodie Marshes of the world are becoming more likely to have an outlet for their candy floss thoughts; and the more intelligent, fresh ideas go unheard. In this day and age, winning a reality show will give you more validity and a bigger audience than a university professor has.

Whether you can’t get enough

of them or think they’re a waste of space, there’s no denying the influence celebrities potentially have.

While Britain saw a few (to be fair, respectable) celebrities supporting and fronting their sides in the recent elections, one of the most famous celebrity endorsed campaigns has to be P. Diddy and Paris Hilton’s

The more intelligent, fresh ideas go unheard VOTE OR DIE idea in 2004.

Although even Americans are smart enough to take it with a bucket load of salt, it still produced a turnout of over four million more voters than the previous election.

Whether this was because of the celebrities themselves or whether the point was simply drilled into their head is irrelevant. The fact is, it worked. And all thanks to Paris ‘oops-I-forgot-to-vote’ Hilton. Shame the campaign wasn’t literal. It works in the same way as celebrity sponsorships do: it doesn’t matter whether they believe in the cause or even have a clue what it is; their presence is more than enough.

Yet while we have to hear these celebs talking rubbish, it’s easy to forget that there are those out there who do know what they’re talking about; those who recognise their power and put it to good use. Take the size zero band wagon, the ‘I’m a Real Man’ domestic violence campaign and even JLS’s condom range ‘just love safe’ - yes, sadly, they do exist but you can’t deny their positive intentions. Another brilliant example of the positive effects is actress Brooke Kinsella using her

fame to advocate and give a voice for those who couldn’t in order to introduce tougher laws on knife crime. Thanks to her and her celebrity status, knife murderers can now be put away for 25 years. With less than 30% of children viewing their parents as role models, the responsibility is passed on to those in the media spotlight, and thankfully many of them realise this. Celebrities like Angelina Jolie have put the UN on the map (for those who only read Heat magazine) and made charity work popular, Heather Mills helped make fur (and herself) unpopular and because of the likes of Julianne Moore, gay marriage finally became legalised.

So although there are many celebrities who think they know it all (and worse, think that we want to hear it), there are those who use their position in a positive way and should be listened to; and for them, it’s worth putting up with the rest.

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Columnist

It's the same old song

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ever listen to journalists, critics, experts or certified authorities on any form of media.

Why? Because they always get it wrong, that’s why.

No, that’s unfair. Not exactly wrong...but usually safe. Like old theologians using tired, dubious interpretations of Biblical tracts to send some poor sixteenth-century unfortunate to the stake, critics stay true to their nerdy, scanty-bearded, pot-smoking forebears, naming the same old, same old as holy canon.

Look at any mass-market media list of the best books, films or albums ever made, and you’ll see the same old names and faces pop up.

Especially with albums. It’s practically a guarantee that the top-ten of any ‘best’ list, if not the top-five, will include at least half of the following: Sgt. Pepper or Revolver by The Beatles The Joshua Tree by U2 The Queen Is Dead by The Smiths The Velvet Underground and Nico by…well, work it out Now, all of these albums here listed contain some fine songs. Some very fine songs. But in La Merde’s Critical List, none of them would find a place. Why? Because I think I’m being daring and different to repudiate the likes of Q, when sites like Pitchfork have been doing their own uber-alternative (if equally clichéd) lists for years?

No. Because these albums are safe choices and, quite frankly, none are the best in the artist’s back catalogue. I'll go through each in turn.

Critics’ choice: Revolver/Sgt. Pepper. The La Merde choice: Rubber Soul.

Why: Because, firstly, there are no shit songs on Rubber Soul. None whatsoever. Whereas both Pepper and Revolver have at least a couple of dodgy ones. More than that, Rubber Soul is the ultimate bridge in the band’s career: in this case, The Beatles going from wry, moptopped Scousers to drug-assisted, wry, long-haired Scousers, capable of making the astonishing songs

that do, indeed, adorn both the critical favourites. In terms of influence, too, I’d argue that RS has done far more than the other two albums: few bands have made a full and decent career out of following the more psychedelic Beatles templates, but Rubber Soul arguably sets the pattern for about half of all interesting, intelligent guitarpop records since; whether you like it or not. And, hell, it has songs on it like Norwegian Wood and In My Life. You try writing gems like that by the time you’re twenty-four.

Critics’ choice: The Joshua Tree.

The La Merde choice: Achtung Baby.

Yeah, OK. Achtung Baby is at the top of a very few critical lists, and some people do think it’s the best U2 album. Those people are correct.

TJT has possibly the best threetrack opening salvo of any album, ever (though that’s highly debatable) but Achtung, in its entirety, is sheer brilliance. It contains The Fly, easily the best U2 single ever, which tore Bryan Adams from the top spot in good old 1991. Beauty, introspection, great tunes and huge balls-out musical jaggedness are offered throughout, and the album is clever and interesting without being pretentious. Seriously. Listen

to this and then say Bono is a twat.

Oh, OK, if you must, but you can’t say he’s not an irredeemable one.

Critics’ choice: The Queen Is Dead. The La Merde choice: Any other Smiths album.

There is no such thing as a bad Smiths album. It is an absolute scientific impossibility. But the one that is clearly the worst (and when I say worst, it’s still a good 8.5/10) is the one that gets the most bumming. Yes, TQID is brilliant, and for lesser bands it would indeed be their masterpiece. But it is not their best. The Smiths has the most edgy charm, the most consistent tone and showcases Morrissey’s dark humour the best. Meat Is Murder has the highest proportion of simply great songs (and even gets bonus points for knocking ‘The Boss’ off the number one spot in Britain).

Strangeways, Here We Come is, for over half its thirty-seven minutes, one of the most beautiful things to come out of Britain in the 1980s… scratch that, the entire last century.

Yes, it’s got a couple of duffers towards the end, but then TQID has its fair share, too. It also contains the best Smiths single never-to-be.

Stop Me If You Think You’ve Head This One Before. The one that the Hungerford murders stopped get-

ting released and Mark Ronson later mauled. That song had UK number five in the bag, but it was never to be, and that’s worth a big fuck-off. Buy and appreciate the entire Smiths back catalogue, and realise that they do not begin and end with their imaginings of Liz having copped it.

Critics’ choice: The Velvet Underground and Nico. The La Merde Choice: The Velvet Underground The great banana-y heroin-y onthe-edge 1967 LP that is The Velvet Undergound and Nico is a fantastic album. Or is it? When I first heard it aged 15, I was transfixed and there are undoubtedly hugely powerful songs on it. It’s been oft repeated that ‘not many people who bought VU&N, but everyone who did went out and formed a band’. Well, not many people bought the superior The Velvet Underground either, but perhaps it wasn’t the sort of record which immediately spawned a fuckload of new musical groups. As to why that is, I’m not exactly sure. It’s simply fantastic. What the group lost when John Cale left with his avant-garde and brilliantly technical musical skill, they gained melodically with the addition of Doug Yule. If I may paraphrase the Winehouse speaking in the NME Cool

List 2010 (which, by the way, is another list that is always all to fuck: I mean, Paul Weller number six for 2010? The man hasn’t been cool, relevant or interesting since 1995, and at the age of 52 should really know better about, well, everything). The Velvet Underground is the coolest record ever. Well, it’s certainly a contender. Ten alternately languid, beautiful, sexy, lyrically profound or simply fuckin’ top quality songs.

Now you probably shouldn’t take any notice of me. I have previously argued that Second Coming is superior to The Stone Roses when it’s equal at best (it’s a damn good album, though). And, apart from anything else, in writing this I’m being just as much of a wanker as the critics I’m slagging off (and please excuse my pretentiousness: this is student media, after all). But there are just so many cases where the critical acclaim is misdirected. The Kick Inside is so much better than Hounds of Love. Joni Mitchell has at least three albums better than Blue. Et cetera et cetera et cetera.

Yes, it’s all subjective. The moral of this story nevertheless is: nineteen times out of twenty, the critical pick is not the best. Go figure.

The Beatles: pleased their catalogue is on iTunes.

Politics14

G20 Summit fails to deliver concrete agreement Richard Herlihy Politics Writer The G20 talks held in Seoul earlier this month yielded little hope for multilateral action on aiding world economic recovery but did offer a weak commitment to preventing protectionism and so-called “currency wars”. An attempt to address trade imbalances was rejected – an issue especially important to Britain given its growing trade deficit.

Leaders of the world’s largest economies met to discuss trade relations amidst a dispute over China’s devaluation of its currency. Previously, China had been repeatedly accused by the United States of driving down the value of the Yuan in an attempt to boost its trade surplus, a tactic which makes its exports more affordable in foreign markets. Early talks in Seoul saw the US and China locked in disagreement. The G20 summit also came on the back of a recent move by the US towards a second round of quantitative easing, which will effectively create $600 billion (£375 billion) to buy long-term government bonds. American criticism of China has been undermined by this move since it also effectively devalues the dollar, potentially making its exports more competitive at the expense of other nations. The summit came amid fears of trade protectionism among large economies as a means to countering currency tinkering.

The G20 leaders did eventually agree to a watered-down statement, promising to refrain from competitive undervaluation of their currencies, as well as setting vague guidelines to prevent trade protectionism. In a measure which would benefit Britain, the USA also proposed to set a cap of four percent on national trade deficits, but this was blocked by China and Germany – Asia and Europe’s respective export powerhouses. Britain’s own trade deficit hit a record monthly high last September; it bought £8.7 billion more in goods and services from abroad than the ones it exported. Even the United States, known for its staggeringly large trade imbalance with China, received a welcome boost during the summer on the back of its highest exports since the 2008 recession.

In the Commons, David Cameron said that “important progress” had been made at the summit, though he faced criticism from the opposition. Labour’s deputy leader, Harriet Harman said that Cameron had been a spectator rather than a statesman, rendering a “missed opportunity” of a chance to fix the world economy. Replying, the Prime Minister suggested that a Labour government would have been isolated from other nations over Britain’s deficit: “Everyone else in the room was signing a communique about how we have to take early action on deficits.” Instead, he said that Harriet Harman would have been “locked in a room” with the Inter-

national Monetary Fund. Cameron went on to emphasise the vague agreements reached at the summit: “The G20 has been a vital forum in fighting to keep markets open. Increasing trade is the biggest boost and the biggest stimulus we can give to the world economy.”

The United States does, however, stand out as one country not committed to early action on deficits.

Rather than a drive to austerity, the US’s Federal Reserve has opted for the latest round of quantitative easing as a means to reducing government debt and increasing lending for the private sector, which might lead to improved economic growth and reduce unemployment. Obama had faced criticism from other leaders before the summit, including the UK, who said that this action will devalue the dollar – ailing the US’s own large trade deficit, but undermining exports for all other countries. But the alternative path of large spending cuts suggested and followed by other G20 members, particularly David Cameron, is similarly problematic. American cuts would inevitably reduce consumption, shrink its GDP and hurt the UK’s already lagging and vulnerable export sector.

Earlier this year, the UK’s exports to countries like Ireland and Greece, threatened by unprecedented national debt crises, plunged sharply – even in spite of the pound’s weak value versus the Euro.

The recent Irish bailout crisis particularly highlights Britain’s

“

Cameron was a spectator rather than a statesman, missing an important opportunity for Britain

weakness in trade as it emerged that Ireland – likely to see renewed cuts in spending in the near-future – accounts for a greater share of UK exports than China, Russia, Brazil and India combined.

The leaders’ G20 statement also referenced the coming UN Climate Change Conference in Cancún, pledging that they “will spare no effort to reach a balanced and successful outcome.” However, this reflects a reaffirmation of previous commitments on climate change – with nothing concrete agreed upon.

Jasper Inventor, a Greenpeace campaigner, commented: “The G20 climate agreement is meaningless rhetoric unless leaders agree to fund a climate-friendly economy with drastically reduced greenhouse gas emissions.”

Unsurprisingly, the issue of aid to low-income countries – those nations not directly represented at the world’s largest economic summit – was at the bottom of the agenda.

The G20 statement featured a vague pledge to support “inclusive, sustainable and resilient growth” in poor countries; the G20 leaders do, at least, commit to place the issue on the agenda for future summits.

Don’t hold your breath though; a previous pledge of $25 billion from G8 countries in 2005 has so far seen only $12 billion delivered.

Politics15

Monday November 29 2010 • gair rhydd • politics@gairrhydd.com

If you're happy and you know it...

Henry Davies takes a look at recent plans to instigiate an 'happiness measure' in Great Britain. What relevance will this have to a beleaguered country in urgent need of an economic moral boost?

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eficit, debt and GDP are all terms associated with the ‘R-word’: recession.

It’s easy to feel that politics at present is all about economic downturn, but a new government initiative to measure the mood of the public may put a new dimension on how achievements of a nation are seen.

Psychological and environmental well-being will be the main areas of our happiness put on tabs. It is believed that the UK will be one of the pioneering nations for this campaign, along with France and Canada, aiming to steal some limelight away from pre-existing measures of economic success, notably gross domestic product (GDP). This Thursday (November 25), the executive will give independent national statistician Jil Matheson the task of putting together questions suitable for the housing surveys that are already in practice, and may be coming through letter boxes nationwide as early as next spring.

Although she may be devising the questions on the survey, the government has insisted on a gauge of happiness to be present and a scale of how well one may be achieving his or her “life goals”. The nature of the survey may be similar to the crime survey, meaning it will be carried out four times a year.

As earlier mentioned, David Cameron was not alone in his pursuit to measure his country’s happiness.

Mr Cameron’s counterpart across the Channel, Nicolas Sarkozy, has taken the advice of two highly respected economists, Joseph Stiglitz and Amartya Sen, who have tried to persuade leaders to diverge away from the worldwide obsession with GDP - a means of measuring economic production and in turn pay more attention to sustainability and well-being.

Ironically, Mr Sarkozy plans to include such factors in his nation’s monitor of economic success. In addition, polls of subjective well-being are already in use by national statisticians in Canada but they are not official government documents.

John Helliwell, who is one of the Canadian statisticians concerned (a member of Canada’s National Statistics Council) has already communicated with the UK, said: "The UK plans are putting into action the two most important elements of the Stiglitz/Sen report: systematically measuring subjective well-being as part of a broader national accounting system, and using these data to inform policy choices."

However, it is hard not to criticise the idea itself as well as the executive’s timing or approach to the matter on hand. Firstly, the whole concept of the proposed plan may appear a little weak, given that

the UK is still not totally home and dry and living in infinite economic prosperity. Surely David Cameron and his administration should be looking towards more long term goals regarding the nation’s economy as well as its defence?

Second, asking the public to express their general happiness by putting pen to paper seems to be another hurdle; political scientists through the years have found difficulties in trying to equate subjective feelings into accurate results.

Asking somebody to rate their wellbeing on a scale of one to ten is all well and good, but it is not as definitive as the dreaded GDP scales across the globe. It will be very interesting to see how this is going to be received.

In regards to Mr Cameron’s timing, he might as well as just spoon feed jokes to Ed Miliband at the next Prime Minister’s Question Time. Sending out a national survey asking the electorate to rate their psychological and environmental well-being prior to hefty cuts across virtually all walks of life in Britain has to be viewed as some sort of shot in the foot.

On top of the cuts the whole initiative is not going to be free either, leaving us to ask if the money could be better spent elsewhere. There’s also the matter of enthusiasm; Britain has been a rather apathetic nation in recent years, maybe with the exception of June’s election, and more letters coming in the post might just be a waste of paper and money.

In fairness to the PM this is not a knee-jerk proposition. Back in 2006, and just five months after his victory to become leader of the Conservative Party, David Cameron stated that a gauge of the people’s well-being was “one of the central policies of our time”.

And Jil Matheson herself does not appear too daunted by the proposition either, claiming that “there is growing international recognition that, to measure national wellbeing and progress, there is a need to develop a more comprehensive view, rather than focusing solely on GDP”. Whether she will continue to be so accepting towards the scheme remains to be seen.

Although as the PM himself said at Millbank last Monday, “there’s more to life than money”; it’s not the first time such words have been spoken and perhaps this more optimistic take on politics may have an effect on the public, but just don’t bank on it.

16Politics

Monday November 29 2010 • gair rhydd • politics@gairrhydd.com.

Obama goes job hunting to India Ayushman Jamwal Politics Writer Still under the glare of the financial crisis, Barack Obama landed in India on November 6 2010 for a threeday visit to boost America’s export trade with the South Asian economic power and stimulate the American jobs market. The US President met with the Indian Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh, and other political and business leaders.

India is a $1 trillion dollar economy with a $1.2 billion consumer market, growing at an annual rate of 8-9% and projected to be one of the world’s five largest economies by 2020. It is the world’s largest democracy where citizens enjoy political, religious and press freedom. After the 1992 Indian market reforms, Indian citizens have embraced American culture through the proliferation of the domestic media and with the growth of a consumer culture. Every year, thousands of Indian citizens flock to the United States for higher education and work opportunities.

Geo-politically, since independence, India has maintained a foreign policy of non-alignment, using its deft diplomacy to establish trade interests with the European Union, the ASEAN bloc of South East Asian nations and Japan, without making any enemies. To battle the constant threat of terrorism, the nation has developed its intelligence sharing and rapid force deployment capabilities through its alliances with military powers like the US and Israel.

According to Srinath Raghavan, a senior fellow at the Centre for Policy Research in New Delhi: “India’s diplomatic success rests on its unassertive nature, which allows it to enjoy multiple diplomatic avenues besides making stark choices”.

With shared national interests and a strong presence in Asia, India is an apt nation for strong mutual links with the United States.

Through such a relationship, it can gain considerable economic and political momentum to join the big players of international politics.

During his visit, President Obama announced 20 deals worth $10 billion between American con-

glomerates and prominent Indian business houses, which will create over 50,000 jobs in the United States. They include: a purchase of 30 Boeing 737 commercial aircrafts

by SpiceJet, India’s low cost airline for $2.7 billion; a $750 million equipment sourcing plan from General Electric for the expansion of the Anil Ambani Group Reliance Power plant in Samalkot in the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh; and the purchase of 10 Boeing C17 strategic airlifters by the Indian Air force.

Obama called India a “model for agricultural development” and announced plans to initiate an ‘Evergreen revolution’ in the country by supporting its 400 million small farmers with US farming technology and expertise, namely advanced weather and crop forecasting technology used extensively in the US. He also included plans for US-Indian partnerships for food security projects in Africa, by linking US, Indian and African universities for knowledge sharing and innovation.

However, in the area of agricultural trade, the President was unsuccessful in getting the Indian government to reform its import tariffs to make the Indian market more open to US imports. Dr Manmohan Singh argued that the tariffs kept unemployment in the sector at low levels by keeping the domestic market in the hands of India’s vast farming community.

The strongest signals of growing trust between the two countries were shown when President Obama announced his pledge to reform US export controls and remove four Indian defence research organisations - the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), Bharat Dynamics Ltd. (BDL) and the Department of Atomic Energy, from the Entity List.

The list contains names of international organisations and individuals for which American businesses need specific licenses from the US Department of Commerce (DoC) before supplying dual use strategic technologies and materials.“Both of these steps will ensure that Indian companies seeking high-tech trade and technologies from America are treated the same as our closest al-

lies and partners”, said President Obama in his speech to the Indian Parliament.

By ending India’s technological isolation, the President announced US support to India’s entry into four prominent multinational export control organisations - the Nuclear Suppliers Group; the Missile Technology Control Regime; the Australia Group, an international coalition which oversees biological and chemical weapons trade regulations, and the Wassenaar Arrangement, a group of nations which govern the international trade of dual-use technology and conventional weaponry.

Most notably, Obama approved US support to India’s long standing quest to gain a permanent seat at the United Nations Security Council (UNSC). “The United States not only welcomes India as a rising global power, we fervently support it, and look forward to a reformed U.N. Security Council that includes India as a permanent member." said the US President. Both the Pakistan and Chinese governments have criticised the announcement, arguing that the move could disturb the balance of power in Asia.

President Obama holds considerable popularity in India, where his eloquence and vision of change during his presidential campaign kept people glued to the television screens. However, many Indian politicians and activists felt unhappy that he did not acknowledge the role of successive Pakistan governments in fostering terrorism in India. India suspended negotiations with the Pakistan government after the 26/11 Mumbai attacks by terrorists who were trained in Pakistan, which lead to the deaths of 160 people. In a press conference with Dr Manmohan Singh, President Obama said that Pakistan was a “strategically important country, not just for America, but for the world". He argued that it was in the interests of both India and Pakistan to resolve their issues through dialogue without US mediation. In a press statement, Sushma Swaraj, an Opposition leader in the Indian Parliament, stated that she was concerned that President Obama’s language regarding Pakistan could

give the impression that for the US “Pakistan is an ally and India a market.”

The US President has to tip-toe around India-Pakistan relations.

While India is a valuable South Asian ally, Pakistan is a strategic ally in NATO’s Afghanistan and counter terrorism operations.

Obama’s deft diplomacy had an interesting response of self-reflection in the Pakistan media. The Pakistani daily, The News, called President Obama’s acknowledgement of India as a global partner, a wake up call for Pakistan and highlighted the need for the country to reform its “confrontational” and militaristic foreign policy to rectify its international isolation. In an editorial titled ‘Reading Obama Right’, another Pakistani daily, The Express Tribune stated that, “The ease the world feels with India is owed to India's soft image which our ideology and our weak state situation do not allow us. The truth is that our hard ideological environment repels global capital as investors feel jittery visiting Pakistan."

It is unlikely that President Obama’s pledges will be fulfilled in the near future. Export reforms to favour dual use technology trade with India will be tough to rapidly implement as the President continues to deal with the political fallout of the midterm elections. Similarly, implementing UN reforms for expanding the UNSC has been an issue that has been dragging on for years with a lack of consensus between the permanent members over which country to induct first.

Moreover, Mr Obama’s pledge to India has given the signal to Brazil, Germany and Japan to lobby for permanent seats as well, which will further complicate the UNSC reform.I believe President Obama’s visit to India was a symbolic balancing act against China’s growing economic power in the region. China currently has the largest GDP in the world, and holds $800 billion of US debt and has an undervalued currency (the Yuan), which gives it a significant competitive edge in the global export market for tangible goods, which the US is aiming to breach. Pledging an international political VIP pass to India has been

seen as his way to gain Indian support within the G20 nations, particularly for his administration’s plan to reboot the American economy by pumping $600 billion into it from the Federal Reserve. The plan has sparked outrage amongst other G20 members, namely Brazil and Germany, who have cited the decision as “currency manipulation”, accusing the US of playing the Chinese game by using the stimulus to devalue the dollar to make export products cheaper and boost trade in the international market.

On a diplomatic level, India should rejoice at the political levers the United States has awarded it.

The symbolic value of American support will fare the nation well in its dealings with its neighbours and allies. With the looming Federal Reserve stimulus, the Indian economy has gained massive volumes of foreign capital as individuals and organisations invest in the nation’s lucrative economy to protect the current value of the dollar. India’s foreign exchange reserves exceeded $300 billion in the week ending on the 5th of November 2010. Moreover, with cheap Chinese exports, the Indian economy is gaining from the nation’s giant manufacturing sector, in areas of consumer goods, construction and information technology.

But India needs to mirror its international reputation and performance internally by tackling bureaucratic corruption, unemployment, illiteracy, poverty and urban degradation that plague the majority of the country. Indian society lacks a national consciousness, especially amongst the youth, and thus fails to activate the available levers to bring about social mobilisation.Though a lot of issues need to be resolved and streamlined, India is on the growth path. President Barack Obama’s praise for the nation and acknowledgement of its global strength has stirred a sense of national confidence within its citizenry. As India gets inducted into prominent international affairs, perhaps in time such confidence can catalyze and further propel already accelerating national prosperity.

Politics17

Monday November 29 2010 • gair rhydd • politics@gairrhydd.com

David Cameron makes a stand

The Prime Minister caused controversy in China recently by wearing a poppy. Sophie Gidley examines why.

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avid Cameron and four of his Cabinet Ministers caused controversy in China this month, after refusing Chinese official’s requests to remove their Remembrance Day poppies. For the British the poppy is a commemorative symbol worn during the month of November in recognition of the brave soldiers who lost their lives in World War I. For the Chinese, however, it is a reminder of humiliation, exploitation and one of the single greatest military defeats in their history: the Opium Wars.

Back in the early 19th century, the British caused great tension with this eastern province by importing large quantities of opium, which is sourced from poppies, into

the country against the wishes of the Chinese government. This instigated the First Opium War from 1839-42 and the Second Opium War fought from 1856-1860; the Chinese were no match for the technological and tactical British powers. As a result, the British gained trading rights and access to Chinese markets and the Chinese view this period of British imperialism in their history as preventative to their political and cultural development.

Opium addiction in China rose from two million in 1842 to 120 million by 1881 and thus Chinese humiliation at the time is understandable when aware of these appalling consequences. Yet it would still appear that these hostile sentiments continue to exist today.

It is alleged that Chinese officials

told Cameron and his ministers to remove their poppies before their welcome at Beijing’s Great Hall as they were deemed to be a reminder of such hostile Anglo-Chinese relations and thus highly offensive.

However, a British official stated: “we informed them that they mean a great deal to us and we should be wearing them all the same.” Even so, this has caused great dispute as to whether this was an act of British arrogance or of great nationalism. Cameron led his delegates to China with the intention of securing trade opportunities and influence. Yet this mirrors the same situation two centuries before; the British trying to persuade the Chinese to open trade relations with them despite the fact that Britain really has insufficiently attrac-

tive exports. Therefore, the poppy would have been a direct reminder of those times. It is encouraging that Mr Cameron is attempting to maintain business opportunities with China. However, some argue that the British cannot keep dictating matters to the Chinese if they are ever to share an equal relation.

Even so, we must also not forget that this was a war that ended two centuries ago and whilst it is obviously of significance to the Chinese ,the fact that Britain and China are establishing new relationships and attempting to strengthen existing ones is surely an indication that times have changed and moved on. Every country has shameful and embarrassing periods in their history, which most would rather forget, but in a modern era of in-

creasing globalisation where the boundaries of politics, economy and culture have become more fluid there needs to be a certain limit to which these hostilities can continue to exist. Britain cannot keep apologising and condoning actions which were conducted by generations centuries before. Whilst David Cameron must have had some sensitivity in approaching the subject and explaining the significance of the poppy to the Chinese officials it was right for him to stand by British sentiments. It is a symbol of our national pride. Let us hope that the Chinese understood this; trade relations continue to grow and improve, and that future history will instead speak predominantly of positive Anglo-Chinese relations.

Ireland's bailout is the result of a disastrous economic strategy Phil McNally takes a look at Ireland's economic situation and offers his views on the decision to bail them out

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leven months ago Ireland’s finance minister, Brian Lenihan, introduced a budget imposing severe cuts to public spending, saying that this was the only way to achieve his “number one priority” which was to “cut the deficit and get the public finances back in order.”

This decision was made in the aftermath of the biggest banking crisis in decades, one which had seen Ireland’s failed banks essentially nationalised and their debts become public debts. It was the hangover after fifteen years of partying, during which the Irish economy had boomed on the back of a property boom and investment in the country by international finance, fuelled by deregulation and corporate tax cuts. Unfortunately for the Irish people, they were to suffer the effects of the hangover whilst those responsible were bailed out with taxpayers’ money. Not only was this decision morally reprehensible, it

has had dire consequences for the economy which have necessitated the current bailout from the International Monetary Fund and the European Union.

The cuts included severe cuts in wages and many public sector job losses. Whilst the argument for cutting spending in order to cut the deficit looks sensible superficially, public spending was not the primary cause for the deficit and high levels of debt-the bank bailouts and loss of tax revenues is the real problem. The recession caused by the banking collapse and the ensuing recession, combined with the collapse of Ireland’s main industries, finance and property, were the reasons for Ireland’s deficit. Anyone applying logic to this situation would therefore conclude that since public spending didn’t cause the deficit, then cutting public spending wouldn’t solve it. They would conclude that with the shrinking of the economy being to blame for the deficit, the solution will lie in promoting economic growth. Sadly,

the staggeringly incompetent government of Brian Cowen’s Fianna Fáil, propped up by the Greens, has proven itself incapable of rational economic thought.

The cuts had predictable effects: with people having less money, they spent less, causing the economy to slow, and tax receipts to fall. The government spent more on unemployment benefit whilst receiving less in taxes, and so government borrowing increased, leading Ireland to the state it finds itself in today.

The Irish have now given in to the pressure to accept a bailout. The EU is rightly worried at the impact on the Eurozone if Ireland were to default on its debts, and is intent on preventing the crisis spreading to the other “PIIGS” countries - Portugal, Italy and Spain being in similarly high levels of debt. The plan being drawn up is that the loan, which will come from the European Financial Stability Mechanism and the IMF, will be dependent on further cuts in spending,

cuts of at least 15bn euros. There is speculation that Ireland’s 12.5% rate of corporation tax, which has irritated other Eurozone members for attracting investment towards Ireland, will be raised. This has provoked predictable squeals of outrage from business, and opposition from the government. What is certain though is that the Irish people are going to suffer even more.

The strategy of the EU/IMF is to shrink the economy further, create higher levels of unemployment, lower wages, in order to make the Irish economy more competitive, a process they call “internal devaluation”. This policy is almost certain to fail. Ignoring the fact that taking demand out of the economy has led to this situation, and that continuing to do so will undoubtedly make the situation worse, it is extremely foolish to expect business to invest in a country with huge cuts in infrastructure and a workforce that is being failed by cuts in education. Whilst Ireland needs bailing out, the strategy needs to change.

Ireland needs a loan with a low rate of interest, and then it needs to promote growth in the economy through fiscal stimulus.

It is important to note that the UK is not in a dissimilar situation.

The Chancellor informs us that his “number one priority” is cutting the deficit, and that he will do it through cuts in spending. He, like the Irish, ignores the fact that the deficit is caused mainly through loss of tax revenues, not excessive spending (which never rose above the Major government’s levels until the banking crisis, and government debt was cut significantly from 1997 to 2007). He tells us that he has the support of the IMF and the EU in his plans, forgetting that 11 months ago, so did Ireland. He is replicating their economic strategy, whilst expecting different results.

George Osborne once praised the Irish economy, saying “they have freed their markets... and created a dynamic economy. They have much to teach us, if only we are willing to learn.”

19

Science

We need more than an accord

After the failure of the COP15 climate conference in Copenhagen last year, Science investigates the next UN meeting, labelled COP16, starting in Mexico this week.

Christina Tran Science Correspondent An unprecedented ‘Sky Tsumani’ has inundated the streets of Pakistan; cyclone Sidr aroused the ruin of homes and harvest across Bangladesh and rises in sea level exudes the promise for future climatic catastrophe: a storm is coming and the most vulnerable countries are the stage for nature’s Armageddon.

The UN climate conferences are expected to be the springboard in the battle to suppress the effects of climate change but the presence of politics ensures an incessant circulation of debate and discussion.

By the end of Cop 15 in December 2009, after eight drafts of the Copenhagen Accord and all-day deliberation between 115 world leaders, a near consensus to avoid any global temperature rise above 2C˚ had been settled - yet there was an absence of any legally binding agreement and targets on global carbon emission reductions were dropped.

Cop 15 was nothing short of a washout. Mankind is undoubtedly playing a game of 'Russian Roulette with climate change’- and it may well be our children staring down the barrel of the revolver.

Since the 19th Century, the average global temperature has risen by 0.8C˚ and at the rate at which carbon emissions are growing, an additional rise of 0.2C˚ is inevitable.

Once we pass an increase of 2 to 3C˚, Mother Nature kicks in with full throttle: the loss of low-lying coastal regions to rising sea level, irreversible melting of ice sheets,

expanding deserts and the promise of Cyclone Sidr’s return.

Lumumba Di Aping, the G77 group negotiator for developing countries, said that the past negotiations at Cop 15 ‘had the lowest level of ambition’. If Cop 16 fails to come up with an agreement this December, small island states - the most vulnerable to rising sea levels, are basically signing their death warrants. Time is running out.

Once we pass an increase of 2 to 3C˚, Mother Nature kicks in with full throttle Yet delegates at this year’s conference have a large barrier to knock down, and the contrasting economic situation between developing and developed nations mean that further deliberation is set to continue.

By the end of Cop 15, any incentive aimed at withstanding a maximum rise of 1.5C˚ was discounted and all hope to settle an eighty per cent cut in global carbon emissions by 2050 had diminished.

By delaying action, rich countries have condemned millions of the world’s poorest to loss of life as climate change accelerates. The disastrous outcome is on developed nations.

A non-governmental organisation underlines the fundamental impediment against any driving

force at the Copenhagen conference: the clash between the developed and developing worlds.

The Kyoto protocol pinpointed the necessity first and foremost for industrialised countries to reduce greenhouse gas emissions; those of the developing world were exempt from cuts. Yet the Copenhagen conferences place this distinction under question.

Of further concern are countries such as China and India playing industrial development catch-up; they too are becoming leading culprits of man-made climate change.

If we are to tackle this on an international scale, to tackle united is a must.

Obama claims that ‘everybody must recognise that we all need to move together.’ The desire for national affluence to sustain economic power, and the dread of its decline, is palpable among many nations of our industrialised world.

Small island states are in urgent need for preventative action against impending natural disaster; but the reluctance to cut emissions, and hence stagnate economic growth, is inevitable among many industrialised countries.

As the leader of the most commercialised nation, Obama had the potential to take the driver’s seat at the Cop 15 talks. If the US economy was more driven in the cut down of fossil fuels, the EU, China and India would step up with little hesitation.

Yet Obama should not take full responsibility for America’s sense of inertia to manmade climate change; the US senate was at the forefront of America’s dismissal of

the Kyoto Protocol and rejection of Obama’s ‘cap-and-trade’ bill on US emission cuts.

Even his offer of a 17% reduction requires congressional approval.

On the other side of the coin, China was blamed for an attitude of torpor by the US; they toyed with the Copenhagen negotiations to prevent long term industrial reductions that would stifle any growth to their economy.

As long as the state of global politics maintains its hold on the issue of climate change, and their negotiations take the typical nature of further delay, the calamitous rise to 3C˚ is probable by the end of the century.

As temperatures rise, man will fall to its knees at the face of an enraged and heated nature. The collapse of whole communities, as villages become submerged by unstoppable floods and regions struggle through extreme and abrupt drought, means the decline in our population will pass by neither quickly nor painlessly. It will be the most vulnerable countries that will be hit first and hit the hardest.

No wonder, therefore, that a sense of desperation was expressed by the low lying island states at Cop 15. Their desperate cries for urgent action was left dismissed and unanswered; a desperation heard only too well by those in Pakistan and Bangladesh already experiencing devastation.

The climate change conference of December 2009 aimed to launch a treaty that would unite the leading nations in the combat against global carbon emissions.

The reality was a struggle against nations in economic competition; China refused to see stagnation to their growing industry; the poorest and most vulnerable of states demanded greater action for the preservation of their communities, and the US took the role of the backseat driver.

The game of Russian roulette has persisted for far too long; Cop 16 is under pressure to create results before the trigger pulls, the bullet fires and our children are left helpless in the face of nature’s devastating potential. In the words of Ban Ki Moon, UN Secretary-General: ‘You hold the fate of future generations in your hands. It will be your legacy for all time’

Editor’s note: To coincide with the COP16 negotiations, there will be two public events this Thursday in the Beverton theatre, Main building. A public discussion starts at 6pm, and at 7pm we are joined by Professor Hugh Compston who will speak on the national politics of climate change. All are welcome.

Have your say on our website: gairrhydd.com

Taf-od

21

Llythyr Ynghylch Llenyddiaeth Saunders, Pechod a Dewi Prysor...

Cynan Llwyd Taf-Od Gyda chyhoeddi nofel newydd Dewi Prysor sy'n dwyn y teitl Lladd Duw a'r ‘adfywiad’ y mae’r nofel Gymraeg yn ei mwynhau ar hyn o bryd, rwy'n gofyn i fy hun yn aml, beth tybed sy’n gyfrifol am y llwyddiant?

Yn sicr, mae'r nofelau’n llawn cyffro ac y maent yn portreadu byd, teimladau a digwyddiadau sy'n gwbl wahanol i fydoedd Kate Roberts a John Rowlands. Gwn fod yna ddegawdau rhyngddynt, ond oes yna fwy iddi na hynny?

Yn 1927 anfonwyd llythyr at W.J Gruffydd - golygydd Y Llenor - dan y teitl Llythyr Ynghylch Catholigiaeth. Awdur y llythyr oedd neb llai na Saunders Lewis ei hun.

Ynddo mae'r ‘Pabydd Efengylaidd’ yn lambastio crefydd sentimental gwag yr oes, dyma rai o'i eiriau ; 'nad oes gennyf gydymdeimlad â thueddiadau Moderniaeth Anghydffurfiol Cymru heddiw, nac â Christnogaeth sentimental llyfrau fel The Life of Jesus gan Middleton Murry.'

Er nad wyf yn Babydd, rwy'n rhannu'r un olwg efengylaidd ar Gristnogaeth ac felly tueddaf i gytuno a Saunders - yn rhy aml gwelwn arweinwyr crefyddol, diwinyddion a darlithwyr mewn Prifysgolion a Cholegau yn gwisgo Christnogaeth a gwirioneddau Beiblaidd mewn gwisg sy'n ddiethr i'r hyn sydd i'w ganfod yn y Beibl.

Fel dywed Saunders ; 'Nid oes gennym ni ond heretigiaid...haerant oll eu bod yn Gristnogion. Ni wrthod-

ant Grist fel y dylai gwr bonheddig. Rhoddant arno sarhad gwaeth ganwaith na'i wrthod - llurguniant ef. Aeth Crist yn ddarn clai yn eu dwylo, a throi ef yn weledydd, yn athrylith, yn broffwyd, yn artist, yn garwr, yn ddyngarwr, yn 'Fodryb Sali' ffair y beirdd.' Rhyw syniadau ac athroniaeth wedi'i greu gan ddyn yn hytrach na Duw sy'n cael ei ddysgu, ac felly annigonol ydynt ym mhrofiad yr unigolyn o ddod o hyd i foddhad a bodlonrwydd llwyr.

Ond nid diwinydda yw fy unig nôd yma, yn hytrach, trafod llenyddiaeth.

Eglura Saunders yn ei lythyr mai 'gwan iawn a disylwedd yw'r syniad am "bechod" yng Nghymru heddiw,' am fod y Cymry wedi dilyn syniadau'r athronydd Rousseau (er yn ddiarwybod iddynt efallai) yn hytrach na emynyddiaeth ddirdynnol a phersonol Pantycelyn. Wrth edrych ar lenyddiaeth modern a chynnyrch rhamantwyr ei gyfnod sylweddolodd nad oeddent 'yn eneidwyr, ac oblegid na wyddant nemor ddim am eneideg nac am ymholiad, ni wyddant ychwaith am bechod.'

Ac i Saunders 'colled i lenyddiaeth yw colli pechod.' Ceisiodd Saunders rhoi lle i bechod yn llenyddiaeth ein iaith gyda chyhoeddi ei nofel Monica yn 1930, ond oer iawn bu'r croeso iddo gan yr Anghydffurfwyr Rhyddfrydol nad oedd yn hoff o bechod.

Cytunaf â Saunders wrth iddo ddweud mai colled i lenyddiaeth yw colli pechod. Pechod, neu pechu, yn Feiblaidd, yw'r peth mwyaf na-

turiol i ddyn, ac felly bydd trafod a darlunio'r peth yma yn arwain at greu cynnyrch real, byw a chyffrous. Dyma pam yn fy marn i gwelwyd adfywiad gref ym myd y nofel Gymraeg.

Mae Saunders yn llygad ei le wrth ddweud 'anffawd fawr i lenyddiaeth Gymraeg ein hoes ni yw nad oes gennym sgrifenwyr gwrth-Gristnogol.' Bellach, mae'r ysgrifennwyr yma wedi cyrraedd - Mihangel Morgan, William Owen

Roberts, Llwyd Owen, Gareth Miles a Dewi Prysor. Awduron dawnus sy'n rhydd i ysgrifenu fel y mynnent heb gaethiwed diwinyddiaeth gwan rhyddfrydiaeth. Nid yw'r unigolion yma'n gaeth i foeseg gymdeithasol eu hoes. Does yna ddim crefydda sentimental yn eu ffrwyno.

Awduron sydd yn gwbod beth yw pechod ac sy'n ei defnyddio i greu darnau o lenyddiaeth dirdynnol a chyffrous ydynt.

Ond mae hyn yn adlewyrchu'n

hoes wrth gwrs. Cymdeithas Gristnogol oedd un Saunders, ac efallai dyna pam bu ymateb chwyrn yn erbyn gweithiau megys Monica a Phechod gan Gwenallt. Cymdeithas seciwlar wrth-Gristnogol yw ein cymdeithas ni - cymdeithas sy'n rhoi rhyddid i bobl leisio'i barn ac ysgrifennu fel y mynnent.

Er nad yw pechod yn dda i enaid dyn, mae'n waredwr i lenyddiaeth.

Want to write?

We're always looking for contributors so come to our meetings every Monday at 5pm on the fourth floor of the Students' Union

Letters 22 Comments from the week’s news, opinion, features and sport at www.gairrhydd.com US Midterms in Review: A House in Disarray Malematters --Re: “The Democrats have made an enormous contribution in terms of legislation over the past four years, including the passage of healthcare reform, the Lily Ledbetter Fair Pay Act…” Nothing has worked to close the gender wage gap — not the 1963 Equal Pay for Equal Work Act, not Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, not the 1978 Pregnancy Discrimination Act, not the 1991 amendments to Title VII, not affirmative action, not diversity… Nor will the Ledbetter Fair Pay Act and the Paycheck Fairness Act work.

The wage gap will stubbornly persist because pay-equity advocates continue to ignore this: Despite the 40-year-old demand for women’s equal pay, millions of wives still choose to have no pay at all. In fact, according to Dr. Scott Haltzman, author of “The Secrets of Happily Married Women,” stayat-home wives, including the childless, constitute a growing niche.

“In the past few years,” he says in a CNN August 2008 report at http://tinyurl.com/6reowj, “many women who are well educated and trained for career tracks have decided instead to stay at home.” (“Census Bureau data show that 5.6 million mothers stayed home with their children in 2005, about 1.2 million more than did so a decade earlier….” at http://tinyurl.com/ qqkaka. Perhaps more women are staying at home because feminists and the media have told them relentlessly for years that women are paid less than men in the same jobs, and so why bother working if they’re going to be penalized and humiliated for being a woman.)

As full-time mothers or homemakers, stay-at-home wives earn zero. How can they afford to do this while in many cases living in luxury? Because they’re supported by their husband.

If millions of wives can accept no wages and live as well as their husbands, millions of other wives can accept low wages, refuse to work overtime, refuse promotions, take more unpaid days off, avoid uncomfortable wage-bargaining (http://preview. tinyurl.com/23qycq)— all of which lowers women’s average pay.

They can do this because they are supported by husbands who must earn more than if they’d remained single — which is how MEN help create the wage gap. (If the roles were reversed so that men raised the children and women raised the income, men would average lower pay than women.

By the way, the next Equal Occupational Fatality Day is in 2020.

The year 2020 is how far into the future women will have to work to experience the same number of work-related deaths that men experienced in 2009 alone. See http:// tinyurl.com/yab2blv United we stand Commentator --Around 5000 people demonstrated at Millbank Tower Tory HQ, as one can see from this youtube footage (that strangely the media has been reluctant to show) the single moron in question was widely booed and reprimanded by the crowds of demonstrators http://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=qAGNJMQD1rA The smashing of a few windows of Tory HQ however was a perfect-

ly ethical response to the smashing up of society and the country by the destruction of the welfare state, cuts that are not neccessary but ideologically driven that will destroy the lives and futures of millions.

We should also note that generally it is police who murder protestors with impunity from Blair Peach to Ian Tomlinson – but Jonathan, of course, never expresses outrage at that!

Interestingly the occupation of Millbank Tower seems to have attracted applause from unexpected quarters – 56% of Daily Star readers polled said they supported the action at Tory HQ, A quick trawl through the Sunday Papers revealed columnists like Suzanne Moore in the Mail on Sunday siding with the students at Millbank.

Because most working class people know what is at stake – in S.Wales we see the legacy of the last tory government – coal replaced with heroin, jobs with despair, crime instead of community.

Let’s hope that this is the beginning of Greek and French-style action on the streets of Britain.

Great if the Student President would send a message of solidarity to the hundreds of students who have gone into Occupation, staging a sit-in at Sussex University against cuts.

It’s these kind of tactics: More local marches, mass-walk outs, pickets of Jenny Willott MP (LibDem) office – to show that we won’t stand for her betrayal of election commitments and failure to state unequivocally if she is against student fees and finally building for a mass occupation – alongside public meetings and debates to put forward the ideological arguments against cuts – that show the way forward!

Commentator --The NUS (which for the last decade has dragged its feet over the fight for education) should also call another national demo to build momentum for the campaign early in the new year – I am sure that next time we could get 100,000 on the streets.

The local student union needs to sharpen the axe too – a one off national demo is not good enough, we need local actions – when humanities courses were massively cut in the lifelong learning centre with accompanying job cuts, the students and tutors got barely any support from the SU. Each time you let the unelected, mostly unaccountable Vice-Chancellor (a fat cat who earns almost 300 grand a year) get away with attacking courses, you make the next cut easier to get away with.

Adam Troth --Let me start by agreeing with Jonathan (which isn’t something that happens too often) in reiterating the importance of peaceful protest and the rule of law. The scenes we saw last week were a complete disgrace, and undermined the main protest march which passed off peacefully.

The comments made by Sam Coates could be seen as irresponsible by some, but I will focus more on “Commentator” (like the rioting students, please unmask yourself and show us who you are), and his/her comments that smashing windows of the HQ of a legal, legitimate and democratically elected political party is somehow “ethical”.

Spare a thought for the hundreds of people who were working inside, many of whom had

absolutely nothing to do with the Tory party, who were terrorised and inconvenienced by the rioting and vandalism. Think of the scarce taxpayer’s money which will no doubt be used to pay for the damages.

If the moron who thought he was being clever by lobbbing a fire extinguisher off the top of the building was so roundly jeered and booed by fellow demonstrators, then why on earth did they not hand him into the police straight away? Didn’t they realise how damaging these kind of actions can be?

I think both Commentator and Jonathan have thrown the word “murder” around a little too lightly when discussing these kinds of incidents. I agree entirely that the actions of the police in the Tomlinson case and many others were disproportionate and unacceptable, and that those involved have not been hold to account. I daresay Jonathan will echo these points, although you can hardly blame him for not mentioning it initially.

As for these cuts being “ideologically driven and unnecessary”, regardless of whether or not this is true (I for one do not think it is), I haven’t seen anyone in the Labour Party or on the Left in general propose a viable alternative. It’s very easy to stamp your feet and moan about how horribly unfair this all is. It’s a lot tougher to actually come up with a viable alternative and put it into practice.

I will end though by agreeing with the comments about the VC being unaccountable and exorbitantly overpaid. Besides his address at the start of my first year, and half-heartedly reading out my name at Graduation, I really can’t think of any other contributions he made to my life at Cardiff. They may as well give Lee Evans the job.

www.gairrhydd.com NEWS, LIVE DEBATE, FEATURES, SPORT, QUENCH, EXCLUSIVE CONTENT AND MORE

Away on a placement?

Heading abroad?

In bed with a hangover?

Societies 24 STAR students shine Bianca London Societies Editor STAR society is a part of a national organisation supporting refugees in the UK and worldwide. STAR is also active in campaigning for the rights of asylum seekers and refugees.

With so much negative press, the society aim to raise awareness amongst students about the real situation for refugees in Britain.

This week I spoke to society member Maddi Maxwell Hart about her STAR experience and the rewards of being a member of such a proactive society.

Maddi was originally unfamiliar with STAR but after stumbling across their stall at the societies fayre and speaking to committee members about what it entailed she soon became keen to get involved. ‘It's an organisation that you can really get stuck into and actually see the effects rather than just be another somebody on the periphery of a large charity.’

Maddi was torn between the various charity work offers but felt that STAR stood out because of its integration of asylum seekers and refugees into our community. ‘This was something I could associate with after integrating with various

societies on my year abroad it provided a chance to work with real people in everyday situations following events that had forced them to flee’ explains Maddi.

STAR operate a drop-in centre in Cardiff giving free English lessons to asylum seekers and refugees.

This provides the opportunity for asylum seekers to learn English whilst getting to know people in their new community. ‘I have been teaching a man from Iraq English over the last two months. To see him learning week by week is brilliant. He is so unfamiliar with the English alphabet that adapting to English signs, pack-

aging and conversations is a real challenge for him.’

Maddi attended the STAR conference this weekend which aimed to gather all the national branches of STAR to discuss their progress, new campaigns and deals going on throughout the country.

STAR not only aims to provide asylum seekers and refugees with a base of support but also to change the views that the British public hold towards them. ‘Asylum seekers and refugees are not illegal immigrants or people who steal British jobs and council houses. They are people who have had to flee their country for fear or perse-

cution or discrimination and are passed through a tough system when and if they arrive in the UK. They barely have any rights and can live in constant worry that their refugee application will be denied’ says Maddi.

Maddi feels that STAR provides her with the opportunity to see a different, darker side of Cardiff with uncertainties that we as British citizens will surely never face.

STAR have worked extremely hard to help enrich the lives of so many and a huge congratulations goes to Maddi and her society for their fantastic voluntary work.

Monday Nov 29 Timothy Bible Study Group: Weekly Bible Study -Nelson Mandela Room, 7pm

People and Planet: Weekly Meeting -Location online, 7.30pm

Tuesday Nov 30 Duke of Edinburgh: Training and Pub Golf Room 1.25, Main Building, 7.30pm

Wednesday Dec 1 Pole Dancing Society: Weekly Session -Cathays Community Centre, 11.45am

Rock Foundation: Weekly Meeting -Nelson Mandela Room, 7pm

Above: LMS in action at Battle of the Bands 2010

Live Music Society showcase their talent

Thursday Dec 2 LGBT+: Silent Auction -Bar Icon

Green Party Society: COP16 Conference -Main Building, 7pm

Arch Soc: Research Seminar -Room 4.45 Humanities, 1pm

Katie Southam Reporter Cardiff University’s Live Music Society are celebrating the success of many of their acts.

LMS showcase the best gigs and bands that Cardiff has to offer at their regular open mic night, Kickback, at the Old Library giving talented musicians the chance to shine.

The society have recently celebrated the success of the bands that they have supported since day one. 'Whytel' are set for stardom after playing at last year’s Summer Ball and winning the crown of Battle of the Bands 2010. Having already played at the Southwest Youth Festival in September, the band are about to embark on their anticipated London tour.

'Tidal' are another great sensation and

took the Battle of the Bands title back in 2009.

They have supported the likes of Spiridion and Young Rebel Set at Cardiff Barfly, and have also performed at the Summer Ball alongside Feeder and Calvin Harris.

The hugely successful 'Los Campesinos', who have been running for 15 years now, played their very first gig at Fun Factory in the SU. The band's bassist, Ellen Campesinos, is an ex-executive of LMS and said “we are really glad Live Music Society and Fun Factory are still running.”

Other achievements include, Three Pairs of Shoes and Goodtime Boys who are all set for stardom.

Congratulations to all of the successful acts. If you are interested in joining LMS visit their campus groups page.

Afro Caribbean Society: Sunglasses at Night -CF10, 8.30pm

Friday Dec 3 Chaos Society: Film Night -Seminar rooms 1 and 2, Trevithick Building, 7pm

Saturday Dec 4 Erasmus: Bath Day Trip Back of SU, 9am

To feature an event or article email societies @gairrhydd.com

If you would like to join a Society, or see a full list of opportunities, visit: http://groups.cardiffstudents.com/societies/home

Puzzles

25

sudoku.

EASY

comic.

crossword.

HARD

Across

Down

8. Yachting cap (4) 9. A renunciation of powers (10) 10. A posture with arms and legs spread about (6) 11. Outraging (8) 12. List of choices (4) 13. The sound element of a film (10) 17. Swing music (4) 18. Chose (5) 19. Confined (4) 20. Self-centered (10) 22. A source of seepage (4) 23. The words of an opera (8) 27. Very sad (6) 28. A moderately quick tempo (10) 29. Not quiet (4)

1. Puzzling (10) 2. Something that ties or binds (8) 3. A measure used in cooking (10) 4. Lyric poems (4) 5. Reflected sound (4) 6. "Dracula" author (6) 7. Groan (4) 14. Speak (5) 1 5. Commitment (10) 16. Communicable (10) 19. Tangible (8) 21. Girdle (6) 24. Indolent (4) 25. Shredded (4) 26. Feed bag contents (4)

by Daniel Judd

Listings

Monday

Tuesday

27 Wednesday Thursday

29th Nov

30th Nov

1st Dec

2nd Dec

THE LASH, Solus, £3.50, 9.30pm The Lash promises all the best in chart and cheese, which doesn't really sound all that tempting to be honest. But if you're a sporting LAD then it's most definitely the place to be.

LIVE MUSIC, The Taf, FREE, 8pm Pretty much what it says on the tin really.

Live music. In the Taf. They had a pretty good line-up last week, so expect great things from this night.

FUN FACT TREE, Solus, FREE, 9pm Fun Factory is an institution among Cardiff students and you simply must check it out.

Playing the very best alternative music, and with various cheap drinks promotions, you're sure to have the best night of the week here and I'm not even biased. It's a staple. Tonight is a special Quench live, LMS and Xpress Radio collaboration featuring performances from Three Pairs of Shoes, Studio Arcade Xpress DJ's, with more to be confirmed.

LATE NIGHT LIVE, Ten Feet Tall, FREE, 9pm Every week, 10 Feet Tall selects the finest in local, new and up-and-coming bands to perform in the Rock Room, with 50s and 60s garage rock in the bar.

HANG COOL TOUR: MEAT LOAF, CIA, £48, 7.30pm It's probably worth going to this just to watch the aging rocker sing 'Bat out of Hell'. But then again, for almost 50 squids, probably not...

JUST DANCE, Clwb, £3, 10pm Just Dance returns every Tuesday night at Clwb Ifor Bach with one simple mission...to get you dancing all night long. A mixture of modern day pop, rock and R&B thrown together with some cracking blasts from the past...cheap entry, cheap drinks prices and great, GREAT tunes.

COMEDY CLUB, CF10, £2, 8pm It's Tuesday night, and what could be better than getting together with some friends and watching live comedy? Comedy Club selects the finest young talent on the comedy circuit and brings them directly to your union for a stupidly cheap ticket price. This week the line-up looks amazing as usual, with performances from Stephen Carlin and Nat Luurtsem. Stephen has written and performed two solo shows at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, recently supported Stewart Lee and Stephen Merchant on their national tours and appeared in Stewart Lee Presents The Ten Best Stand-ups in the World Ever. You're guaranteed a good night at Comedy Club.

See you there.

LISTEN UP, Clwb, £3, 9pm Listen Up has become an institution within an institution. Everybody loves Clwb. Everybody loves Listen Up. Playing a mix of motown, funk, indie and pop among three floors of cheap bars and trendy kids, this is the place to be every Wednesday.

JAZZ AT DEMPSEYS, Dempseys, £5, 9pm Music ranges from piano or guitar trio, saxophone or trumpet quartet, quartet with vocals to big band. Hear jazz standards made famous by the likes of Miles Davis, Ella Fitzgerald, and Nina Simone, as well as original tunes.

Saturday

Sunday

3rd Dec

4th Dec

5th Dec

PETER ANDRE, CIA, £28.50, 7pm London-born, Aussie-based pop singer with the famous six-pack. I'm not sure how he's going to string out his whole two hit singles into a night-long performance, but I'm prepared to be proven wrong. Now, I love wailing along to Mysterious Girl as much as the next person, but for almost £30, the prospect suddenly doesn't seem as worth it. But if you have nothing better to do on a Friday night, and if Boombox is sold out, then maybe this will be a good laugh. Needless to say, I won't be seeing you there.

COME PLAY, Solus, £3, 10pm A safe bet for a Saturday night. If none of the other events do it for you, head to the Union for guaranteed good music and cheap drinks. Not the most imaginative of nights out, but you'll be sure to have a good time.

And who said that being able to predict the playlist down to the very last minute was a bad thing?

SCROOGE, New Theatre, £9-32, 7.30pm Have a cultured evening with everyone's favourite Dickens classic. The perfect winter treat, Scrooge is a heartwarming family story with stunning sets and costumes, specially created illusions by magician Paul Kieve (acclaimed for the magic effects in the Harry Potter films), and a fantastic musical score. Your holiday season wouldn't be complete without this family favourite. And who can resist the wintery charm of Ebenezer and his ghosts. So get ready to embark on a magical theatrical experience unlike any other in the international smash-hit musical sensation Scrooge!

C.Y.N.T, Clwb, £4, 10pm Expect big queues as ravers descend for their dose of electro, techno, dubstep and drum 'n' bass. Advance queue-jump tickets from c-y-n-t.com. This is the only legitimate thing to do on your Thursday night.

LAURA MARLING, The Glee Club, £15, 7pm This woman is officially amazing, and her voice is truly beautiful. Go to this, don't even consider doing anything different.

Friday BOOMBOX, Solus £3, 10pm Playing an eclectic mix of electro, funk, drum 'n' bass, hip hop, dubstep and breaks with a turntablist twist. Featuring dance classics, chart remixes and old school classics. Expect to hear Pendulum, Calvin Harris, Dr Dre, David Guetta, Major Lazor, A Skillz, High Contrast, Prodigy and much more. To be fair, it's the cheapest Friday night this side of the bridge, fulfilling all your student needs and perfect for bringing those visiting mates too.

Go ahead kids, BOOM YOUR BOX.

BOUNCE, Walkabout, £4, 9pm If you really, honestly, have nothing better to do... actually, no, even that isn't a valid excuse. No reason for going to Walkabout is acceptable in my eyes. Okay, so perhaps you have to go once in your university career, but I know that the debauchery and filth will put you off going again. If you have any personal morals, that is.

HAVE A SUNDAY ROAST The Taf does a wicked, and cheap Sunday roast - as do the CAI. Have a lie in, and then get some classic comfort food to help beat Saturday night's hangover or stave off the end of the weekend blues.

10 FEET TALL SUNDAY SOCIAL, 10 Feet Tall, FREE, 8pm A brand new night featuring Greg Ramshackle and Steve French, whoever the hell they are. However, if you have nothing better to do on a Sunday night and fancy heading out for two-for-one cocktails, perhaps give this a go.

THE BIG SUNDAY RECOVERY PROJECT, CAI, FREE, 12pm What’s the Sunday project ? It’s a regular’s social gathering to end the week. You get together over a late Sunday Roast or just laze around with fellow hung-over friends on the Sofas. Enjoy a Sunday ‘Institution’, weekly - Squeaky Hill Pub Quiz are back.

The only quiz that provides you with a general all round work out, utilising the physical, mental and creative parts of your brain that other pub quizzes just can’t reach! It's free to play, and there's loads of exciting prizes to be won.

Venues Students’ Union, Park Place, 02920 814456 www.cardiffstudents.com ◆ IV Lounge, Neuadd Meirionydd, Heath Park 02920 744948 ◆ Clwb Ifor Bach, 11 Womanby Street 02920 232199 www.clwb.net ◆ Barfly, Kingsway, Tickets: 08709070999 www. barflyclub.com/cardiff ◆ Metros, Bakers Row www.clubmetropolitan.com ◆ CAI, Park Place 02920 412190 ◆ Buffalo Bar, 11 Windsor Place www. myspace.com/wearebuffalobar ◆ Chapter Arts Centre, Market Road, Canton 02920 304400 www.chapter.org ◆ Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff Bay 0870 0402000 www.wmc.org. uk ◆ The New Theatre, Park Place 02920 878889 www.newtheatrecardiff.co.uk ◆ The Sherman Theatre, Senghennydd Road 02920 646900 www.shermantheatre.co.uk ◆ Cardiff International Arena, Mary Ann Street 02920 224488 ◆

29

Sport

We speak to Dan Carter, Sonny Bill Williams, Jimmy Cowan and Graham Henry in the heat of the Autumn series Lucy Morgan Sports Editor The All Blacks arrived in Cardiff on the final leg of their autumn tour and on the brink of a fourth Grand Slam against the Northern Hemisphere teams.

Sport spoke to members of the squad about what they can take from the 2010 tour, their aspirations for the year ahead, and their hopes of finally getting their hands on the ultimate prize – the World Cup. “I think that there’s a lot of improvement and a lot of fine-tuning to be done to our game before the World Cup,” said fly-half Dan Carter (below).

“That will all be discussed at the start of the year and put in to practice during the Tri-Nations.

We’ll just keep building from there until the World Cup. No way are we happy with where we are at the moment. We think we can improve and fine-tune a lot of things to make ourselves a more complete side”, he continued.

With this in mind Carter was keen to stress that the squad would be taking a lot from the tour, with

their final game against Wales last weekend being of utmost importance. “The last thing you want to do is go into the Summer with your last game as a defeat and be thinking about it all season," he said.

“The game means a lot – not only to finish the tour well, but also with what’s happening back home with the miners. We want to do something really special for those people.

That’s been a really driving force.”.

There's a lot of improvement to be done before the World Cup The recent tragedy of the Pike River coal mine back in New Zealand had clearly had a huge impact on the squad with coach Graham Henry adding; “It’s really hit us hard. It’s a very sad occasion.

There’s a lot of emails going back and forward between people around how we can help. I think we need to take that very seriously and look at what we can do to try and lighten

the load a bit.”

Aside from the emotional significance of the match for the whole squad, the occasion will also be a momentous one for Dan Carter, who should overtake Johnny Wilkinson as the world's leading points scorer in international rugby.

The occasion was definitely playing on Carter’s mind but he was adamant that it wouldn’t affect his game. “It’s all about putting the side first and making sure that I’m doing my job to better the team.

“Winning is far more important than any record I could be achieving. If we score four tries and I miss all of my kicks then I’ll be happy,” he said before joking, “Actually I’ll be pissed off. I’m not big on records but this one is very special. It's a record I’ll be very proud of.”

Since his international debut against Wales in 2003, Carter has achieved immense success and is held in high regard by his teammates. “We all look up to him and we’re all striving to get to where he is”, said scrum-half Jimmy Cowan.

“It’s not just what he does on the field either, he drives you pretty hard in the gym too. He’s a strong

bugger for the size of him! He’s pretty impressive. I guess he’s just one of those naturally gifted freaks – freak in a good way though,” said Cowan.

With Carter and the All Black squad on top-form, there is no doubt that they are on the right track to achieve World Cup glory next Summer. However, being the top-ranked side doesn’t always work in your favour. “When you’re at the top, teams do analyse you a lot more,” explained Carter. “The more we

played teams in the Tri-Nations, the harder it got. We have to find things that we’re able to adjust, and we have to make sure we prepare for that.”

All in all, the players and Coach seem more than confident that they have the ability to improve on their already impressive form and we can certainly look forward to some scintillating performances from the dominant side as the World Cup draws ever closer.

Sonny Bill Williams: New Zealand's rising star Alex Winter Sports Editor For 6ft 3ins and 17 stone, Sonny Bill Williams is quite unassuming.

Towering over the assembled media at the Park Plaza Hotel in Cardiff, he seems almost overawed by the attention. There has been a wealth of interest since the start of his career at the beginning of the Autumn Internationals.

He almost naively enjoys the questioning. All very well four caps into a career. "The off-field stuff is pretty buzzy," said Williams, "so many people have so many questions but like with anything I'm sure I'll get used to it."

Having made the switch from rugby league where he earned seven New Zealand caps, Williams isn't used to so many opinions. "It's sur-

prised me how analysed the game is. League is only a three country game really so it's not over analysed. Union is a worldwide game and every man and his dog has an opinion.

"League doesn't get that much exposure," said Williams who has toured Britain with the Kiwi Rugby League team but said the All Black brand simply makes everything so much more high profile, "you don't get 20 people waiting outside the hotel for an autograph."

Williams has burst onto the union scene, earning NZ$3million playing for French club Toulon alongside Johnny Wilkinson. He has since signed a deal to play Super 15 rugby for the Crusaders next season.

With a change of code has come a change of focus. He has left behind some controversy including a

drunken incident with a New Zealand Ironwoman star in a pub toilet.

Behaviour you would put beyond a calm and reserved young man talking about winning his fourth New Zealand cap.

"It's an honour to start for the All Blacks. But at the same time I know I've got a lot of hard work to do. I've been getting a good partnership together with Conrad [Smith, Williams' midfield partner]. The more game time I get the better player I'll become, but at the same time I know I'm not the first choice 12 in the country."

Williams replaced 56-cap Ma'a Nonu for the British Isles tour. "I know I'm just being given game time for me to find my feet. It's not about me being picked ahead of Ma'a. He's a good man and has really taken me under his wing. I've

learnt more from him than anyone else on this tour.

"He [Nonu] knows he's the number one 12 but he's happy for me to get some more experience. He can see what the coaches are trying to achieve with me.

"I'm really happy with the way things are going and hopefully I can stay in the 22 moving towards the World Cup." New Zealand are once again top of the world rugby pile entering a World Cup year. Williams is simply hoping he can improve to help the All Blacks enter their own World Cup in the best possible shape.

"With more experience I'll get to play the role better. When I knowwhat's going on more, that'll give me the confidence to express myself," said Williams who said he was walking with a spring in his step on

tour.

"It's been great being here and being with the boys. There's definitely an aura about the Silver Fern. I'm very proud to say that my name is in All Blacks history."

Williams was full of praise for his head coach Graham Henry, who gave him his New Zealand opportunity despite having played only a handful of domestic matches. "He's an excellent coach; really knows his stuff.

"Just being around these guys in training for the past month has really improved my knowledge of the game."

Williams is billed as the next big thing from the New Zealand production line, even being touted as the new Jonah Lomu. England for one will be hoping he isn't running all over them come next Autumn.

Sport30

Monday November 29 2010 • gair rhydd • sport@gairrhydd.com

Cardiff's defence a real worry Alex Bywater sees Cardiff City knocked off the Championship summit after two consecutive home defeats

C

ardiff City were knocked off the top of the Npower Championship after suffering a second straight home defeat. After enduring a derby day reverse, losing 1-0 to local rivalries Swansea City, Cardiff went down to a disappointing 2-0 defeat at home to Nottingham Forest.

After the defeat to the Swans, hopes were high at the Cardiff City Stadium as Cardiff looked to bounce back against a confidentForest side.

With left back Lee Naylor out injured, regular right back Kevin McNaughton started on the left, with youngster Darcy Blake slotting in on the right hand side. This was a blow for Cardiff. McNaughton has been in tremendous form this season, marauding the right flank with tremendous purpose. His end product is fantastic, as well as being solid defensively.

Forest midfielders Chris Cohen and Lewis McGugan were identified pre-match as potential threats to the Cardiff goal by Manager Dave Jones, the latter enjoying a tremendous season, scoring at will from long range. His free kick against Ipswich has to be a contender for goal of the season. He was soon to add to his talley.

Cardiff started the match in confident mood. The Bluebird's one touch attacking play is their strength and they looked to attack the Reds through the likes of CraigBellamy, Michael Chopra and new England debutant Jay Bothroyd.

Welshman Bellamy came closest to an early breakthrough when he shot over from 25 yards.

A foul on Cardiff anchorman Seyi Olofinjana by Nottingham Forest centre back Wes Morgan then led to a free kick on the edge of the box. Left sided midfielder Peter Whittingham whipped the set piece inches over the bar with Forest goalkeeper Lee Camp beaten all ends up. Bothroyd also had a great chance when put through by Bellamy. Despite rounding Camp, the new England cap could only put his shot wide.

The away side, though struggling to retain possession, did possess a threat and Chris Cohen drove a shot wide on the twelfth minute. Forest then took the lead out of absolutely nothing as McGugan notched his ninth League goal of the season.

Picking up the ball from Dele Adebola on the edge of the box, McGugan cut inside and bent an unstoppable shot past Cardiff goalkeeper Tom Heaton and into the roof of the net. This stunned the home crowd and with Cardiff struggling to hold onto possession the Bluebirds fans soon became restless and frustrated. This continued as halftime approached and the home side

went in behind.

The scrapiness of the game certainly did not help Cardiff with both teams really struggling to create any sort of passing rhythm.

Cardiff Manager Dave Jones, made a change at the break, with Danny Drinkwater replacing the anonymous Chopra. This seemed to have an immediate effect as Cardiff created a golden chance to level the match. Bellamy skinned Bertrand down the right and delivered a pin point cross which found Bothroyd unmarked in the six yard box. Sadly, the striker's header was straight at Camp.

Despite Cardiff continuing to put pressure on Forest, the Bluebirds struggled to create clear cut chances to the frustration of the home fans. With Cardiff piling on the pressure, they left themselves open to conceding a second goal.

With just under ten minutes to go, a breakaway Forest attack saw playmaker McGugan escape down the left and cut the ball back for substitute Dexter Blackstock, who went on to suffer a bad knee injury late on, to slot home.

The final whistle left both players, fans and Jones deflated though the situation is nowhere near as bad as it seemed post match.

The Championship is a very competitive league and the Bluebirds are sitting comfortably in the promotion places.

As the victorious away team Manager, Billy Davies put it; "It's only January, nothing is won until

Above: Dave Jones needs to work on City's defensive problems

“

We're having to score too many goals to win matches

May or June."

Post match, Scot McNaughton was obviously disappointed with the way the side had performed.

"I don't think there was a lot between the teams, it was a pretty scrappy match." the right back said "The first half was an even game, we picked ourselves up again at half time but never really created anything."

McNaughton cited the club's defence as a worrying problem with the club looking for promotion.

"We're still conceding too many goals. It's disappointing and we're having to score too many goals to win matches," he said.

There is no doubt that Cardiff possess the strongest and most potent attacking line up in the League. Clearly though, this is irrelevant if the team are not tight enough at the back. As McNaughton pointed out, "We're not going to score every week." "There are going to be games when we create good chances and we don't score."

Though Cardiff would ideally like to be tighter defensively, conceding seven goals in their last five games is hardly a terrible record.

In essence, Cardiff's defence looks solid with Naylor and McNaughton patrolling the flanks and Captain Mark Hudson alongside Gabor Gyepes at centre half.

If Jones can sort these defensive issues out on the training ground, there is absolutely no doubt that Cardiff will be in the promotion chase come the end of the season.

The fact that Jones declined to speak to the media post-match, instead sending his assistant Terry Burton, showed his displeasure at the performance. One bright spot for Cardiff was the contribution of Drinkwater in the second half. The on loan Manchester United midfielder impressed with his tenacious work rate as he tried to drag the home side back into the game.

Drinkwater told the club he was just pleased to get a run out as he continues his recovery from injury.

The match was incredibly scrappy, with Cardiff struggling to impose their passing style of play on their opponents.

"It was a messy game to be fair," said Drinkwater. "Forest didn't have too many chances. They had that one sight of goal in the first half and scored from it and then one real opportunity towards the end which they also took."

As gair rhydd went to print, Cardiff were preparing for a vital encounter against top of the table rivals Queens Park Rangers. Jones is relaxed about the challenge of Neil Warnock's men. "It is a massive game, but all games we play at this moment are massive," Jones said.

"It'll have a bearing on the season but it's not going to be the be-all and we know how we get carried away in this part of the world."

For more information on Cardiff go to Cardiff City Player via the club's website.

Sport31

Monday November 29 2010 • gair rhydd • sport@gairrhydd.com

Pharmacy held to nervous draw Laura Peart IMG Netball

Law B edge another win Alanna Tregear IMG Netball

Pharmacy B 16 - 16 SocSci A

centre court quickly got the ball down to Jenny Asbury and Elena Visser who worked well together in the shooting circle to get close to the post and put Law ahead.

At half time there was a couple of goals in it and everything to play for in the second half.

BioSci came out fighting in the second half but Law handled the pressure well and held their lead until the final whsitle.

The player of the match was Lana Selimovic at centre whose hard work throughout the court contributed significantly to the end result.

Law B 10 - 6 BioSci Law B kept everyone on the edge of their seats once again on Wednesday November 24 against BioSci. Apart from a 33-9 win over SocSi A, Law B have played out some nailbiting contests this season.

The game started very evenly with both teams scoring alternatively. Towards the end of the first half some excellent defending from Amy Groves and Anna Peace led to a couple of good turnovers.

Support from Soph Daw, Lana Selimovic and Helen Morgan in the P

IMG FOOTBALL

Group A P

W

D

L

Diff

Pts

1

KLAW FC

4

4

0

0

+17

12

2

Engin Locomotive

4

2

1

1

+11

7

3

Pharm AC

4

2

1

1

0

7

4

AFC Cathays

3

1

1

1

-6

4

5

SAWSA

2

0

1

1

-1

1

6

SOCSI

2

0

0

2

-6

0

Kay FC

3

0

0

3

-14

0

7

IMG FOOTBALL

Group B P

W

D

L

Diff

Pts

1

Sub-Standard Liege

4

3

1

0

+13

10

2

CARBS FC

2

2

0

0

+10

6

3

Gym Gym

4

1

1

2

+1

4

4

Psycho Athletico

2

1

0

1

+3

3

5

JOMEC

1

1

0

0

+1

3

6

Inter Menan

2

1

0

1

0

3

7

Fenerbache

4

1

0

3

-4

3

8

CHAOS

3

0

0

3

-23

0

Pts

Group C

IMG FOOTBALL P

W

D

L

Diff

Economics

3

3

0

0

+24

9

2

AFC History

2

2

0

0

+14

6

3

Your Mum's Athletic

3

2

0

1

-1

6

4

1

Law A

3

1

1

1

-9

4

5

AFC Time Team

3

1

0

2

-6

3

6

Real Ale Madrid

3

1

0

2

-8

3

7

Myg Myg

3

0

1

2

-1

1

Opus 11

3

0

0

3

-25

0

Pts

8

Group D

IMG FOOTBALL P

W

D

L

Diff

Earth Soc

3

3

0

0

+18

9

2

FC Euros

3

2

1

0

+10

7

3

Port Fail

3

1

1

1

+2

4

4

Law B

3

1

0

2

-8

3

5

1

MOMED AFC

2

0

2

0

0

2

6

Engin Auto

3

0

2

1

-8

2

7

Chemistry

2

0

0

2

-14

0

Pharmacy B had to settle for a draw against SocSci A in Group Two on Wednesday November 24.

With no points on the board, the Pharmacy girls were determined to give it their all and were once again up against challenging opposition.

Choosing to play outside on an ice cold afternoon, the match started well for Pharmacy, with the centre, Holly Macdonald, passing straight down the right and into the shooting circle, where Anya Thethy scored the opening goal for Pharmacy.

Although SocSci took the second centre and passed well, the pharmacy defence stood strong and

soon had a second shot, with Kiran Dhadda scoring Pharmacy.

SocSci won a centre-pass back and scored and then equalised on their own centre-pass.

But Pharmacy kept their spirits high, regained the lead and moved into a strong position, leading 11-6 at half time.

With a few substitutions at half time, Pharmacy were determined to convert their lead into a victory.

Ffiion Hughes took centre stage and showed great spacial awareness to ensure Pharmacy had good possession throughout, and Jenny Ng gave a great performance at every centre pass.

SocSci were keen to fight back in the second half, and even with Kat Maguire using her defensive strength to her advantage as goalkeeper; SocSci started to trim Phar-

macy's lead.

Pharmacy held the lead throughout the second half with Katie Williams and Tash Huckerby pushing the defence.

But four minutes from time, SocSci grabbed the equaliser at 15-15.

The tension rose and Captain Laura Peart did her best to maintain morale.

Pharmacy fought hard in the closing stages to get another goal and did retake the lead only to see SocSci almost immediately grab another goal to keep the match level.

The last minute showed determination from everyone on the court; no one was letting another ball pass a net and the match ended level.

Pharmacy felt a win was probably deserved but instead had to settle for a draw.

BUCS Badminton Success Dazz Wong BUCS Badminton Cardiff University Badminton Club travelled to Nottingham recently to take part in their annual BUCS competition.

The four day competition is the highlight of the club's year and Cardiff went into the tournament with high hopes. The first day consisted of men’s singles, women’s singles and mixed doubles.

Dominic Brown started his singles in fantastic form, taking the first set 21-9, but had to work hard in the third to clinch the win 21-17 and continue into the third round.

Meanwhile, Yee Wai Lim, in his second single’s match, lost the first game 19-21. Wai managed to come back fighting to take the second set 22-20. Wai made quick work of a tired opponent winning the final match 21-13 and progressing to the third round.

After Brown's poor performance in the second round, Dom really stepped it up and completely annihilated Barry Garnham 21-9 to progress into Saturday’s draw where he would face the fifth seed, Chris Coles.

In the women’s singles, Olivia Payne, Sian Houdmont and Captain Charlie Wigston all won their first matches comfortably. Payne, having not played singles for a long time, played exceptionally well and won her match in two sets; 2113 and 21-12.

Unfortunately in her next match she was faced with the ninth seed.

Despite playing well, she was beaten by a better player.

Houdmont played well in her first match by winning the first set 21-17. However she lost her second set due to too many errors. In a gripping third set, Houdmont was able to take the win with a fantastic backhand crosscourt drop.

The last singles match of the day was to be played by Captain

Wigston who had a slow start in her first match losing the first set 14-21.

As Wigston gained confidence she took the next two games 21-16 and 21-10 with some fantastic drop shots from the back of the court.

Wigston qualified to play singles again on Saturday after a strong win..

The next day saw the doubles tournament. In the men's, Wai and Nic had no trouble winning their first two matches. Both opponents were quickly dispatched with the Cardiff pair proceeding onto Sunday matches.

Darren and Phil had a less fortunate match where they faced the Garnham brothers from Swansea.

Darren and Phil didn’t settle into the first game and lost 13-21.

A significant improvement saw the pair start the game well. In the end though, it was too late to come back and the pair eventually lost 1921.

Dom and James failed to capitalise on an early lead and faced the consequence by losing the first game. The Cardiff pair then upped the pace and controlled the next two games which they won by 21-13.

Their next game would see them play the number one seed - an England representative.

Clearly expecting a tough game, Dom and James did not stop fighting all the way through. Cheered

on by their supporters, the pair really fed on the spirit created by the crowd. The duo played a great game and even though they lost, they put up a strong fight against the England first seeds.

The final day started with the team looking to finish the tournament on a high. Houdmont and Rosh were in the first match and played some breathtaking badminton against the fifth seeds.

They won the first game 21-5 and the opposing pair consequently retired. The pair reached the next round where they, unfortunately, lost against the ninth seeds.

Nic and Wai had an unfortunate end to their campaign. The pair started great and quickly won their first game.

However, a dramatic change in tactics from the opponents brought about a swift turnaround and sadly Cardiff ended up losing the subsequent two games.

The team enjoyed a truly unforgettable weekend which was full of great badminton and a whole lot of fun.

The biggest BUCS event of the year ended well for Cardiff and we look forward to competing in next year’s championship.

Sport

sport talk to the All Blacks << Inside

Cricket girls reach BUCS finals

BUCS finalists, left to right: Kath Taylor, Kathryn Hudson, Lizzie Harris, Paula Matthews (captain), Caitlin Brown and Cappy Smaill

Bring it On: Captain's delight as girls reach national finals Alex Winter Sports Editor Cardiff Women's cricket Captain was overjoyed at their indoor team reaching the BUCS national finals.

"Bring it on" said Paula Matthews after her side won, reaching the regional qualifying round and looking to the finals planned to be held at Glamorgan's Swalec Stadium in February.

Cardiff comprehensively beat Plymouth before a dramatic 30-run victory over Exeter which saw them top their qualifying group.

They now join Southampton,

Brighton, Loughborough, Sheffield Hallam and UWIC in the finals.

Plymouth were easily overcome in Cardiff's first qualifying match.

Cardiff's openers put in a tremendous performance, racking up 162-0 in their 12 overs.

The 14-an-over target was far too large a task for Plymouth, who were squeezed out by some tight Cardiff bowling.

Plymouth could only muster 59-2 and Cardiff won by a 103 runs.

Exeter provided a much sterdier challenge in the second qualifying match, having beaten Plymouth comfortably. The contest was a winner-take-all affair.

Cardiff, batting first, were contained well and made modest progress. But Lizzie Harris and Kathryn Hudson built a healthy partnership that allowed Cardiff to move into a competitive position.

Harris played excellently under the pressure against the discipline of the Exeter bowling. Harris reached a top score, as Cardiff were bowled out for 94.

Defending the eight-an-over target, Cardiff knew they needed to restrict a big-hitting Exter batting order who had struck 167 in 12 overs against Plymouth.

Opening bowler Kath Taylor immediately fell into her stride as Ex-

eter made a nervy start.

Cardiff created pressure and Taylor claimed two early wickets which gave Cardiff some momentum.

Exeter struggled, and when Catlin Brown claimed an lbw decision Cardiff were on their way to victory.

Kathryn Hudson, who contributed well with the bat, claimed the moment of glory as she stooped to take a tumbling catch as Exeter were bowled out for just 64.

“Each and every player and supporter put in an amazing effort," said Captain and Club President Paula Matthews, "to get Cardiff through to the finals is a fantastic

Women's Indoor Championship Regional Qualifying Results Group 3 - Pool 2

Cardiff 162-0 (12overs) beat Plymouth 59-2 (12overs) by 103 runs Cardiff 94 all out beat Exeter 64 all out by 30 runs BUCS Finals Saturday 19 February 2011 Swalec Stadium Brighton, Cardiff, Loughborough, Sheffield Hallam, Southampton, UWIC

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