Palatinate 845

Palatinate The UK and Ireland’s Best Student Publication, 2021

Thursday 25th November 2021 | No. 845

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Indigo gets into the Christmas spirit

Sport interviews England captain Steph Houghton

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Students brace for winter strikes

• Strikes to take place 1st-3rd December • Poll suggests majority oppose strike action • 61% believe reasons for strikes are valid Theo Burman News Editor

Thousands crowded into Durham City for the Lumiere light festival (Thomas Tomlinson)

24-hour exams to stay Martha McHardy Deputy Editor The University’s governing body has voted for proposals to keep the 24-hour open-book format for online exams taking place this academic year.

The proposals, voted on in a University Senate meeting on Tuesday, mean that students will be able to complete their exam at any point in the 24-hour window.

Departments will have the option to hold asynchronous, timed assessments “where

necessary, as an alternative to open 24-hour assessments”, subject to approval by Deputy Executive Deans. These will be an hour longer than the set time to allow for technological difficulties.

Earlier this month, the University announced that online exams would be the default format this year, arguing that the positive feedback from last year, particularly from disabled and disadvantaged students, was a major factor in keeping the process.

Departments are able to

request to hold exams in-person, where learning outcomes would be “impossible or very difficult” to assess using online exams, or where physical exams are necessary for the purposes of accreditation.

The Maths department has been granted an exemption from the University-wide policy of online exams for this academic year after 46 students were caught cheating in online maths exams last year.

An email to all Maths undergraduate students from Chair of the Board of Examiners for Continued on Page 4

A poll of 829 Durham students suggests that the student community is divided over support for this term’s strikes by the Durham UCU, scheduled for 1st to 3rd December.

The poll, conducted by Durham Polling, showed that 53% of respondents did not support the decision to take strike action. Conversely, 39% of respondents said that they did support the strikes, with the remaining 8% saying they did not know where they stood.

61% of respondents said that they believed the reason for striking, the proposed changes to pension schemes that could lead to significant cuts, were valid, with 34% saying they thought it was an invalid reason to take action. 5% said they were unsure about whether or not this was a valid reason.

16% of respondents thought the pension changes are a valid reason for striking, but do not

support the UCU in their decision to take strke action. The majority of these students (58%) are third years, who faced disruption to learning during the 2019 strikes.

Despite this, year group did not seem to have a large influence over how students responded to the survey. All years reported a majority opposition to the strikes; first years opposed it 63% to 32%, second years 46% to 42%, third years 41% to 38%, and students at Durham for four or more years opposed strikes 48% to 40%.

These findings stand in contrast to data collected in 2018, when the first wave of UCU strike action took place, and a fourteen-day strike in spring became the longest ever in UK higher education history up to that point.

A YouGov poll of 738 undergraduate students conducted for UCU in 2018 found that, nationally, 61% of students supported strikes, whilst 19% opposed it, and the remainder were unsure.

Continued on Page 4

Thursday 25th November 2021 | PALATINATE

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Editorial (Rosie Bromiley)

Inside 845 News pages 1-7 Satire page 8 Comment pages 9-11 P pages 12-13 Scitech pages 14-16 Politics pages 17-19 Puzzles page 20 Palatidates page 21 Sport pages 22-24

indigo

Early one morning

H

ow often do we read something new in the newspapers that will change our perspective or add value to our existence? Do newspapers continue to justify the paper they are printed on? Did they ever?

Recently I was reminded of Thoreau’s argument against the news cycle in Walden, the eponymous pond he retreated to in order to escape the modern trappings of 1840s America. “I am sure that I never read any memorable news in a newspaper,” he groused.

“If we read of one man robbed, or murdered, or killed by accident, or one house burned, or one vessel wrecked, or one steamboat blown up, or one cow run over on the Western Railroad, or one mad dog killed, or one lot of grasshoppers in the winter—we never need read of another.”

Speaking personally, the early hours of the Wednesday before Palatinate goes to print on a Thursday induce exactly such questions. These are the hours I spend making the paper’s pages orderly with my long-suffering co-editor, Max, subtly shifting margins by millimetres and staring into words until they lose all meaning. “Is ‘chair’ really spelt that way?”, I ask. “Surely not...”

Even if it is agreed in the abstract that the news cycle is worth keeping, most people seem to feel exhausted by the excess of it. A recent poll suggested that seven of ten Brits feel some sort of ‘news fatigue’. The issue seems to be

one of quality as well as quantity, as trust in journalism wanes.

Worryingly, YouGov estimated last year that 9 in 20 people distrust the BBC. You can adopt another, perhaps more cynical, view of journalism: that news outlets exist primarily to protect the interests and e tend the influence of a few wealthy proprietors. There’s little doubt to my mind that this is sometimes true, but I’m skeptical that it is the norm. It’s one thing to question the good faith of a few billionaires, but quite another to doubt the integrity of thousands of journalists who are following their vocation.

Journalism’s existence is often ustified on intensely idealistic principles, sometimes called the principles of the Fourth Estate.

This holds that journalism is a servant to democracy because it holds those with power to account.

It is, by this view, much more than a commercial enterprise. This applies equally to all sections of a newspaper. A theatre review or feature, in its own way, holds institutions to account.

Even if these principles often seem detached from the reality, in themselves, they remain appealing and credible.

However, some contend that these lofty principles are selfdelusional; designed to make journalists feel important, or to add a façade of honour and prestige to a morally bankrupt profession. We could think of the Leveson Inquiry, when some journalists tried to use the notion

of ‘public interest’ to defend the sordid practice of phone hacking.

If you are a regular reader of Palatinate, there may have been times where you have felt that the paper has covered an issue disingenuously. Certainly, Palatinate has got things wrong during its 74 years in print.

Yet, having been a part of this wonderful paper for over two years, meeting plenty of student and non-student journalists along the way, I’m relieved to report that the experience has made me more optimistic about the state of journalism and its ideals. My cynicism has been broken, not buttressed.

Everyone I have interacted with understands the flaws of the press, but remain committed to its improvement. They all have a sober understanding of their responsibilities. Sometimes these weigh heavily. Most agree that the information age has made journalism more essential, not superfluous. nd, most pleasingly, all have interesting things to say that are worth reading.

So, while we may dislike a writer, be aggrieved at a particular story, or feel burdened by the excess of the 24-hour news blitz, we should remain uncompromisingly committed to journalism and its ideals. If anything, a sense that journalism is not in the state that we want it makes a robust defence of its foundational principles all the more essential.

What, after all, are the alternatives? An end to democracy as we know it, with unaccountable

Editorial page 2 Style page 3 Books pages 4-5 Visual Arts page 6 Travel page 7 Food & Drink pp. 8-9 Music page 10 Stage page 11 Film & TV pages 12-13 Features page 14 Interview page 15 Creative Writing page 16 institutions plagued by stagnation and corruption. Or, like Thoreau, a retreat to a dank hermit’s shack by a pond.

s this is my final edition as Editor, I’m grateful for the opportunity to thank the many people who have helped and supported me during my time at the paper. First and foremost, I would like to thank Palatinate’s editorial board for their staggering work ethic and ideas. I regret that confines of space mean can t thank them all by name.

In addition to his support for Palatinate more broadly, I would like to thank Prof. Tim Luckhurst for many thrilling, challenging and enriching conversations, some of which have helped build the ideas in this editorial. Thanks to my lovely parents, Guy and Ruth, and siblings, John, Hamish and Anna.

Finally, my deep thanks to Jack, Tom, Imogen, Tash, Tim and Max for their patience, good humour and, most of all, friendship. [and cheers to Maddy Burt because she asked forDonegan-Cross thanks...]

Toby

Editor-in-Chief

Palatinate is published by Durham Students’ Union on a fortnightly basis during term and is editorially independent. All contributors and editors are full-time students at Durham University. Send letters to: Editor, Palatinate, Durham Students’ Union, Dunelm House, New Elvet, Durham, DH1 3AN. Alternatively, send an e-mail to editor@palatinate.org.uk

Palatinate Editorial Board Editors-in-Chief Toby Donegan-Cross & Max Kendix editor@palatinate.org.uk Deputy Editors Martha McHardy & Harrison Newsham News Editors Theo Burman, Lilith Foster-Collins, Poppy Askham & Laetitia Eichinger news@palatinate.org.uk News Reporters Orlando Bell, Emily Doughty, Daniel Hodgson, Emily Lipscombe, Louisa Barlow, Sarah Matthews, Tiffany Chan & Waseem Mohamed Investigations Editors Patrick Stephens, Kathryn Ellison, Elizabeth McBride & Frank Kelly investigations@palatinate.org.uk Satire Editors Ben Lycett & Hannah Williams satire@palatinate.org.uk Comment Editors Ellie Fitzgerald-Tesh & Anna Noble comment@palatinate.org.uk Deputy Comment Editors George Pickthorn & Miriam Shelley P Paul Ray & Ethan Sanitt profile@palatinate.org.uk Science & Technology Editors Elise Garcon, Cameron McAllister & Caitlin Painter scitech@palatinate.org.uk Politics Editors Maddy Burt & Rj Batkhuu politics@palatinate.org.uk Deputy Politics Editors Joe Rossiter & Eli Rasmussen Puzzles Editors Thomas Simpson, Hugo Bush & Katie Smith puzzles@palatinate.org.uk Sport Editors George Simms, Abi Curran & Jonny Tiplady sport@palatinate.org.uk Deputy Sport Editors Harvey Stevens & Mary Atkinson Indigo Editors Cerys Edwards & Honor Douglas indigo@palatinate.org.uk Deputy Indigo Editor Adeline Zhao Features Editors Isobel Tighe & Miriam Mitchell features@palatinate.org.uk Creative Writing Editors Millie Stott & Ella Al-Khalil Coyle creative.writing@palatinate.org.uk Stage Editors Ben Smart & Jodie Sale stage@palatinate.org.uk Visual Arts Editors Nicole Wu & Christian Bland visual.arts@palatinate.org.uk Books Editors Imogen Marchant & Samuel Lopes books@palatinate.org.uk Style Editors Grace Jessop & Anna Johns fashion@palatinate.org.uk Food & Drink Editors Nia Kile, Josie Lockwood & Emerson Shams food@palatinate.org.uk Travel Editors Gracie Linthwaite & Holly Downes travel@palatinate.org.uk Film & TV Editors Charlotte Grimwade & Grace Marshall film@palatinate.org.uk Music Editors Katya Davisson & Annabelle Bulag music@palatinate.org.uk Interview Editor Stephanie Ormond indigo.interview@palatinate.org.uk Photography Editors Lainey Lin, Thomas Tomlinson & Rob Laine photography@palatinate.org.uk Illustration Editors Verity Laycock, Rosie Bromiley, Victoria Cheng & Anna Kuptsova illustration@palatinate.org.uk Felicity Hartley, Georgia Heath & Hannah Davies businessdirector@palatinate.org.uk Heads of Advertising Thaddeus Dominic, Ben Stoneley & Kyra Onyebuchi advertising@palatinate.org.uk Heads of Alumni Relations Elena Liciu & Ben Stoneley alumni@palatinate.org.uk Sophie Garnett finance@palatinate.org.uk

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PALATINATE | Thursday 25th November 2021

News

Jonah Graham, Durham SU’s

What was missing in the coverage of Durham’s sex work support sessions

I urge students not to fall foul of the misinformation encircling Durham’s Supporting Sex Worker Training. The training was not teaching students how to perform or engage in sex work. It was created to teach staff and students how support student sex workers if they come to them for help. It is a ludicrous suggestion that Durham University, one of the most prestigious, traditional, and conservative universities in the UK, would facilitate student sex work. I was proud that my colleagues at the university stood by the training in the face of faux moral panic, manipulation, and misrepresentation in the national press.

Student sex workers are still students – young people completing their studies who may reach out to

University staff members for help just like any other student. They are entitled to adequate support.

According to the Student Sex Worker Project, one in twenty students have been involved in sex work and one in five have considered it. The training equipped staff and students with the knowledge they needed to support student sex workers and tackle pervasive cultural stigma.

It covered issues of safety, legality, and responding to disclosures so student-facing staff members will be able to respond to sex workers appropriately and professionally.

Sex work is a complex issue and the training acknowledged that. It is an umbrella term that will mean different things to different students.

Such nuance or complexity was

largely missing in national media coverage.

The national coverage, particularly from socially conservative sources, misrepresented the training for their own ends. By disproportionately focusing on ‘prostitution’ and escort work they generated panic and shock. If journalists knew the contents of the training, they would have found out escort work is relatively uncommon among student sex workers. Whilst there are issues around safety and consent within sex work to present sex work as inherently damaging or all sex workers in need of ‘rescue’ is incorrect. Unfortunately, these tactics were successful – politicians from multiple parties furthered the misrepresentation, by using their

Number of Black students unchanged in five years Patrick Stephens Investigations Editor The number of Black students at Durham remains at 2016-17 levels, despite a 13% increase in the student population. There are 467 Black students at Durham, which amounts to 2% of the student population, compared to 4.5% for the UK as a whole.

Durham People of Colour Association (DPOCA) said it was “unsurprising” that the number of Black students had not risen.

The University highlighted a number of schemes it has in place to widen participation, but added that it is “not complacent”.

The number of Black students at the University fell from 467 in 2016-17 to 417 in 2018-19. It was only following the 2020 exams fiasco, and the resulting rise in the total student population, that the number of Black students returned to 2016-17 levels.

The number of ‘home’ Black students remained at roughly 290 from 2016-17 to 2019-20; in 2020, it rose to 352.

Of 467 students, 38 identify as Black/Black Caribbean, 217 as Black/Black African, 55 as Other Black background, and 157 as either Mixed-White and Black African, or Mixed-White and Black Caribbean.

A number of factors may

explain why numbers remain low. Black student Michaela Makusha told Palatinate she is pleased that Durham is trying to do more to attract Black students from various backgrounds. One example of this might be that in 2021, the University launched scholarships for two Black students worth £4,000 each per academic year for undergraduate students from families below a certain income threshold.

The University said: “We run a number of successful schemes aimed at widening participation, and our latest Access and Participation Plan is by far the boldest yet with demanding targets that we aim to meet.

These targets focus on increasing enrolments of students from Low Participation Neighbourhoods (POLAR 4) and black students.”

DPOCA told Palatinate that “while the University does have a very committed access and engagement unit – mentoring, outreach, scholarships – the issue is not just about getting black students to come to Durham.

“It’s equally, and if not more importantly, about making sure Durham is a safe and inclusive space for those students once they are here. Often this is an afterthought.”

They continued that “you cannot diversify an institution like Durham without consistent and unequivocal commitment to fostering a safer environment

for Black students, home and international. Racism has a massive role to play here and naturally that is a major deterrent for potential Black students and a retention problem for those here.”

Makusha highlighted the need for “a clear message that racism, in all of its forms, isn’t tolerated from anyone… so many incidents can go unreported because Black students, including myself, don’t believe it will go anywhere.” What was needed, Makusha suggested, was “an actual change in culture”; “nobody wants to sign up to three or four years of enduring racism and sexism for the sake of an education”.

As of 2020-1, there were 6,524 BAME students at Durham, representing 30% of students. Of these, two-thirds are international students.

The number of BAME students at Durham has risen by 31% since 2016-17, compared to a 13% increase for the student population as a whole. Data shows that three-quarters of the increase in BAME students is among international students.

Durham is not unique in failing to attract more Black students.

Less than 4% of the cohorts at Russell Group Universities are black, compared to 8% for other UK Universities.

Durham University said: “we actively encourage students from a broad range of backgrounds to apply to Durham, including those

who are from backgrounds that are underrepresented in Higher Education.

“Our Supported Progression scheme has helped hundreds of sixth-form students from underrepresented groups progress on to degree programmes with us or other universities.

“In October, we are launching our Schools Membership Scheme, working with targeted schools and colleges who have high proportions of students from under-represented backgrounds.

“Just this spring, our Levelling Up: Aspire Higher programme was launched. Our University experts tutor and mentor students who are traditionally underrepresented in Higher Education STEM subjects, as they study towards A-Levels and apply to university.

“We offer a number of scholarships and bursaries either funded by the University, through partnerships with external organisations or through generous donations from our alumni and friends. These include the Durham Inspired - North East Scholarships that have been specifically designed to support applicants from the North East of England.

“However, we are not complacent and we are constantly making improvements to our admissions and support systems.”

platforms to criticize the training without fully knowing its contents.

Politicians should not be targeting support structures for potentially vulnerable students.

Ultimately, the myths and insensitive comments in the resulting discourse prove the need for the training. Stigma is still present in our society. It’s clear that several of the attacks used a facade of student safety but were actually efforts to morally police student behaviour. I am grateful to anyone who has combated this odious misinformation as it’s rare students vocally praise the University. Regardless of your opinion on sex work, this training solely aimed to ensure the safety and wellbeing of student sex workers and it deserves your support.

University encourages students to participate in the Christmas wish tree The initiative supports two local charities, Moving On Durham and Durham Foodbank. Staff and students are invited to donate physical gifts or give money to help provide items from the charities’ wish lists.

St Aidan’s College warns students of individuals approaching students asking for ID St Aidan’s said in an email to students, that if approched by anyone other than college staff re uesting to see identification, students should walk away.

The email emphasised that even staff employed by test and trace must be accompanied by college staff when requesting ID. “If you experience or witness an unknown person requesting identification out in town, please report it to the police and inform us on the student support email.”

Durham University named University of the Year at the Social Work Awards 2021 is the first year that the ocial Work Awards have selected a best University.

(Durham University)

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Thursday 25th November 2021 | PALATINATE

News

Heightened police force What do students think of the strikes?

“Frankly I think it’s ridiculously unfair for the consequences of political action presence at Lumiere due to the government or higher institution’s sheer lack of competence and basic Laetitia Eichinger News Editor This year’s Lumiere festival saw a heightened police presence, including armed police officers, in Durham city centre and at the six other artwork installation sites around County Durham.

Police presence was considerably greater thank in previous years.

The police detailed on its website that steel and concrete barriers were installed to prevent potential attackers using a car as a weapon.

Access to the city centre was ticketed between

4:30pm and 11pm, and one-way systems were put in place in some areas to allow crowds to be managed safely.

There was also heightened security presence at ticket entry points. with bag and body searches carried out on visitors, including with metal detectors.

These measures came in the wake of the attempted terror attack i n Liverpool on Remembrance Sunday, and the subsequent heightening of the UK’s terror alert level to severe.

(Thomas Tomlinson)

human right to, yet again, be taken out on the students who are not directly involved with the issue. “ - Second Year

“The university has continually let us down ... this is another incident where money takes priority over our education.” - Third Year

“What a bloody mess, get on with your jobs. They didn’t do anything when the same cuts happened to the catering/ estates staff.” - Fourth Year

a e a one term o un i rupte learning an am no in m final ear.

Dad is a lecturer at another university and so I understand the problem, but action short of strike would be far less disruptive to students.” - Third Year “I’m disappointed after a year of online learning. I don’t think it’s u tifie a ter t ree mont o .

- Second Year

“The university is a capitalist f**kfest and the staff are still workers who deserve workers rights.”

- Fourth Year

“Strikes clearly do nothing except hinder the education of students. I understand the reasoning behind opposing changes to the pension scheme, but this is ineffective and harmful to students. The SU should not be supporting it.” - Second Year

“Another incident where money takes priority over our education” 15% spent more than 12 hours on their exams Continued from front the department, Jens Funke, confirmed that all aths e ams will be held in-person.

Last year, a Palatinate investigation revealed that science students were more likely to prefer in-person exams than humanities students, and maths students reported the highest increase in stress during online exams than any other subject.

A survey of 1,761 undergraduate students carried out by the University found that 77% of respondents said they would prefer exams to be online, compared with 7% who said in person and another 7% who would prefer a mixture. International and BAME students expressed a stronger preference for online exams.

Preference for online exams was weaker in some Science departments, particularly Maths and Physics, with over 50% of respondents in the Faculty of Science reporting having spent more than six hours

on average per exam, with 15% spending more than 12 hours.

The survey also asked students how long they typically spend on exams. Level 3 students studying STEM subjects spent the longest on their exams according to the survey, averaging around 12 hours, or 15 hours in Maths.

Two thirds of the respondents to the survey reported spending less than six hours on their exams, and less than 2% reported spending more than 18 hours on exams, and less than 9% more than 12 hours.

The Physics department has voiced concerns about the length of time students spend on exams.

The department stated they would “explore the possibility of a shorter window within the 24 hour time period”, to reduce the amount of time students will be expected to be under exam conditions.

Exams have been held online for the previous two years.

Last year, the 24-hour format was introduced as an alternative to the 48-hour period used in the policy s first run in the 2019-20 academic year.

Continued from front The University and College Union made the decision to take national strike action from Wednesday 1st December to Friday 3rd December. Support for strike action was particularly strong in Durham, with almost 80% of participating members voting in fav o u r.

T h e Dur-

ham UCU branch also reported high turnout levels: 63% of members participated, whilst only 53% voted nationally.

Research by the National Union of Students (NUS) found that, nationally, 73% of students support this year’s UCU strikes, whilst 69% stated they would be willing to take active action, such as campaigning.

The UCU higher education committee has a l s o taken t h e

(Tim Packer)

decision to call action short of strike (ASOS), beginning with working to contract. ASOS will start on 1st December and run until latest 3rd May 2022.

The UCU stated that if there is insufficient progress in negotiations, there is likely to be more strike action in the new year, and an extension of ASOS activities.

Previously the Union emphasised that if the dispute continued, the nion would “significantly” escalate action in Epiphany term.

First years made up 10% of respondents, second years 30%, third years 36%, and fourth or more year students 24%.

The survey was self-selecting and did not use Durham Polling’s usual representative data to account for balanced responses.

The University told Palatinate that “our priority is now on making sure any impact to student education and staff workload is minimised. Members of the Durham community can stay up to date at our dedicated USS changes website, which has detailed information on the proposed changes and sector developments”.

PALATINATE | Thursday 25th November 2021

5

News

Strikes: your questions answered Why are staff striking?

Will I be compensated?

The UCU are striking to protest upcoming changes to the University Superannuation Scheme (USS), the sector’s principal pension benefit provider.

They state that under the proposals, the guaranteed retirement income for the typical member (a 37-year old lecturer) will be reduced by 35% and limit protection from inflation.

The UCU also called the strikes as part of its ”four fights” campaign which aims to combat casualisation, racial and gender inequalities, rising workloads and below inflation pay offers.

Whilst the University has not fully confirmed whether students will be offered any form of compensation for teaching time lost during the fourth round of strikes in four years, in previous years this has not been the case.

In the year 2019-20 students were not offered compensation, unless it was deemed that their “learning outcomes” had not been met. The University currently states on its website that “tuition fees contribute to a whole university experience and are not directly linked to specific contact or teaching hours”.

When are lecturers striking?

Wednesday, 1st December to Friday, 3rd December. 58 institutions across the country are taking part.

What to expect from the strikes?

The strike is expected to involve all staff who are members of the University and College Union (UCU). Staff that take part will not set cover work or reschedule missed classes, as this contravenes the UCU’s strike policy. In previous years, staff have held protests and teach-outs and set up picket lines across campus during strike days.

Students will be expected to attend all lectures and tutorials taught by non-striking members of staff and to meet deadlines as usual. Any lectures, classes or tutorials missed by students striking in solidarity with their teaching staff will be considered an absence and will be dealt with by their department.

What if nothing changes as a result of the December strikes?

Should Universities UK and other employer bodies refuse to meet demands, the UCU intends to escalate its campaign, meaning universities would be likely to see more extensive strike action next year.

Changes to the pension scheme are e pected to be confirmed in February 2022 and come into force in April if staff protest efforts are unsuccessful, meaning strike action will likely be held early next term.

What have strikes achieved in the past?

University staff previously went on strike in 2018, 2019 and early 2020 over similar concerns including staff casualisation and cuts to pensions. In the largest show of action in spring 2020,

nationally up to 50,000 staff walked out for a total of 14 days of action, affecting an estimated 1.2 million students.

Though the pandemic made it difficult to udge the e act impact of these strikes, industrial action in 2018 helped overturn proposals to scrap defined benefit pensions More recently in Durham, the University scrapped ninemonth contracts following the 2019-2020 period of strike action, pledging to a minimum of 12 months for future fi ed term contracts and in doing so, providing academic staff on precarious short-term employment arrangements greater financial and professional stability.

Will disruption be considered when it comes to assessments?

The University has stated that it is “too early to know the impact of the strike on specific modules”, but has assured students that it will be working to ensure students are not disadvantaged in assessments and that all evaluations remain “fair, consistent and transparent”.

(Tim Packer)

Charlie Procter on why students should support strike action It took me a while to support the UCU in striking. As ndergraduate cademic fficer, my first thought was that cannot support something that disrupts teaching, particularly after the pandemic and numerous strikes in the past.

That was, until I came to understand the issues facing our staff and how they tie in directly with the quality of our education here at Durham. e could fight against the strikes themselves; a short-term and rather useless battle as the strikes are already happening.

Or we could work with the strikes, address the long-term issues that face our education and, pragmatically, try to make these strikes as effective as possible to prevent further industrial action.

Our learning conditions are impacted by the working conditions of our staff: we all share the same learning community.

Short-term, casual contracts

create instability and job insecurity, reflected in short lived modules and shifting tutors.

Many of our staff are overworked, hence the difficulty sometimes of securing one-toone sessions and assessment feedback.

That ‘working to contract’ can be used as a disruptive tool, where staff members only work the hours they are contracted to do, demonstrates the extent that out-of-hours work is an expected and needed resource for this university.

Add to these the issues of pay not meeting inflation, pay inequality and pension cuts and we have an undesirable working culture, characterised by increasing workloads and decreasing benefits.

This culture is more damaging to our education in the long-run than the strikes. Of course, these strikes will be disruptive. I am working with the University on a set of policies to ensure that our education continues, even if teaching is disrupted.

As students, we can support our staff by venting our frustrations and anger towards the university specifically, eads of Department, the Deans of Faculties and Deputy Executive Deans, as well as members of the University Executive Committee.

If you are angry that strikes are happening, these are the people to contact. Tell them you are angry, tell them to get back to the negotiation table: we are the financial backbone of the university, let’s use our voice.

DSU votes to support strikes Poppy Askham News Editor Durham Students’ Union voted 16-7 in favour of supporting the University and College Union (UCU)’s strike action in a recent emergency assembly meeting.

The motion, proposed by SU President Seun Twins, and four student officers, e pressed the view that “the quicker the dispute can be resolved, the better for students and staff”.

The SU stressed that its stance of supporting the UCU’s campaign does not contradict its recognition of the potentially detrimental impact of strike action on students’ education.

The motion noted that: “Students won’t have had a ‘normal’ education for three years, and they deserve the full Durham experience”.

Advocating “reasonable adjustment in assessments” and

for the maintenance of teaching and learning quality despite the strike action, will be a key tenet of the SU’s response to the upcoming strikes.

The SU previously passed policy to support UCU strike s when staff walked out in 2018 over similar issues.

The emergency meeting paid attention to the involvement of Durham’s postgraduate research students, who qualify for membership of both the SU and UCU, and are especially vulnerable to the issues of staff casualisation and spiralling workload that the nion four fight campaign addresses.

The SU has also publicised an open letter from the National Union of Students which calls on employer bodies, including Universities UK, to return to the negotiations and meet the UCU’s demands that they scrap the proposed pensions cuts and to improve conditions for staff.

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Thursday 25th November 2021 | PALATINATE

News

river lighting to stay Patrick Stephens Investigations Editor After the installation of temporary lights along a river path in Durham for Lumiere, a group of welfare officers have called for lighting to be installed there permanently as a safety measure.

The lights were installed along the river path between Prebends Bridge and Framwellgate Bridge, but have now been removed.

One student told Palatinate: “It was only when I was at Lumiere realised how much easier travel at night would be if the river paths were lit”.

The group includes welfare officers from eleven colleges.

The stretch of river is known to be dangerous. Three Durham students died from drowning in less than 18 months from 2013.

An inquest in 2015 into the death of student Euan Coulthard noted that the path where he had fallen into the river was “not well illuminated beyond railings”. orks were completed along certain stretches in 201 to resurface part of the footpath and install new railings. ne issue the welfare officers note is possible concerns about a potential bat cluster close to rebends ridge which might be disturbed by the lighting. They have called for in uiries into whether some lighting could still be installed without significantly harming the wildlife.

Durham-founded charity tutoring project in recruitment drive i any han e s e orter harity tutoring pro ect earning y eart have called for student volunteers to join their tutoring and management teams. The charity, which operates a pay as you feel model, is facing increasing demand for its services.

Learning By Heart (LBH) was founded by Durham alumnus Naomi Green in May 2020 is a non profit founded by aomi reen. The pro ect began as a response to the impact of ovid 1 lockdowns. The scheme aims to challenge the “growing educational ine uality in the and elsewhere” that young people face.

LBH utilises a system of volunteer tutors, who offer support in their preferred sub ect. tudents subscribed to are charged on a pay as you feel basis, facilitating accessibility to pupils from all income backgrounds.

The funds collected go towards the educational charities CAMFED (Campaign for Female ducation and ducation annot Wait. CAMFED supports female education in five sub aharan countries, while ducation annot ait aims to provide education to those living under humanitarian crises. o far, has raised over 000 for these charities.

In their year and a half of e istence, s 0 strong team has created a substantial network of educational tools to support its students, including a second hand te tbook drive, university

sessions, and webinars on issues like feminism and education. ith volunteers help, founder aomi would like to take further in being “a leader in social mobility” by increasing cooperation with universities and businesses “to reach all corners of the ”. he hopes to e pand into becoming “a substantial charity”.

Green told Palatinate that volunteers do not have to be e perienced, but “passion and drive” were key. The application process includes an interview in which ideal applicants “can explain to you what it is about that makes them want to volunteer”. reen described her team as a “community”. uccessful applicants would be welcomed into a reciprocal network of volunteers, where tutors can chat to each other and management staff adopt a “ e re there if you need us” approach. ccording to reen, about 80 of students are at the GCSE and level stage. part from children, also attracts adult students, offering “a more accessible option to those who couldn t afford individual classes” or who want to get teaching ualifications. range of sub ects, including the sciences, aths, and nglish, are available to students depending on tutor availability. hen asked about her e perience with , reen emphasised “the feeling of community that it s grown into”.

She told Palatinate that “ m learning from those around me and am constantly ama ed and fulfilled by what a community it s become”.

( ainey in)

100,000 allocated to council for women s safety Daniel Hodgson e s e orter urham ounty ouncil has received 100,000 from the overnment s afety of omen at ight fund to increase the safety of women in the City of Durham.

The money will be used to deliver vulnerability awareness training. The recipients will include hoteliers, managers of takeaways and off licences, staff at transport hubs, designated premises supervisors and door security staff.

A night safety hub will also be created. This will allow those who are vulnerable to seek advice or first aid, engage with support services, report incidents, wait for a family or friend, or access information about safer transport.

In addition, all County ouncil registered ta i and private hire drivers will receive an online training package. hen completed, they will be provided with an accreditation identification badge, in an attempt to make female passengers feel safer when travelling.

The application was put forward by Durham City Safety roup . lan atrickson, chair of the said “ urham is a very safe and welcoming place but we are not complacent. There is inevitably a small number of people who engage in crime and anti social behaviour and by recognising this and preparing for it we can help to make our city as safe as possible.” oy llen, urham olice and Crime Commissioner shared Mr.

atrickson s sentiment, saying “We wanted women and girls in our community to have their say on their personal e periences and we wanted to know what more they think the police and our partners could do, which is why the proposals outlined in the bid were informed by the respondents to the force s all t Out survey.”

The allocation of funds coincides with the nternational Day for the Elimination of iolence gainst omen ay, also known as hite ibbon ay. This year the event is taking place on Thursday 25th November and is the commencement of a 1

day campaign. urham ounty ouncil, the niversity and the tudents nion all support the international day of action.

All three organisations are asking people to oin in by signing the hite ibbon ay pledge, promising to never commit, e cuse or remain silent about violence against women.

To help raise awareness and encourage signing of the hite ibbon ledge, there will be a joint event, hosted by the three organisations on Thursday, at the tudents nion building, from 10am until 2pm. The Safer Durham Partnership is supporting this event.

From the Archives

The story that could have been Palatinate 701, November 2008

PALATINATE | Thursday 25th November 2021

7

News

Durham University Islamic Society University museums hold over 700 objects charity week events raises £300 made of human remains and movie nights for female students. The week culminated with a day long bake sale and a ui night held in the tudents nion building. urham niversity slamic This term s charity week ociety held its first charity comes following a successful week of the year this month, campaign in pril and ay last hosting a range of activities for year which saw the society its members including a ui provide 1700 free Iftar meals night and football match. during amadan.

The events, held between eflecting on the 8th and 12th November recent events, the raised an estimated “everyone society s harities £300, although was having fficer ulsom organisers are yet ddin hailed the to finish counting fun and they week as an overall donations. wanted more success. he told As in previous events like Palatinate that years, the money “the people that raised by the these” attended the charity ociety s charity week events actually week will be donated to en oyed it, as could ust tell slamic elief, a charity that because everyone was having provides disaster relief and runs fun and they wanted more development schemes in local events like these”. communities. ddin stated that it was vents included a crucial to host a charity week tournament, a football match, this term as “all the other and a table tennis night for male niversities had already started students, and henna, games

Waseem Mohamed e s re orter

to do it, so we needed to do it as our first priority”.

She noted that it was especially important given that “most slamic charity organisations get their money during amadan...so getting money at the beginning of winter will benefit them”.

In addition to raising money, the week also provided an opportunity to educate people on the practices and beliefs of slam. ddin recalled that during the ui night, “some people didn t know the basics like how many amaat prayers there are, so people got to know more [about Islam] as well as have fun”. ddin also stressed that she planned the charity week so it was carried out in an slamic compliant or alal manner this year, explaining that “the money is going to charity so it has to be alal money, so that s why decided to keep everything in an slamic way, so the time people are giving does not go to waste”.

From Paris with love

Florence Bignell

t s fair to say that over the last ten weeks aris has really lived up to its reputation as being one of the world s most beautiful capital cities. eing in a city absolutely brimming with culture, from the art museums down to the book stalls perching on the banks on the eine, is inspiring to say the least and a welcome break from the bubble like nature that urham and my hometown of arpenden can often exude. am lucky enough to live in the centre of aris and therefore on my daily walk between university in the atin uarter and my apartment in the th arrondissement, find myself immersed amongst the caf s which inspired intellectual conversations amongst artists and authors alongside the daily comings and goings of rench arliamentary workers at the nat. fter, what feels like having been teleported into the hotspot of arisian politics and culture, it s fair to say that, so far, Paris has lived up to every single stereotype. The smell of freshly baked croissants lingers in the air, a copy of amus s tranger can be found in a bookshop almost every street corner and the rench desire to protest every single political decision are just a few stereotypes that I have e perienced daily.

This concept of physical

protests seems almost alien to us polite rits but is an idea which is central to the rench psyche. nstead of ust accepting these protests as a possible metro disruption or something fun to listen to on my walk home, decided to attend a protest to fully wrap my head around this concept of free speech which don t believe e ists in the .

On Sunday 20th November, I attended the #NousToutes arisian protest which formed part of the network of protests across rance fighting against se ual violence and for e uality.

To say that I was overwhelmed upon arrival would be an understatement. Stepping out of the metro station, lace de la publi ue was filled with a sea of purple signs being held up by men and women aging from two to 0 years old with these boots are made for walkin blasting on speakers all around me. espite

feeling completely alien as a rit in the middle of a rench protest, felt a camaraderie with the strangers around me which had never felt before in this often cold and e clusive city.

By stepping outside of my comfort one and immersing myself in this cultural and historical event, was shown a new side to this city which has often felt unwelcoming over the last ten weeks; can t count how many times ve been on the receiving end of the derogatory h vous tes rasmus comment after struggling with my rench when talking with a professor. owever, it feels as if peace has been slightly restored in my odd ramus arisian ritish bubble and the smell of freshly baked croissants has returned whenever step outside my flat as I have witnessed this more inclusive, empowering, and defiant side to aris.

a hryn E inson Investigations Editor round 0 ob ects in the urham niversity useums service are comprised wholly or partly of human remains, a freedom of information request has found.

Out of the three museums owned and operated by the university, both the Oriental useum and rchaeology useum have ob ects consisting of human remains within their collections.

The archaeology museum has appro imately 2 pieces of human remains including skulls, ribs and teeth.

The Oriental Museum is home to the niversity s only whole human bodies, with two adult mummies and the mummy of a child permanently on display in the museum s ancient gyptian gallery.

There is some debate about whether the figure should include artifacts made with human hair, which it currently does not, and also about whether the figure should incorporate canopic ars containing possible staining from human organs, which it currently does.

There are also some ob ects where it is uncertain whether or not human remains form part of an artifact.

The bulk of the niversity s collections are held by the rcheology useum.

This includes unworked bone fragments from the Iron age. These were discovered in Bishop Middleton, County urham in 1 2.

The archeology museum also holds 1 partial human remains

which were found in the cellar of bbey ottage on Dun Cow Lane in the 1 0s. This includes a “box of human bone, including skulls” from an unknown time period as well as a “quantity of human bone found in a fertiliser sack in the cellar of bbey ottage”.

Abbey Cottage is now home to the niversity s Theology and eligious tudies department.

On display in the Oriental Museum is a 1 th century Buddhist human skull cup from the ing period.

It is decorated with coral and fake turquoise.

A l s o o w n e d by the Oriental Museum is a Tibetan chess set made from 2 pieces of human b o n e s , which have been repurposed from a Tibetan sacred apron set.

There are five ob ects made partially from human hair in the riental useum s collection which are not included in the 0 figure.

This includes 1 th and 20th century weapons from the ban and ayak tribes in orneo. t is not uncommon for university museums to hold collections of human remains. ecently the itt ivers Museum in Oxford removed its collection of human shrunken heads from display, with Dan icks, the curator of the itt ivers commenting that the display of human remains is an example of something “really unacceptable”. n the “ ecolonising urham” manifesto, the Oriental Museum, however is not criti ued for its displays or collections of human remains. nstead it is criticised for its links to the ulbenkian oundation, which the manifesto argues allows the museum to benefit from the e ploitation of the Middle East by founder alouste ulbenkian in the 1 th and 20th centuries.

(Durham University)

Thursday 25th November 2021 | PALATINATE

8

Satire

Palatinate Satire Satire's guide to a (sort of) 82% of students reported to have successful Christmas (ish) ‘cold feet’ for the Billy B

Satire Editors: Benjamin Lycett & Hannah Williams

For more satire, visit www.palatinate.org.uk/category/satire

Get ready for the festive season with Palatinate Satire’s onestop guide to having a lovely Christmas, where you don’t upset Mum like you did last time. I mean, you could have at least wrapped it.

Whether you’re someone

who started listening to Christmas music months ago or you’re a sane person, these tips will help the big day feel special – but not quite a special as it did when you were a kid, and that’ll make you a bit sad.

This is your comprehensive guide to the only time of the year

it's acceptable to spend an entire week watching Polar Express and Nativity alternating on loop, or to have a glass of whisky for breakfast just "because it's Christmas".

PRESENT SHOPPING It’s nearing the end of term and you’ve donated most your student loan to the local takeaways, but you want your family to have perfect presents/literally anything cheap – don’t panic! Tomorrow is Black Friday: a day of slashed prices, high quality products and watching two sets of parents punch each other over a Lego bonsai tree. If the thought of getting an Amazon Fire Stick 40% off doesn’t induce within you a bloodlust for your fellow customers, this may not be for you. As a violence-free alternative, you could just rewrap the same candle you gave your mum last year, which has been forgotten in a drawer since last year, and hope she doesn’t notice.

RECIEVING PRESENTS Anybody who says Christmas is ‘all about the giving’ probably only thinks it because they’re used to receiving an onslaught of bland socks and Lynx Africa gift sets. Those of us that are even vaguely interesting know it’s all about getting that sweet sweet booty (presents). Like most of the 21-yearolds up and down the country, I’ll be sleeping with one eye open waiting for the arrival of Santa. One top tip if you haven’t seen Santa before is to lay a few bear traps by your fireplace, and then he’ll have to stop for a quick chat with you while you tend to his wound.

Don’t worry, it’s Christmas Day, you can hardly make the naughty list now!

XMAS DINNER

When planning your dinner, it’s important to make sure you’re catering for everyone’s tastes, like your nan who thinks spices are ‘too modern’ or your sister who’s suddenly gone vegan apart from bacon and chicken nuggets. But that’s not relevant to you, because you’re quite happy to let some other relatives take the lead on this one. A top tip is to time your entrance into the kitchen precisely when they ve ust finished all the major food prep jobs and ask if they “need any help”. They answer in the negative, and you’re in the clear to go play with your new Bionicles (or whatever you asked for, I dunno).

Palatinate can reveal that a record number of students are beginning to have ‘cold feet’ for the Billy B. This comes at the same time as the University’s festive initiative to “keep Durham cold.”

A spokesperson for the idea, Isla Frost told us how “it is quite bizarre.

The library has always been such a warming e nv i ro n m e n t , I don’t see how the initiative which has as its core values - miserliness, meagreness and utterly Scrooge-likeness could have possibly affected this!”

Some have speculated the arctic-like weather could have been induced by the cold-hearted decision of the Maths department

to hold their exams in person this year. Another scientist sported a guess that it could be something to do with the weather and some clouds? I don't know - full disclosure I wasn't really listening to him, scientists can be quite boring.

It is most widely believed the conditions were caused by the Billy B being unable to acquire the energy needed to power its heating, as all the city's electricity was needed to support Lumiere.

We had hoped to interview a student at the library for comment, but those on Level 4 would not so far as look up at us and another was too cold to move their mouth.

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PALATINATE | Thursday 25th November 2021

Comment

Debate

Online exams: a matter of accessibility, not accuracy Elle Fitzgerald Comment Editor

Like many, I breathed an exhaustive sigh of relief when the exams team graced us with the news this week that examinations for the 2021-22 period would once again be sat online, rather than in-person.

Now in my second year at Durham and two-years post gapyear, I haven’t had the pleasure of stewing in an exam hall since I took my A Levels in 2019 — and I’m not sure my exam, or rather memorisation, technique would be up to the task.

The blessing of a 24hour exam window is a level playing field for students like myself, and a focus on understanding content The British examination system has for years been plagued by discussions of fairness and inaccuracy of assessment.

Employing a system which relies heavily on memorisation has alienated and disproportionately disadvantaged those with a range of cognitive conditions, myself included. My disability

was acquired during my aforementioned gap-year, and thus I’ve never had to sit a ‘traditional’ exam with my newfound chronic fatigue and subsequent cognitive issues.

The very British solution of allowing ten minutes extra time per hour, as generous as it is, fails to address the real issue at hand — allowing those who are disadvantaged in this way around twenty extra minutes will not magically allow them to conjure up the correct answer.

It may, however, exacerbate the mental stress students are put under in exam conditions and, therefore, compound the worsening of any chronic illnesses.

The blessing of a 24-hour examination window, and the adaptation of assessment methods to focus even more on testing one’s understanding of your chosen degree-subject, allows students like myself to have an even playing field.

Regardless of improving accessibility, assessment at degree-level should, in my view, never be based on who can memorise dates and places the best.

At a degree-level, understanding should dominate the foreground. If evaluations are truly being based on comprehension, then what is

the need for such pressurised settings? Furthermore, many modules offered by a range of faculties across the University are assessed purely on summative coursework.

These modules represent the same number of credits towards a degree as a module based solely on final examination; so if there is any suggestion that online exams are an inadequate form of assessment, clearly the University has been lacking in this regard for longer than the era of Covid-19.

Adjusting to the needs of departments and students will be integral

heavily prefer in-person exams, contrary to other faculties. If online exams are to become the future for University-level assessment, then adjusting to the needs of individual departments and the wants of students will be integral in continuing to provide a fulfilling and measurable University education.

Exams are meant to be a fair and equal opportunity to evaluate a student’s understanding of their chosen field.

Taking this into account, the shift towards online-examination should not be a point of contention on whether the University is

fulfilling its requirements as an educational institution.

Ensuring that assessment is as fair as possible for those with underlying conditions, allowing them to create a sense of control over their environment during an ever-fluctuating pandemic, is crucial.

Students in their second and third years, who have not sat an in-person University exam, which requires vastly different revision and exam preparation, are all at a disadvantage to years gone by.

The pandemic has caused enough hinderance to students, why exacerbate it?

(Elle Fitzgerald)

Crucially, for those subjects that believe in-person examination is pertinent, exemptions can be made.

This is not a dramatic ‘point of no return’ and a symbolic shift towards the digital age, merely an alternative medium to allow for the pressures of the ongoing pandemic.

This week the maths department made the decision to apply for an exemption to online assessment, citing instances of cheating in last year’s examination period.

This decision also takes into consideration results of a survey of maths students, who reportedly

We should be careful about inadequate assessment Ellen Fasham Like Harry Potter and Lord Voldemort, students and exams have been archenemies since time immemorial. As such, the vast majority of students cheerfully welcomed the University’s announcement that exams were to take an online format for the third year in a row.

It is easy to understand why the University took this decision. Due to the pandemic, most first and second years did not sit exams at the end of year 13, and finalists have never had the experience of sitting in-person undergraduate exams. While I do not believe in-person exams should go ahead, the online-exam format is an ineffective and unsuitable alternative means of assessment.

This is not an opinion widely shared by the student body.

According to a recent survey, the majority of students reported

reduced stress under the online format. The open-book format reduces the need for intensive memorisation and the open 24hour time frame means that a year’s worth of work no longer rests on a few short, rushed hours. However, these qualities arguably cause more problems than they solve.

A solely courseworkbased assessment harms students Online exams occupy a dubious space between coursework and in-person examination which fails to accurately assess a student’s ability, as the very nature of online exams makes it extremely difficult to know what the examiner is looking for. The open book format naturally means that the quality of assessment will be higher, but departmental leaders assert that they expect the same quality as a closed-book exam. There is an implicit incompatibility here,

making expectations difficult to ascertain. This is compounded by the 24-hour time frame, which is unfortunately unavoidable, as a set time frame would undermine the fairness of assessment. Inperson exams can be timed as the environment is controlled, meaning if there is any external disruption (for instance, a firealarm), this would affect everyone and could be appropriately accounted for. The same cannot be done for online exams. The question over how much time peers are spending on the same exam, and thus what the standard of answer will be, further reiterates feelings of uncertainty.

This uncertainty applies not only in the preparation and execution of online exams, but also in the outcome. Formative assignments are set in order to practise for future assessments and learn through criticism.

However, online exams are often so different in their format that they require distinctly different skills, bringing into question

the reason for setting formative assessments at all. Since factual recall is no longer a characteristic of assessment, a far more logical means of assigning a grade would be a structure of 100% coursework-based assessment.

Online exams largely purport to test the same skills as summative assessments, addressing a depth of understanding rather than memory recollection.

Thus removing the unnecessary 24-hour window would allow these skills to be applied and demonstrated with more nuance, prudence and refinement.

While summative assessments are the best alternative to online exams in the mid-pandemic context, I do not believe this mode of assessment should be indefinite. The processes of factual revision, focussed attention, time-management and adaptability that are characteristic of in-person exams are invaluable educational benefits that coursework simply cannot replicate. Additionally,

summative assessments focus on a narrower field of study, whereas preparation for examination requires a broader approach to ensure all topics are covered. Yes, exam season is overly pressurised and is developing an increasingly toxic competitiveness but a solely coursework-based means of assessment would deprive students of an invaluable set of educational skills. We are paying approximately £30,000 for this degree, and many pay more. Both timed and untimed assessment must be taken together to ensure we emerge at the other side with an education that reflects the price tag.

Truthfully, in-person exams have been falling out of Vogue for the past few years. The pandemic has arguably just accelerated a process already in motion, and has consequently caused a heavy re-evaluation of our processes of academic assessment. We currently stand at a crossroads: every year a future without exams becomes increasingly realistic.

10

Thursday 25th November 2021 | PALATINATE

Comment

Durham students: working hard or overworking?

Ellen Campbell

From the high grades Durham awards annually, their ambitious UCAS requirements and the successful careers students so often accomplish post-university, one can conclude that Durham is composed predominantly of hardworking high achievers. At any time of day (or night), hundreds of said students can be found in the Bill Bryson, a hub of hard work and essay-grinding, deadline-meeting focus. Initially, one might consider this a solely positive concept, but with a societal increase in mental health awareness, questions must be raised around the darker side of studying, including a growing pressure to work twenty-fourseven.

This dedication pays off, with 95% of Durham graduates achieving a 2:1 or above. But at what cost? Whilst being driven and dedicated are admirable qualities, when examined closely, underlying issues concerning obsessive perfectionism and a lack of work-life balance are worrying.

Current students confirmed that there is an established workrelated pressure at Durham, with one telling me, “I have work on my mind every day” and another explaining that expectations are set so high they can “sometimes seem impossible to meet”.

For others, that’s what University is about: “I chose the university because I wanted to be somewhere where people were

interested in their course and wanted to be working hard as well as having a good time.”

But the pressure to work hard isn’t a Durham-exclusive issue and stems more from the hustleculture heavy society we now live in.

This collective attitude can lead to a state of overworking to the point where it becomes a lifestyle, leaving no time for personal life and relaxation. The worry here is that, in theory, university

should set young adults up for their working life and if this toxic behaviour is encouraged now, it will likely infiltrate into the lives of graduates.

So, it is clear there’s a problem here, but how can we address it?

With deadlines looming, students might currently be struggling to find an equilibrium between hard work and healthy relaxation.

Don’t feel pressured to always go out or feel boring if you say no. It can be good to prioritise an

evening in the library, just try not to do it all the time to maintain that vital social aspect of university.

Checking in on friends and speaking to others is also key.

Going for coffee with students from your course can also help you feel less alone.

Durham can feel claustrophobic so try to reach beyond the Durham bubble by staying in contact with loved ones at home who can support you.

Finally, Durham is well

equipped in terms of support systems, but some students are entirely unaware of their existence. Take time to learn who can offer support within your college and academic department.

Mental illness rates at university are troubling and, with UCAS estimating that over 70,000 students may enter higher education every year with a mental health condition, the way we handle pressures at university is not something to be overlooked.

(Mollie Dunne)

Why Durham has the right response to student sex work Anna Noble

Comment Editor

It is no secret that Durham has had its fair share of outrage inducing scandals. Like any institution we must criticise it when things go wrong or are mishandled by the university, but we should also praise the University when they get it right. Last week’s ‘scandal’ involving the revelation that the University was offering training sessions intended to promote safety in sex work for students is an example of the latter.

Students becoming involved in sex work is a reality A cross party coalition of MP’s, sections of the press and the usual social media suspects reacted with outrage to this revelation. The Minister for Further Education, Michelle Donelan

attacked the University accusing Durham of “legitimising a dangerous industry”, Labour MP Diane Abbott echoed Donelan’s comments on Twitter arguing that sex work is “degrading” and universities “should have nothing to do with it”. These outraged responses were triggered by inflammatory headlines, such as in The Times, accusing Durham of “training” students to be sex workers. This should be recognised for what it is: a misrepresentation by the press, likely to support a narrative that ‘woke’ universities going too far.

The University hit back, with a poised statement clarifying that they are “emphatically not seeking to encourage sex work” they are “seeking to provide support” emphasising that the University “don’t judge, we listen, support and give practical help.”

Last year, a Save the Student’s survey found that 22% of the students surveyed had tried to make money using platforms popularised due to the sale of explicit content, such as OnlyFans. It also found that four per

cent of those surveyed has tried traditional sex work. With some reporting that they had turned to sex work in order to buy essentials or pay their rent, others revealed that they used the earnings to fund their studies.

The Sun also reported this year that the English Collective of Prostitutes have also revealed that calls to their helpline have increased by a third this year.

Students becoming involved in sex work including on sites such as OnlyFans is a reality and therefore, universities must address it, similarly to how Durham have- listening, supporting, not judging but aiming to promote safety.

MPs should focus upon the reasons that students might be choosing to turn towards sex work Instead of criticising universities for offering acknowledging reality and actively trying to keep

students safe and supported, perhaps MPs should focus upon the reasons that students might be choosing to turn towards sex work.

As the Save the Student survey showed, the financial incentive for students of sex work cannot be dismissed. The financial burden on students in the UK, specifically England is perhaps now higher than ever.

In the past 20 years tuition fees have increased by over nine-fold from £1,000 per year in 1998 to the current maximum of £9,250.

These have notably tripled in the past decade, constituting what is the biggest rise in tuition cost for any nation globally. Cost of living increases have also negatively impacted students alongside rocketing student housing prices. Even with student loans, most students leave university with considerable debt, into a job market which post pandemic is increasingly competitive and face the prospect of potentially never being able to make it onto the property ladder due to rising costs in the housing market.

The impact of the financial strains of the pandemic on students also cannot be overlooked. In her response claiming that Durham is “badly failing” students through these courses, Donelan cites the £85 million the government gave universities to help students in financial hardship, working out to just £33.60 per student. Whilst not all students will require the money it remains clear that this is woefully short of being able to support students.

Is it any surprise that some students are looking to supplement their income with sex work or joining platforms such as OnlyFans? If MPs want to discourage students from undertaking sex work, perhaps they should look at making university more affordable, and lessen the financial burden on graduates. Attacking universities for attempting to ensure students are safe and supported exposes them for attempted point scoring and woefully missing the mark. Durham, however, have got their response right.

PALATINATE | Thursday 25th November

11

Comment

Just please stop talking about cancel culture George Simms “Last week, I was cancelled”, wrote Nigel Farage in the Mail on Sunday. For the love of God, not this again.

I’ll start by adding that the Mail on Sunday is a newspaper with a circulation just short of 800,000.

The articles written in it then go onto (by some distance) the most read news site in the UK. Taking time from his busy schedule of recording pro-IRA Cameos, screaming indignantly into the metaphorical void on GB News and screaming into the very real English Channel, Great Britain’s mouth ulcer told the Mail that “the vindictiveness of the cancel culture mob knows no limits”. What have the woke brigade done now, I hear you ask?

Farage’s outrage stemmed from a disagreement over his Christmas fundraiser, ‘An Evening with Nigel Farage – The Man Not The Myth’.

This was booked to be held at Preston Grasshoppers Rugby Club.

Club members, as in, the people who keep this fifth-tier club running, had expressed their displeasure at old Nige’s scheduled appearance.

As a result, the Grasshoppers, who made it clear they did not organise the appearance, but were to be used strictly as a venue, ultimately cancelled the booking.

They wrote, “We are an inclusive club, and it wasn’t the right thing for us”. Sounds vindictive to me.

Farage’s recent antics mark the latest example of what is becoming a trend of high-profile straight, white, British males over 50 using their unwaveringly huge platforms to decry cancel culture and ‘wokeness’.

Just so we’re all on the same page, those who are perpetuating cancel culture are ‘woke’. ‘Woke’ means being alert and sensitive to structural prejudices, or antifree speech, or cultural Marxism, or, well, whatever you want it to mean at this godforsaken point in the rasping death rattle of culture.

Former Monty Python and Fawlty Towers star John Cleese is someone whose work I hugely respect.

His comedy was innovative and his approach to cancel culture appears to be innovative too, becoming perhaps the first person to actively cancel themselves.

After art historian Andrew Graham-Dixon was apparently ‘blacklisted’ by the Cambridge Union for doing an impression of Adolf Hitler at a debate, Cleese cancelled his own upcoming appearance at the Union. I’ll admit, I’ve struggled to follow his logic on this one.

Cleese himself had done an impression of Hitler in ‘The Germans’ episode of Fawlty Towers, released over 40 years ago, is still considered by most

a great classic episode of British sitcom.

He could have, of course, used his appearance to extol the virtues of free speech he clearly cares about so deeply and open an active debate with Union members. But where’s the headline in that?

21-year-old Cambridge Union President Keir Bradwell’s response to the Graham-Dixon incident was slightly confused.

Despite saying nothing on the night, Bradwell initially announced that Graham-Dixon would be blacklisted from speaking at the Union.

He then U-turned from the supposed ‘blacklisting’ in a Times article promoting free speech principles, stating that GrahamDixon’s conduct — talking over other speakers — was the reason he would not be welcome to return to the chamber. He emphasised that the Union does not have a ‘blacklist’.

Now, the Cambridge Union is a slightly bigger platform than a Preston rugby club, but neither of them exactly equate to enough people to constitute a ‘cancelling’.

Perhaps a minor postponement, but we’re talking more 20 minutes to fix the floodlights than a points deduction for going into administration.

The phenomenon currently known as cancel culture has been almost completely facilitated by social media. It is a direct product of people having a place to publicly utilise their freedom of speech and the perfect example

of individuals using their free speech to express opinions they hold.

What Basil Fawlty and the woke Alf Garnett call cancel culture is actually just the voices of millions of people who never had an amplifier for their opinions before. They’re not being cancelled, they’re just not as popular as they thought they were.

Before social media, they didn’t have to hear the voices up and down the country muttering expletives at them into the television or over their morning newspaper.

Yes, people may have been egged occasionally, or yelled at in the street, but who ?

Social media has convinced people everywhere that their opinion now deserves to be heard, in the same way that an adult life of celebrity and adulation has convinced Messrs Farage and Cleese that their opinion should be revered as if nectar of the gods.

There’s a strong argument that both groups are heavily misled, but that’s a conversation for another day.

Cancel culture is only ever seriously discussed by those who lament their place as its victims on their massive platforms, or in national newspapers, or on TV shows.

A recent study by Deltapoll found that half of Britons don’t even know what cancel culture is and fewer than one in 20 could name a celebrity whose cancellation they supported.

(Elle Fitzgerald)

To be truly cancelled, surely a majority of people would need to support said cancellation.

When only 4% could even name someone who they think should be cancelled, it’s clearly nowhere near as significant an issue as it’s touted as.

I’d love to think that this would come as a relief to its aforementioned victims, but something tells me that may not be the case.

With a government sleaze scandal, food shortages and a heightened terror threat, Britain has much bigger issues to deal with than cancel culture.

Farage, Cleese and a barrage of newspaper columnists and Twitter users would have you believe very much the opposite.

Now Mr Farage has helped deliver Brexit, I ask him nicely, without a hint of cancellation, to let us sovereignly starve to death in peace.

Is journalism facing an existential threat?

Flo Clifford Danny Fenster, a US journalist working for an independent outlet in Myanmar, was recently sentenced to 11 years in prison by the country’s military junta.

Since the junta seized power in a coup in February, it has cracked down on the press, restricting reporting, cutting off internet access and banning news outlets critical of its repressive regime.

Myanmar has been rocked by waves of almost-daily protests since the seizure of power and over 1,000 civilians have been killed.

Fenster, as managing editor of the Frontier Myanmar paper, oversaw much-needed coverage of events unfolding.

Fenster’s lawyers and family argue he has been imprisoned and sentenced for doing his job. For the junta, however, he is guilty of incitement under a

new law banning what it deems ‘fake news’, contacting illegal organisations and violating visa laws.

He now faces further charges of under sedition and anti-terrorism laws, which will likely result — each — in a life sentence.

Myanmar’s crackdown on the press had, until now, spared foreign journalists working independently. Thus, the arrest of Fenster, at an airport in May, marks a worrying development and condemns him to potentially never again seeing beyond the walls of a prison in a dictatorial regime.

It is not just Myanmar; in recent years we have witnessed an alarming rise in crimes against journalists worldwide, from repression and unlawful arrests to brutal murders like that of the Maltese reporter Daphne Caruana Galizia who in 2017 was blown up in her own car.

To say journalism is vulnerable in unstable political climates is to grossly understate the issue. In reality, serious journalism is at

risk of dying out globally.

Journalists reporting in places such as China, Myanmar and Russia face the constant risk of intimidation, threats, imprisonment, lawsuits, and often death.

In recent months several journalists in China who were investigating the government’s handling of pandemic have gone missing or been arrested and held in horrific conditions.

Powerful governments are entwined with grisly murder allegations. The Saudi regime were implicated in the assassination of Jamal Khashoggi — something which the UK and the rest of the world seems to have cast aside. Journalists will fight a losing battle in a world rigged against them, unless action is taken to end the impunity with which they are tried, convicted, and killed.

Over the past decade a journalist has been killed, on average, every four days.

In recent years this has been seen not just on frontlines

or in war-torn countries, but also as retaliation for covering corruption, political and environmental crimes, human rights violations, and general wrongdoing.

Thus, to focus only on countries grappling with internal conflict and repressive regimes like Myanmar is to ignore the bigger picture: it is journalism everywhere that faces a truly existential threat. We are no stranger to this in the UK. Recently proposed reforms to the Official Secrets Act would see press freedom stifled, with journalists and whistleblowers who leak information facing up to 14 years in prison.

Over the past year journalists in the UK have exposed the mishandling of the pandemic, multimillion-pound contracts going to ministerial contacts, and widespread government corruption, is looking to erode media freedom to hold it accountable. Government departments, accused of frequent stonewalling Freedom of

Information Act requests, are also looking to weaken laws around it to avoid further embarrassment from a scandal which has plagued them in recent months. Even in a relatively democratic country, journalism still is fraught with existential threats.

A November 2020 UNESCO report on the Safety of Journalists and the Danger of Impunity said that over that year, only 13% of global cases of crimes against journalists were considered resolved — 87% faced no consequence. As time goes on more strident calls are being made to end impunity for crimes against journalists and to restore security for people doing an essential and dangerous task.

In the world we live in now, full of misinformation, judicial breakdown, and rampant political corruption and cover-ups, this is more significant than it has ever been. If nothing changes, and journalism remains under everincreasing threat, freedom of expression for all and democracy itself will be the victims.

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Thursday 25th November 2021 | PALATINATE

Profile

“I shouldn’t be the odd one out because I have a northern accent” Profile reports from a Durham Union address from the Financial Times political journalist, author, former Palatinate Music Editor, and Van Mildert computer science alumnus, Seb Payne

Paul Ray rofile Editor “My main memory of the Durham Union is ick riffin , Sebastian Payne deadpans, referring to the fascist former leader of the extreme-right British National Party.

“During the 2010 period when I was here as an undergraduate student, we were in a general election period, so we had everyone, all the big names — Nick Clegg, David Miliband, Ed Miliband — all these big hitters came to try and get the vote of Durham students.”

“We were holding a debate here at the Union, basically about politics in Britain. And at that point there were 2 BNP MEPs [Members of the European Parliament].

“And those 2 MEPs were invited to the general election debate — you can imagine how well that went down with the central Durham University staff.

The US ational Union of Students said that if we went ahead with the debate, they would bus in some people to have a big old fight, and in their exact words, if people get hurt, on your head be it.”

“The University made us cancel the debate, so I got involved in politics for the first and only real time in my life, which was urham University Students for reedom of Speech’.

“Now, today that might make me sound like some sort of farright activist, but back then this was a very straightforward thing to do.

“And we said ‘now hang on a minute, this is a debating society, this is a general election. We want to talk about the issues of the day, so why the hell are Durham University and the US getting in our way?’

So we decided to hold what everyone now loves in politics: a referendum. We held a referendum to disaffiliate from the US, and you know what?

“We won — for four whole months. We managed to get urham out of the US, on the basis that they were interfering with what this society does, and with what debates should be held [in a] general election.”

“Myself and my comrades all graduated, and then they held another referendum by promising loads of free booze [if Durham returned to the US , and all you bastards voted for it.”

In an address which was surprisingly well-attended for a Friday night, Payne spoke fervently for the better part of an hour, his speech so full of dry quips and punchlines that at times it felt like he was attempting a sort of standup comedy.

Example: “Any computer scientists in the room? [A solitary audience member raises his hand.] Well done, you left your bedroom.” But between the jokes and the Durham reminiscences was a fascinating narrative of an ordinary computer science student’s rise through the ranks of the rarefied world of journalism.

“Cummings came into the Financial Times wearing a jacket covered in gardening soil, and sat at the head of the table where the editor sits” Payne’s journalistic life started with this very newspaper. “I was a music editor for Palatinate, despite the fact that my music taste is frozen about 10 years before I was born.

I messaged the indie rock band M MT on their MySpace, and much to my surprise their manager rang me up and said ‘do you want to go and interview them in Leeds?’”

“The main singer of MGMT was dating Kirsten Dunst at this point, and basically my whole aim was to get to this interview and think ‘how can I mention Kirsten?’

So I sat with my notebook, it had written on ‘Kirsten Dunst, relationship, question mark?’. And he came in, saw that, walked out — straight out — and I didn’t get the interview. That was my first journalistic triumph right there.”

Yet after graduating, Payne “did what any good person would do, which is go to the Guardian. So I did a media internship on their desk.

It was terrific fun. I had no idea what I was doing. I’d come from Palatinate, so I had a great track record of interviewing. And I had a bit of specialist knowledge.

Now, there was a rampaging killer called Raoul Moat at this point.

“He was released from prison — it’s a very tragic story this, I should say — and he went on quite an outrage [killing spree] around Northumberland, and eventually killed himself.”

But then, as some readers may remember, something truly bizarre happened. Eccentric

former footballer Paul Gascoigne appeared. “Gascoigne turned up in the middle of this with a fishing rod, a carton of fried chicken, and a six pack. And he went up and he said: ‘Moaty, it’s Gazza man!’

(Payne’s impersonation of Gazza’s Geordie accent is surprisingly poor, considering they grew up less than 10 miles apart.) ‘Listen, it’s gonna be alright, just put the gun down, you’ll be out in a couple of years time.’

“And of course this was the Guardian, no-one had any idea what any of this was about.

And I was like, Paul Gascoigne?

Northumberland?

connections to set up an interview with the one and only Dominic Cummings, former Klute bouncer and political strategist. “He came into the FT wearing a jacket covered in gardening soil, and he sat at the head of the table where the editor normally sits. It was one of the best power plays I’ve ever seen in my life.”

Payne continues: “And that meeting was quite epic. Everyone at the FT asked questions like ‘What kind of trading relationship would you like?’ or ‘Is our economy going to get fucked?’

And obviously he didn’t answer a single one of those questions

“I had no idea what I was doing” “This is my Mastermind subject.

So that’s how I actually got myself into the heart of a newspaper -- by finding expert knowledge about what Geordie men do on a Friday night out.”

Later he was hired by The Telegraph, where his computer science background gave him the unexpected opportunity of working with Julian Assange, sifting through leaks about the Guantanamo Bay scandal. “I was trapped in a room with Julian Assange for two months, combing through all this stuff.” He describes Assange as “a fascinating person to work with, very smart, [but] completely morally dodgy as a person.”

“That’s how I actually got myself into the heart of a newspaper — expert knowledge about what Geordie men do on a Friday night out.”

Ascending the ladder, he then took on a more senior position (digital opinion editor) at the Spectator, a right-wing publication close to much of Britain’s political establishment. “It’s more like a drinking society with a magazine on the side,” says Payne amusedly.

He led their project to overhaul their entire website, again showing the value a STEM degree can have in getting by in journalism.

Payne’s career has culminated in becoming the Whitehall Editor at the Financial Times.

In his early days at the newspaper, he used his North East

throughout the whole meeting.”

Payne has recently published a book about the seismic political changes in the so-called ‘red wall’.

(Interestingly, the coiner of that phrase, influential data scientist James Kanagasooriam, was present at the address, though he didn’t speak.) Payne spent a year travelling around County Durham, Yorkshire, Lincolnshire and beyond in order to see if Labour’s 2019 disaster was a one-off or indicative of a deeper phenomenon.

“These places have been disconnecting with Labour, gradually, over the course of decades. As we’ve gone through deindustrialisation, as we’ve gone through the changing nature of these communities. ou will find that these places are not just the pit villages, they are actually much m o r e prosperous places, they’ve become gradually m o r e middle class throughout the deindustrialisation era.”

Born and raised in Gateshead and educated

at an ordinary state school, his North East accent seemed to have been softened by years of working in the London-based bubble of journalism. After his speech, I asked Payne if he felt there was any sort of institutional bias in the world of journalism against people from northern backgrounds, or people with noticeable accents. Or could such an attitude be indicative of a chip on the shoulder?

“I’ve never met anyone who’s been like ‘Geordies are fucking bastards, I hate them.‘ I think sometimes we can be a bit chippy, and a bit like ‘everyone hates me’, or something.

“And we actually need to be a bit more forward looking, more open about stuff. But it is weird. I’m the odd one out because I’ve got a northern accent — it shouldn’t be like that, that’s not a good thing. It is getting better in some respects, there are some good people coming through from different backgrounds. But I found it really weird.”

And then he was off to 24s, where he remained for a decent portion of the night, drinking a bottle of wine with some friends and Durham Union bigwigs.

I think he must just have been h a p p y to be living the (Photo courtesy of the Durham

P

I

Thursday 25th ovember

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1

Profile

“Peo le said I as luc y” Profile speaks to world’s best ever female chess player, Judit Polgar, about The Queen’s Gambit, sexism in chess, and the upcoming World Championship than Sanitt rofile Editor There’s one scene in The Queen’s Gambit when Beth Harmon enters her first tournament, the Kentucky State Championship. After she walks into the hall and up to the front desk, one of the organisers asks armon whether she has a rating.

She says she doesn’t, and the arbiters point her to the section they think she should be playing in.

Harmon ignores them, and signs up for the main Championship anyway.

According to Judit Polgar, the best female chess player ever, this wouldn’t have happened.

“Obviously it was a very nice series for chess, it was a very nice series showing development of a character”, Polgar says, but The Queen’s Gambit ignored how rife sexism often is in chess tournaments.

Beth Harmon would probably not have been treated as kindly as she was by the organisers of the Kentucky Championship, olgar tells me.

Instead, Harmon would have likely been told: “because

you’re a girl, because you’re a woman, you don’t belong in the Open Section”, Polgar says.

Beth have don’t en

Harmon would been told: “you belong in the e tion

Judit Polgar is probably the closest chess player there is to a real-life Beth Harmon.

Raised as part of an unusual educational experiment carried out by her parents, Polgar was

home-schooled and received chess tutoring along with her two sisters, Sofia and Susan. In her first international tournament, olgar finished first in the unrated section of the ew ork Open, aged nine.

“People said I was lucky, that they’d had a bad d Polgar describes the sexism she encountered playing in her first

tournaments. “Of course, when I was a kid, people said I was lucky, that they’d had a bad day.

“So there were many excuses and I had to prove myself many more times than if I were a boy.

But with time, I gained respect by playing again and again, performing again and again, winning against strong players again and again”.

Five years after the New ork Open, in 1 1, olgar won the Hungarian National Championship and became the youngest-ever grandmaster, aged fifteen, breaking the American Bobby Fisher’s record by one month.

Then, in 2002, Polgar beat arry Kasparov, which marked the first time that a female chess player had defeated the world number one.

“That moment was something special for me”, Polgar says. It was not the final destination but it was] a very big milestone in my career”. ‘‘There was a long road to it, not only chess-wise, but also mentally, psychologically”. “We’re going to make an T out of it , olgar adds. e want to put it out there as a key moment for chess .

ith ti e g ined respect by playing again and again, performing again and again, and won against strong o onents At her peak, olgar was ranked eighth in the world, and she remains the only woman to have broken into the top ten.

Even though olgar finally retired from top-level chess in 1 , she still organises tournaments and commentates on matches.

Polgar’s Global Chess Festival, an annual event held in Budapest, H u n ga r y, is clearly something that she is particularly passionate (Image: Stefan64)

about. “We want to show the diversity that chess can offer … As a sport, chess connects us, chess connects everybody.”

“You learn a lot by e erien ing the le Besides this, Polgar has also worked to introduce chess as an educational tool, and has created the ‘Judit Polgar Method’, which is now part of the Hungarian National Curriculum.

“You learn a lot about planning, about taking responsibility , Polgar says. “You learn a lot by experiencing the battle”.

Tomorrow, the world champion, the Norweigan Magnus Carlsen will play his challenger, Ian epomniachtchi, in the first round of the Chess World Championships.

So what advice does Polgar have for Nepomniachtchi? Is there any way to beat Carlsen?

Polgar considers this. “The higher level you go the more difficult it gets, because the less holes, the less weaknesses the opponent has in their play .

“Nepomniachtchi .. even if he has a worse position, he has to defend it to the last moment, he has to get ready to be tortured in some situations”.

Polgar also suggests that Nepomniachtchi should be aware of any opportunities he might have. “If he gets a chance, he has to notice it, because in a world championship match against Magnus Carlsen, you’re not going to be getting chances in every game”.

So will Carlsen keep his title What odds would Polgar give for the match I would say to Magnus that he wins”. “He’s clearly the favourite”.

“I would say 60:40 to gnus th t he ins epo Ian epomniachtchi cannot win the match without Magnus’ contribution”, Polgar says.

“If Magnus is in good shape, there is not much chance for Nepo to win the match”. Despite this, Polgar continues, Ian Nepomniachtchi should not be written off altogether. If Carlsen is “a little rusty”, she says, “then anything could happen ... I think it’s going to be a very interesting match”.

Thursday 25th November 2021 | PALATINATE

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(Nicole Wu)

Green-tinted glasses: how fossil fuel companies pretend to be eco-warriors Patrick Stephens Investigations Editor obody can predict 1’s ord of the Year with certainty, but, after it lost narrowly to subprime in 2007, my money this year is on greenwashing. Albeit for very different reasons, most of the major players in the energy industry have similarly thrown their billions behind it; as sea levels, global temperatures and levels of panic all continue to rise, the fossil fuel industry’s popularity is rapidly headed in the opposite direction, along with its future profitability. CEOs are understandably trying to give their companies something of a makeover.

Advertising is one way in. hile nobody expects the whole truth using a specific shaving foam won't turn you into the shredded hunk on the TV — greenwashing, or more accurately gaslighting, is of a different ilk to standard advertising. A fossil fuel company waxing lyrical about its pocketchange investment in renewables isn’t mere consumerism, but a sinister and self-serving distraction from the gravest challenge of our times. The question is why it’s happening and if it’s likely to change.

Let’s grant them this: most fossil fuel companies do invest in renewables, undoubtedly so. hat matters, though, is the amount. reenpeace researchers found a very large discrepancy between the number of adverts focused on renewables by six fossil fuel giants and the amount of their portfolios invested in them. One extreme example was Preem, 81% of whose ads promoted green technology; impressive given that it only accounts for 1% of the company’s portfolio.

For almost half a century, fossil fuel giants have been using smoke

screens to prevent real action against climate change. ig Oil is currently under scrutiny by the US Committee of Oversight and Reform for decades of welldocumented attempts to cast doubt on the existence of global warming. hat has changed, however, is the narrative: no longer is climate change said to be based on dubious science, nor statistically unproven. The

at investors than at ordinary people.

The finance industry has, in only the last few months, seen a significant increase in the number of major investors who will only back ‘renewable’ or sustainable’ companies.

There is no global standard for what counts as such and it is, to some degree, up to the specific investors to decide if they are

Greenwashing of this sort helps to lock the fossil fuel industry into a vicious cycle to its benefit.

The more investment that does stay in fossil fuels, either because of its microscopic investments in renewables or because it offers a supposedly cleaner and reliable transition fuel the economy cannot do without, the less money is invested in renewables. Crucially, without

(Victoria Cheng)

industry’s newest line, ceding the premise that climate change is occurring, is to present itself as a key part of the solution.

The two pillars of this strategy are exaggerated investments in renewable technology, along with claims that their fuel is ‘cleaner’ and therefore a worthy part of a lower carbon’ future. This advertising is aimed far more

satisfied that their own criteria are met. oth highlighting investment in renewables in financial statements, regardless of its extent, and arguing that the rest of their business, usually gas, is a cleaner fuel crucial to the energy transition, are intended to satisfy investors that the company is no longer the villain in this story.

the huge upfront financing of the renewable infrastructure needed to support the transition away from fossil fuels, we do need them as a reliable fuel source because any sudden shortage would cause immense short-term hardship.

In other words, if their gaslighting is sufficiently effective, it becomes true. On the flip side, more investment

in alternative and diversified renewable energy sources would provide the basis for a stable energy supply, undermining claims that fossil fuels are needed .

Only 65 companies in the US Russell 1000 inde h e set s e ifi goals for the 1.5°C target Climate change is now a topic all companies have to be seen to care about. eferences to net ero in corporate reports have gone up 370% in two years, according to ESG analytics company, atamaran. ut if actions speak louder than words then the corporate world is at present barely audible.

Only 1 companies in the US Russell 1000 index have pledged to emit less, of which only 65 have set specific goals in line with the crucial 1. C target. Crucially, most are commitments made for 2050; if you do try to listen for what corporations are doing rather than saying, you’ll hear the clang of cans being kicked down the road.

Even in the best cases, where actual, practicable plans exist to reach net ero, they rely on continuing to emit greenhouse gases and compensating via investment in carbon offsetting.

These calculations are dubious at best: the exact effect on carbon concentration of schemes such as forestry, whilst laudable and beneficial for ecosystems more broadly, is thought by critics to be overstated.

That is, with clever carbon accounting, firms won’t actually be at net ero, but will have still fulfilled their commitments.

Remember that for when the fossil fuel giants present their supposed plans for net ero.

PALATINATE | Thursday 25th November 2021

15

SciTech

We don’t need government to tell us to eat less meat Michael Wetherill People all over the world have followed the progress of the CO climate summit closely, knowing as they do that the future of the world hangs in the balance.

It feels as though citi ens are at the mercy of the powerful elite who lead the biggest nations – an elite with vested interests in fossil fuel agendas, meat industries and deforestation. ho are these people, seeming to refuse to use their influence to slash emissions, to tell the public that they must change how they live their daily lives for the sake of the planet It’s almost old news by now.

Through social media and scientific research, we have become all too aware of the disproportionate impact that our day-to-day habits in the est have on the planet. The average person in the UK has a carbon footprint around 60 times higher than their counterpart in Mali, for example. e know that livestock such as cows are massive emitters of methane, and that the resources

(such as water and grains) needed to feed them could be more efficiently directed straight into our own mouths. e know that cutting back on red meat is good for the heart and reduces risk of disease. Many of us have seen that vegetarianism and veganism is no longer rare, or especially hard to do.

On a global scale, the esti tes th t of greenhouse gas emissions are derived from livestock And yet we are also crushingly aware of our own individual insignificance. ot buying lamb meat won’t save the life of any specific lamb; switching from cow’s milk to oat milk won’t prevent catastrophic extreme weather events; taking the train to university rather than driving won’t stop unprecedented heat waves from killing thousands of vulnerable people. e know that the most important

changes are systemic – such as the regulation of corporate titans such as ; governments ceasing deforestation; transport companies moving to green energy. hen the people with the power to effect these changes shift the blame onto us, the public, for our dietary habits, something feels wrong. hat we don’t all realise is that the possibility of these big systemic changes does not diminish the accumulated impact of smaller ones. According to ew Scientist in 2018, an average UK meat eater who goes vegetarian will cut their dietary carbon footprint by 1 3 kg CO e (carbon dioxide equivalent per year. y comparison, the average UK family car has an annual footprint of 3 kg CO e. So just two people going veggie would have the same impact as taking a car off the road for a whole year. On a global scale, the UN estimates that 1 of greenhouse gas emissions are derived from livestock.

This is where governmental influence could translate marginal gains into significant

global emissions reductions, by encouraging millions to reduce their meat intake. ut how The idea of a meat tax in the UK (and elsewhere) has already been rejected, for valid reasons: it would hit the poorest hardest, putting important nutrition beyond financial reach while allowing the wealthy (who eat more meat) to continue their carnivorous ways.

An ad campaign risks making things worse, an effect often observed when adults are lectured to. Moreover, the government is unlikely to want to appear any more overbearing than necessary following many months of unparalleled restrictions of personal liberty during the pandemic.

Perhaps this explains the hesitancy of the government to take a stance on meat despite recent pressure from advisors.

The truth is that we don’t need a controversial government to tell us what we already know. Meat consumption has already dropped by 1 between and 1 .

The tide is already turning. ut to continue this we need to address cognitive dissonance in ourselves, our peers and our families by aligning our daily actions with what we know to be right, as best we can. e need to make a reduction in our meat intake and to inspire others to do the same, while respecting that the ability to do so is a privilege not available to everyone. e can put pressure on governments to make systemic changes by showing that we recognise and accept our own role in the climate fight.

(Screenroad via Unslash)

Does climate change mark the end of the road for cars?

Cameron Scott ith CO over and climate policies still prominent in the public eye, it is perhaps worthwhile to consider whether the commitments of the participating nations are going far enough. It is undeniable that humanity has made significant strides towards tackling climate change over the last several decades, but it is also immediately obvious that much more needs to be done if we are to have any chance of limiting global warming to 1. C by the end of the century. rastic action is desperately required – could a steep reduction in the number of cars on our roads be it Understandably, this suggestion is immediately controversial.

Cars provide freedom and opportunity for all who are fortunate enough to own one. They promote greater social mobility by allowing people to search for employment away from their homes; they allow independent travel which supports hectic 21st century lifestyles and, perhaps most importantly, they facilitate connections to those that we cherish.

This independence comes at a severe environmental cost.

Our modern car-centric culture results in long, congested traffic jams and over reliance of cars for journeys in which other forms of transport may be more appropriate. All of these spit

greenhouse gases and particulate matter into the atmosphere. In the US, vehicles are responsible for one third of all air pollution and, as the exhaust fumes are emitted at street level, this can contribute towards several acute respiratory diseases. In addition to their harmful emissions, vehicle fuels also pose several other indirect environmental harms from their extraction and logistics – it takes a lot of fuel to ship oil from the Middle East to urham.

In the US, vehicles are responsible for one third of all air pollution Those that choose electric vehicles are not free from the adverse effects of car ownerships.

The necessity of privately owned cars has produced the car manufacturing industry from which significant emissions are released during the production phase. hen a brand-new car leaves the factory, it leaves with an exceptionally large carbon footprint.

So, we are left with a paradox. ow do we relieve the environmental burden of car ownership while retaining the freedom that we have grown accustomed to On an individual level, a good action to take to reduce your vehicular carbon footprint is to, unsurprisingly, use it less. The very best thing to do would be to not own one at all. This is not such a drastic option. The UK has

a good public transport system which is more than adequate for many daily commutes and for many careers. In addition, more demand for public transport will inspire greater investment and eventually lead to improved services for all. eing relieved of the temptation to drive short distances also encourages us to walk or cycle more, encouraging healthier lifestyles.

There are many for which this lifestyle is not accessible or feasible. ublic transport links are notoriously unreliable in

more rural environments. or others, mobility issues can cause the public transport hubs to be out of their reach and so, to have the kind of opportunities which we should all enjoy, they need private transport. owever, this is not really the point. If enough people can convert to a car free existence, the demand would be there and private companies would provide for that. owever, people are not going to trade in their transportational freedom purely on the hope of catalysing an environmental

utopia. ublic transport may be sufficient to get by, but it is still prohibitively expensive for many journeys.

This is where societal change must happen. overnment incentives and subsidies must make the cost of public transport commensurate to that of owning and maintaining a car. Investment in infrastructure must be made to make public transport a viable, accessible alternative. It is an enormous challenge but one that is evidently necessary for a more sustainable society.

(Mollie Dunne)

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Thursday 25th November 2021 | PALATINATE

SciTech

Why carbon capture technology is not Musk madness: it is key to solving climate change

Will Brown ast anuary, Elon Musk announced in his usual blunt style that he would be funding the I E Carbon emoval pri e for carbon capture technologies. The responses were filled with pictures of trees mocking Musk for his apparent ignorance of nature’s carbon capturing technology. ut could it really be that simple The average hardwood tree will sequester around one ton of carbon dioxide within forty years. In 1 , humanity released around 33 billion tons into the atmosphere. e’d need to plant 33 billion trees just to counteract the emissions for one year, and that wouldn’t take effect for at least forty years.

continue emitting.

Although the technology is still in its infancy, there have been some promising developments recently.

Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS is the most commonly discussed.

worldwide. In the UK, there have been several failed attempts at this technology – one notable occurrence was when the government spent around £100m on a competition for CCS, then scrapping it. If this technology is going to widespread, it’s going

There are currently two approaches for this – either passing air through a chemical solution that removes the carbon dioxide or passing air through filters.

AC is currently operating on a very small scale, with nineteen

We'd need to plant 33 billion trees just to counteract the emissions for one year Assuming you were to plant around 500 trees per acre, that would cover around sixty-six million acres - an area of land larger than the UK, every year.

Although planting trees is rarely a bad thing, they are not enough on their own. The I CC (the U agency responsible for studying climate change) noted in their most recent report that artificial carbon capture will probably be necessary to reach net- ero. hilst countries can reduce a large amount of their emissions, there are several sectors – such as agriculture – that will be hard to reduce. Therefore, carbon capture allows for net- ero to be reached whilst allowing these sectors to

It involves the extraction and condensation of emissions from power plants, which are then stored underground.

The technology for this is in place, but the prohibitive costs mean that there have been few successful attempts.

There are currently around 1 large-scale CCS facilities

to need to be cheaper – and that, paradoxically, requires more funding.

Perhaps the more intriguing option of carbon capture is what’s known as irect Air Capture ( AC . erhaps unsurprisingly, this involves extracting carbon dioxide directly from the atmosphere instead of at the source.

small-scale plants currently operating worldwide capturing approximately .1 tonnes annually. or context, it is forecast by the IEA (International Energy Organisation that this should be 85 tonnes per year by 2030 if we want to be on track of net ero by .

Similarly to CCS, the cost of this

technology currently makes it infeasible on a large, commercial scale.

The cost of this technology makes it infeasible on a large commercial scale espite the small scale, AC has received significant interest from governments and companies alike with companies like Microsoft investing in research into AC, which theoretically should offset their emissions further down the line when the technology is developed.

There are currently a wide range of approaches for what to do with the carbon once captured.

Carbfix are turning CO into stone.

Project Vesta are turning it into limestone. CarbonCure are storing it in concrete – and for that they won an earlier XPRIZE contest for companies turning CO into products.

There are also several plants currently in the works – such as a plant under construction in the US that aims to be operational by or the recently announced Storegga Dreamcatcher Project that has been awarded a grant from the UK government under its plans for a ‘Green Industrial evolution’.

Elon Musk was not mad when he announced funding for carbon removal technology. It’s a field that’s on the cusp of spreading worldwide, and one in desperate need of further research. If countries are unable to reduce their emissions, carbon capture might be our only hope for reducing the impact on the climate – the sooner it’s commercially viable, the better.

Is your attitude to the climate crisis down to genetics Eve Kirman hen looking at the similarities and differences between individuals, scientists can agree that any deviations are a cause of two main factors – those of genetic makeup and of the environment in which a person is raised. owever, there is a debate regarding the weight these elements hold in contributing to an individual’s attitudes and behaviour.

The discussion of nature versus nurture is most easily observed via identical twin studies.

The shared genetic code between these siblings provides a control variable – enabling any differences between the individuals to be implied to be as a consequence of environmental factors. eing a mono ygotic twin

myself it is, however, easy to see some flaws in this reasoning.

he sh red geneti ode between these siblings provides a control variable Recently, an identical twin study has concluded that the reason some people are more concerned and proactive in terms of environmental issues is down to their genetics.

Particularly, researchers saw that identical twins had more alike attitudes towards safeguarding of the environment than non-identical twins.

Researchers, from the National University of Singapore, used data from over 1,000 twins in response to questions concerning each individual’s attitude towards

nature, conservationism and the climate crisis. The data was sourced from the TwinsUK registry, the largest database in the UK specifically dealing with twins.

In general, twin studies are useful due to their ability to disentangle genetic and environmental factors. Since identical twins have the exact same genetics whilst fraternal twins only share around half of their genes; researchers can view the overall influence a gene has in the development of many physiological or psychological disorders.

For example, if a particular characteristic is expressed more in identical twins than fraternal twins it suggests that said characteristic is caused by genetic factors. reviously, twin studies have unearthed that many

diseases have a genetic basis including anorexia, osteoarthritis, cataracts and obesity.

Many diseases have a geneti sis in luding anorexia owever, the logic behind twin studies isn’t watertight. It assumes that the twins, fraternal or identical, were raised in the same environment – which often is not the case and difficult to quantify.

Furthermore, the prenatal environment, the conditions in which a developing foetus experiences, are generally more similar in identical twins as they often share the same placenta.

Lead author of the environmental study, Chia-chen Chang, takes this into consideration telling The Guardian that “heritability

estimates are influenced by both genetics and environments”, going on to agree that “our environmental behaviour is probably more complicated than we think .

Felix Tropf, a professor at the Center for esearch in Economics and Statistics, also echoes this sentiment and further argues that this particular research is futile. e says that the study is not “extremely useful for the issue [of climate change . Tropf also adds that while “It’s good to analyse the influences on individual behaviour towards environmentalism, […] in the end, climate change is a structural problem, a systemic problem and a political problem.

Thus, ultimately, when it comes to the climate crisis we should be promoting productivity in terms of scientific research and not just trying to make headlines.

PALATINATE | Thursday 25th November 2021

17

Politics

Student

Uganda’s students are facing an educational crisis Annie Bell

(Amana Moore)

(Amana Moore)

Playground politics: its role in Chloe Holbrook Participation in student politics is often seen as a consequential part of university life; the stepping stone for years of future interest, or a chance to influence the day-to-day. For some, it might be the first time engaging in a political forum. For others, it is an initial opportunity to be heard in a community that appreciates them. However, the state of student politics, for all its worth, is arguably not universally held in the highest esteem nor greatly engaged with. Thus, the question arises of whether the institution itself, through the SU, JCRs, MCRs and political societies, can even be considered useful for today’s university population.

There is much potential for student politics as it is a pathway to improve life on campus. There are those who argue that activism through the SU allows for an important amplified student voice, such as in 2016 when tuition fees were raised from £9,000 to £9,250.

In highlighting the University’s “failure to consult” with the student body, they acted as a medium between the institution and its members. This allowed for a sense of recognition and validation that can pave the way for a lasting enthusiasm in politics.

Nonetheless, there are claims

that these political interactions give an inflated sense of self importance that may not translate well into wider society or even make a difference within Durham. The mentioned decision was made by the University, and no students were asked for advice. Attempts to tackle issues beyond student control could result in undermining the value of student politics and voices. More generally, this could be seen as a distortion of the political world in the sense that students are not guaranteed to make change and could feel disillusioned.

In many ways, the state of student politics in Durham is strong and crucial in giving students a taste of democracy. The SU gives opportunities for changemaking, for example, the “Register to vote” campaign encouraged voting in elections, empowering individuals to make decisions and providing a rudimentary basis for future engagement.

This is indiscriminate in its wide-reaching audience; not limited to certain subsections.

Similarly, current campaigns such as ‘Pincident’ that have created “an anonymous mapping tool… which records experiences of harassment” are tailored to the student population. These are important examples of student politics that have high engagement and show the value of Durham’s initiatives.

The JCR and MCR with their associated referendums could be seen as perfect, more limited exposure to the political world.

“Should the role of senior student become sabbatical?”, asked a recent referendum and students are encouraged to attend debates and vote.

So much value can be gained from passing responsibility to students who attend Durham as it gives a sense of ownership and satisfaction with the university experience. Unfortunately, many students do not engage with these activities; whether they simply do not appeal or have not been publicised in an engaging matter, it is a serious point to consider if student politics is to be as universally welcomed as possible.

Between political party, feminist, environmental, minority group societies and more, there are myriad ways to get involved.

Student politics remains an important part of life at Durham it is definitely alive and well.

In some ways it is hard to avoid it. By reading Palatinate itself there is engagement. Although there are numerous shortfalls, and whilst the state of interest in Durham and perhaps any university is by no means perfect, the work that continues with the aim of ultimately improving student participation must be commended.

Education has been one of the hardest hit areas of societies worldwide since the outbreak of Covid-19. Whilst here in the UK, schools are almost entirely back to normal, educational institutions in Uganda have remained fully closed for over 77 weeks. A result of such factors as a lack of resources and delay in vaccine-rollout, this is the largest and longest school closure globally, rendering an entire generation premature school leavers and putting their futures, and Uganda’s, in jeopardy.

It cannot be overstated how intrinsic a good education is for the development of self and the benefit of others. ot only does it provide the hard skills necessary to enhance one’s employability and contribute to boosting economic growth and GDP, but it enriches you with passions and serves as a powerful tool for social cohesion and mobility. Moreover, it increases one’s capital and enhances the chance to control one’s own life. The Ugandan government has made no secret about how highly it values education, labelling education as a vital factor in its ‘Vision 2040’ for economic growth. Although the country introduced free and universal primary education in 1997 (which saw an astronomical rise in student enrolment), its standards are still far from that offered by its private schools, which make up the majority of educational institutions in Uganda. As well as developing academic ability needed for the workplace, education supplies infants with the chance to develop the attributes gained through social interaction, such as selfesteem and teamwork. Education has also been proven to promote peace, suppress issues such as terrorism and discrimination from their core and even reduce infant mortality and increase human life expectancy. It sparks concern, then, that denying educational opportunities from an entire generation will set back the years of positive social developments in Uganda and cause the nation to emerge out of the pandemic in a far worse condition than perhaps the rest of the world.

The Ugandan president ordered educational institutions to close initially for only 30 days back in March 2020. With this mandate, children were supplemented homework activities to last throughout the limited time frame; they were

not equipped to continue their education into the unprecedented months that accumulated.

As a complete lockdown was implemented, it became almost impossible for parents to travel to schools to collect learning supplies, and although Zoom lessons were attempted, access to home computers and sufficient Wi-Fi is sparse. This issue is particularly exacerbated in rural areas of the country, where there were already blatant attainment gaps and disparities in resources.

Education is a key component in reducing poverty, and it seems it will now be even harder for the rural population to compete with urban areas.

Uganda’s political system seems mired and ineffectual. The old tyrant Yoweri Museveni, who toppled Idi Amin in 1986 and seized power, will celebrate his 36th year in power next January - one of the longest serving heads of state. Mr Museveni has been described as “authoritarian” and therefore there is little surprise that education policy is not top of the priority list for a government concerned mostly to maintain its own power.

Girls are particularly hardhit by this crisis. The closure of schools has seen child marriages and teenage pregnancies sore, and government policy requires pregnant girls to refrain from attending school from the early months of pregnancy until the baby is six months old. This is estimated to account for almost 60% of school dropout cases in Uganda. This has pernicious outcomes on a girl’s life chances; since education increases agency, the independence of women is severely threatened when the very tool that provides them with it is taken away.

Due to losses in family income throughout the pandemic requiring children to work, it seems that even when schools do open again, it is likely that many will not be able to return.

Likewise, as the government has struggled to sufficiently pay teachers, many staff have had to find alternative sources of income and are unlikely to return to teaching. Since transmission rates are relatively low, it is absolutely requisite that the country increases its vaccine take-up in order to allow children back into schools. These young people are the country’s future and leaving education so prematurely is likely to have profoundly damaging effects not only upon Uganda’s economy and development, but on personal agency and life opportunities.

18

Thursday 25th November 2021 | PALATINATE

Politics

Domestic

A century of Northern Ireland: can it survive another? era inn in figurehead, in 2018.

Peter Robinson, a DUP founding party member, stepped down as their leader in 2016 to be replaced

by Arlene Foster, succeeded This year, Northern Ireland marks since by Edwin Poots and Jeffrey 100 years since its establishment Donaldson. These changes speak in 1921. The anniversary has raised old issues of identity and to a subtle but important shift in Northern Irish politics: both political strife, as well as the future main parties have moved on from of the region as a nationalist their Troubles-era leadership, First Minister after next year’s vital in moving to a more Assembly election becomes a cooperative future which leaves realistic possibility. behind the toxicity and mistrust The centenary has been marked of an era dominated by armed with a backdrop of deep division, struggle. In practise, however, a mood which has characterised this is challenging, three years of so much of the region’s history. deadlock after the 2017 Assembly At a commemoration event, election symptomatic of enduring Catholic Primate Archbishop political and social fault lines.

Eamon Martin said that partition As another Stormont vote “institutionalised difference”, approaches, the non-sectarian remaining a symbol of “cultural, Alliance party are polling in third political and religious division place, perhaps signalling between our communities”. new trends in identity as Irish president the peace generation Michael D Higgins If noncomes of age. Their declined an rise comes as fresh invitation to that sectarianism is of belonging event, saying its the future, it has a issues are thrown up in a title – an event post-Brexit world. to “mark the long way to go In the 2020 powercentenaries of the sharing agreement, partition of Ireland some demands for an and the formation Irish Language Act were of Northern Ireland” – met after years of DUP resistance. politicised the issue. Higgins This eventual acknowledgement also noted his disappointment at and institutionalisation of Irish being addressed as the president identity, with similar provisions of the Republic of Ireland rather for the Ulster Scots language, than that of Ireland. His absence, starkly exposes the failure alongside that of Deputy First of efforts to build a cohesive Minister Michelle O’Neill, shows society over the last century and the delicate political situation that more recently a preference for still exists across the whole island. institutional paralysis over tough From its creation, Northern questions of leadership. Gridlock Ireland formalised division, in government generally means embedding separation with a the debate over controversial border between the North and issues moves out of formal the Republic. As it was born of structures. violence, so fighting continued, Examples of this are numerous; with the bloodiest period coming earlier this year, loyalist violence during the Troubles, when broke out in response to the around 3,500 people died. This Northern Ireland Protocol, part of ended in 1998 with the Good the UK’s Brexit agreement with the Friday Agreement, largely ending EU. Many unionists have criticised organised violence in the region. the measure, which means that This unstable history – physical there are some customs checks on clashes mirrored by intense goods flowing between orthern political friction – continues into Ireland and Britain, for diluting the present, where an August the union. If non-sectarianism is Lucid Talk poll found that 68% the future, it has a long way to go. of voters are in favour of a border After a century of existence, poll, with 37% believing it should the only thing clear in Northern come in the ne t five years.

Ireland is the lack of stability.

The volatile environment could Institutionalised division has be exacerbated by next year’s meant a failure to reconcile Assembly elections: Sinn Féin are deeply engrained identities. polling as the largest party, which While the largest unionist party’s would entitle them to nominate support wanes, the nationalist the First Minister. It would be a cause appears to be picking up huge symbolic victory and the first momentum as Sinn Féin surge nationalist to hold the role. across the island. With Northern That person could be party Ireland increasingly isolated leader Michelle O’Neill. If the from the British mainland and defining theme of this decade governmental attitudes to is a potential border poll, then the region remaining largely that of the last is surely the shift indifferent, it seems unlikely. in Northern Ireland’s political at present that it will survive a leadership. O’Neill succeeded second century.

Martin McGuinness, a Troubles-

(Rosie Bromiley)

Joe Rossiter Deputy Politics Editor

Levelling up? Broken promises on Northern transport Hannah Redman Anyone who has walked up North Road recently will appreciate the claim that funding for public transport in the County Durham area is woefully short and inadequate, with temporary bus shelters littered across the narrow pavement as work on renovations to the original bus station continues.

According to recent survey data from the ffice for ational Statistics, County Durham is one of the most deprived areas of the country. It is fair to say that public transport is vital for a large proportion of residents in the North East to get to work or school.

Yet, over recent years, the funding that local councils have been able to provide to help subsidise and renovate public transport has been minimal – but hope was on the horizon. In conjunction with the ‘levelling up agenda’ in other public sectors, national government offered £3bn to local council and bus operators to revolutionise North Eastern public transport. In a similar vein to Transport for London’s vision the hope was for cheaper fares, low emission buses and only needing a single ticket to travel on the network (like the Oyster card). However, The Northern Echo recently reported that the money offered to innovate bus networks outside of London has been cut in the Budget to £1.2bn.

North East council leaders fear for their £800m share, with one figure describing the government s changing financial pledges as “disingenuous”.

People need a cheap, reliable bus network that delivers for them This £1.2bn is designed to be a “bus transformation” deal according to the government, who wish to deliver on their manifesto pledge to ‘level up’ local public transport networks in the North of England, in line with high standards in the capital. Investment in bus transport networks in the North East is sorely needed, with some rural areas (such as Northumberland) being completely inaccessible using the current public transport network. With rising prices on other goods and services stretching the wages of the poorest to the limit, people need a cheap, reliable bus network that delivers for them – ‘levelling up’ could not come fast enough.

Recent news of cuts in funding to the proposed HS2 rail network and Northern Powerhouse rail lines not receiving funding to service the city of Bradford on a refurbished line connecting Manchester and Leeds shows

the increasing precarity of the funding prospects of North Eastern public transport.

HS2 was a key Conservative manifesto pledge over the past decade to deliver levelling up of the orth if this flagship scheme has been altered beyond repair, what hope is there for bus renovation plans in County Durham?

Last week, six major Northern newspapers ran a joint headline calling on leaders to “deliver what you promised”, as Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham criticised the government’s “patronising” mentality on the issue.

The discontent is clear and could have ramifications for Conservative electoral prospects in future. As the country emerges from the pandemic, voters in Red Wall seats will be expecting returns on the promises made in 2019, though it seems that these may not materialise as expected.

Whether blamed on postpandemic finances or other logic, Burnham’s discontent could be prescient.

With the recent reinstating of the ‘night tube’ in London, and the plans to invest further in Manchester’s tram network, it can only be hoped that the £800m does materialise for the North East, as it would bring with it greater access to jobs and truly sustainable ‘levelling up’.

PALATINATE | Thursday 25th November 2021

19

International

Politics

Maddy Burt Politics Editor It started as a fairy tale, a story of a Prime Minister swept off their feet by the media. Following three years of protests and a resignation from the standing Prime Minister in 2018, Ethiopia’s Abiy Ahmed swept into the position with promises of reform and plans to reach out to the Eritrean government to resolve the border conflict. e wasn t democratically elected, but he pledged free elections in August 2020, and a smooth transition away from autocracy.

Abiy’s lofty talk of reform was soon reinforced by action. He released thousands of political prisoners and dropped a ban on extreme political parties, while backing a woman, Sahle-Work Zewde, to be president. He was propelling the nation towards democracy and hope.

The Financial Times reported that Abiy was ‘Africa’s new talisman’, while The Guardian praised ‘Ethiopia’s democratic awakening’.

These stories proposed enthusiastically that the hopes of the Horn of Africa rested on him, and he alone held the power to bring about much needed economic and political reform.

Media outlets continued to shine praise on Abiy, neglecting his less admirable intentions in ending a fro en conflict with Eritrea around a border dispute, re-establishing diplomatic relations between the two nations. it was only befitting, many outlets concluded, that he had won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2019 for his actions in ending the war.

There were celebrations as the first flight between the neighbouring countries took place after two decades of hostility. Families were able to reunite with borders once again opening. The fact a tyrannical leader was condoned in the process was quickly pushed to the footnotes of articles.

In a

Tigray

Eritrea

Amhara

Addis Ababa (Paul Kagame via Flickr) manner suiting to his character, Donald Trump announced his own disappointment that he had not been awarded the prize himself, that wasn’t to take away from Abiy’s achievement across headlines. The Times concluded enthusiastically that the committee made an ‘excellent judgement’ by giving the award to Abiy. Certainly, the article ran with vigour, he was not just a man of rhetoric; he signalled a new era of promise for Africa.

And then, the inevitable shattering of the fairy tale, as the illusionary figure the media had created crumbled before their eyes. The papers found Abiy embroiled in a war in Tigray against the Tigrayan People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), which had displaced thousands and left thousands more without access to food following a governmentinduced blockade. The fall from grace in the Western purview was sudden and name quickly came to be preceded by ‘tyrant’ rather than ‘saviour’ amid reports of a humanitarian catastrophe.

The award of the Nobel Peace Prize became an inconvenience at best, and, at worst, a poor look for a committee that has made a

(World Economic Forum / Benedikt von Loebell via Flickr)

( hado

number of bad judgements in its time: giving the award to Henry Kissinger two years before the fall of Saigon, or Barack Obama shortly before his decision to extend American presence in Afghanistan. The committee appealed to Abiy to make peace with the TPLF, but their pleas fell on deaf ears.

Questions were asked: how did Abiy change so quickly from reformer to tyrant? How was his fall from grace so spectacular in its severity?

The answer was obscured between the lines of reporting about Ethiopia. There was never as much of a shift in Abiy’s character as portrayed by media outlets.

Gaps in the stories created a more dramatic picture of discontinuity in Abiy’s actions and character than that occurring on the ground.

artisanshi has im ued riting on the on i t Abiy’s role in signing a peace deal with Eritrea was less about promoting peace and more about surrounding Tigray in a move to control the TPLF, intentionally appealing to a western audience in the process. The TPLF had been in de facto power since 1991, until Abiy’s appointment as Prime Minister. They had undermined Abiy from the beginning of his rule as much of his democratic and economic reform was aimed at dismantling their ongoing power in the economy, state apparatus and army. They continued to form the regional government of the Tigray state and posed a major

o via

i imedia ommons)

threat to Abiy’s federal power.

The conflict, which has been ongoing for over a year now, cannot be reduced to a distinction that only suggests it is an offensive from the federal government on the people of Tigray. Opposition to the government comes directly from the Tigrayan Defence Forces, the armed forced of the Tigray state, and the TPLF, the state’s governing party. Civilians in the Tigray region, many of whom signed up for the TDF, are now under the leadership of the TPLF. urther, the fighting stretches beyond Ethiopia’s borders.

Eritrean troops, who entered the conflict at biy s behest, have committed many of the most notable atrocities. big front of this conflict was the use by both sides of “digital warriors” to fill social media with allegations of violations from the other side. Just as dangerously, many of these partisan claims have been picked up by western journalists and academics in their writing, who fervently take one side or another. These anti-Abiy voices hold the power to majorly influence western policy makers.

Such failure through partisan writing mirrors the failure of the media to grasp Abiy as more than a one dimensional figure from the onset. The voices that should be listened to, including Ethiopian voices and the voices of victims, are rarely given the publicity they deserve ahead of western voices – who are not offering a comprehensible or consistent picture of the conflict. rominent outlets such as CNN are now pursuing a line solely in the favour of the TPLF, often citing sharing misleading takes on the conflict in the process and therefore not thoroughly acknowledging victims throughout the country.

It is much more complicated than many report or discuss, and

yet some fundamentals deserve to be acknowledged. For example, the conflict was instigated by the TPLF attacking a federal army base. Amnesty International has reported on war crimes from all sides of the conflict, including from Eritrean troops and Amhara militias who are allied with Abiy. The TPLF have a very poor democratic record and tried to undermine Abiy’s regime for years. On the other hand, Abiy has continued to side-line Tigrayans in his government, and done much to take away their power. There have been arrests in Addis Ababa, the capital city, of Tigrayans for apparently no reason other than their ethnicity – rather than concrete connection to the TPLF. Noted academics working on the Horn of Africa, such as Alex de Waal and Kjetil Tronvoll, have written widely on the conflict for major western news outlets, from the BBC to The Guardian, and yet routinely report with clear partiality for the Tigrayan side. This obstructs other fundamentals in the conflict.

When speaking to Dr Jacob Wiebel, a historian of modern Ethiopia at Durham University, he expressed concerns around the partisanship that has imbued the writing of many academics on the conflict, including non thiopian academics.

There are a few important points to bear in mind as the TPLF is reported as closing in on Addis Ababa. For one, although the TPLF seems to be stronger than the federal government at the moment, it will struggle to control Addis in light of widespread antiTPLF sentiments and it has no legitimate claim to power.

For another, it would be another humanitarian crisis if Addis becomes blocked off from supply lines, as there already is a major and unresolved humanitarian crisis in Tigray. However distant a prospect this remains, peace negotiations and real political compromise on all sides remain the best hope of beginning to draw this year of atrocities to a close; even if this means the Tigray region follows a similar path to Eritrea two decades ago of pursuing independence, or is afforded significant autonomy within the Ethiopian federal state.

For now, it is essential that reporting on such a conflict in a post-truth world does not promote a narrow-minded approach to viewing the struggle.

The challenges of a world that is reluctant to accept fact cannot be resolved by reducing our capacity to recognise more than one narrative. All this will do is obscure the real suffering and grievances felt acutely across Ethiopia right now.

Thursday 25th November 2021 | PALATINATE

20

Puzzles Chess Puzzle 845

Puzzle Editors Katie Smith, Hugo Bush & Thomas Simpson For online versions, answers and more puzzles, head to

www.palatinate.org.uk/category/puzzles @palatinatepuzzles

Sudoku 845

White to checkmate in 2

3

1 8

5

2 3

5

14

uare it a num er lock e ual t e clue on it e clue on it top. it in t o uare it a clue o . can onl e ne er

14

6

11

5

9 6 9 5 6 1 7 5

8

2 6 1

A sixteenth of a pound

7 9 3

5 2 8

Arrow Word European body of water

8 4

8

9 9 1 1 6 7 8 4 9 2 8 9 5

Kakuro 845 o ol e a akuro ou mu t fill all o t e empt et een an o t e um o eac ori ontal le t an t e um o eac ertical lock e ual t t e lock a igit cannot e repeate . lock o ill ol e a an a ill pro uce or .

6 3

2 5

4

4 1 8

2 1

5

1 3 3 8

An arrow word works the same as a normal crossword, except that the clues are written in the boxes. Each answer appears in a straight line next to each clue, in the direction indicated by the nearby arrow.

Greek god of the underworld

Mechanically cut weeds

Cure

Shove, slam into

Household animal

Iron or zinc, for example

Struck down (archaic)

Desert beasts of burden

Poor quality items

16 22

27 18

34

23 19

23

22

14

34 28

Firms up (of a dessert)

12

23

13

10

25

Sentence Sleuth

26 19

12

19

16

11 15 27

4

13 15

8

6

4

in t e fi e flo er in t i empa sioned speech about shoe fastenings

Propaganda is yesterday’s problem. There is a new evil that will scar nations for years to come: the clandestine but devastating rise of Velcro.

Sense once heightened by the stimulating lace tying process are now dulled by the barbarism of the new mindless fastening method. The hook and loop devil, elcro, cushions the population from the true difficulties of life, thereby creating a populace unable to critically challenge the channels of power. Subconsciously, once free voters now drop their guard and allow themselves to be taken advantage of by Big Shoe. But one day, I hope we can Heely™ this nation.

PALATINATE | Thursday 25th November 2021

PalatiDates o e an

Rose on Florence

lorence

21

eolog an

i tor

tu ent rom re meet or a lin

ate at

e a

it ole.

Florence on Rose Very smiley and energetic!

Tall, shy, and they had good hair!

Our friends and her favourite Chinese place back home.

Our favourite restaurants, our expectations for Lumiere and homemade dumplings.

Talkative, bubbly, messy eater.

Mostly relaxed, quite quiet.

Shy, warm, fan of dumplings.

Engaging and charismatic.

When her and the waiter corrected my pronunciation of “gyoza”.

Cuths I think they’d like living between the cathedral and the river.

(Anna Kuptsova)

Chads — they’re friendly and polite and seem very well read.

Monday night Osbourne’s — fun and very gay.

Cosy pint at the Victoria Inn.

A good meal and a good conversation, and they more than delivered.

m not sure what was hoping for but definitely found it.

I would have ordered dessert to spend more time together.

We didn’t have room for dessert which was a shame.

Absolutely!

100%, yes.

As soon as possible!

Yes.

10

PalatiPets

Think you have the cutest pet? Email editor@palatinate. org.uk with three pictures and 100 words explaining why for a chance to be featured in print

Q

JOHN SNOW

Dear Violet, I literally want to murder one of the other students in my seminars. They never stop asking dumb questions and cannot stop vying for the professors’ attention. I’ve started getting migraines from rolling my eyes so frequently whenever they open their mouth to speak, please help me solve this!

A

Dearest sweetpea, I feel for you strongly and understand what a personal assault it must be on your intellect. I think it is deeply unfair that their disruptive behaviour has begun to cause you physical pain.

I would suggest you start timing and recording the minutes that they waste, then send anonymous weekly invoices equivalent to the amount of time they have taken up.

Although it’s extremely unlikely that you’ll actually gain any monetary compensation, the passive aggressive behaviour will certainly make them think twice next time and you’ll gain everyone’s endless admiration.

Maddy on Mookie

10 This is my cat Mookie - also known as Mooks, Mookie man, Mookster, Schnoofs, Schnoofster, Floofster, Bubs... the list goes on.

He’s my cat, under the terms that my brothers got to choose his name. They named him after a Red Socks baseball star, Mookie Betts — and seriously considered changing his name when Mookie Betts left the Red Socks. I had to explain that our Mookie may not appreciate or understand his name suddenly changing to ‘Xander’ or ‘Rafael’.

We don’t know much about

Q

AIDAN’S

Dear Violet, I can no longer afford the rent in this city. I have been forced to embrace Durham’s connection to Harry Potter and am currently living in the vacuum cleaner cupboard under my friend’s stairs. Please can you help me get back at my lousy landlord?

A

ear suffering reader, first and foremost, there is absolutely no shame in not being able to afford the rent in this city.

Ordinarily, I would support any attempts to live in the magic of the Harry Potter books however this is completely absurd. My vote is for a student-led protest on the growing house prices, paired with how concerningly fast the student population is increasing.

College is also ludicrously expensive and if only the university lowered the prices of college for you, poor darlings, would any landlords actually consider setting reasonable prices.

Mookie’s parentage except that his father was the infamous local tabby. Mookie has proudly followed in his footsteps, asserting himself as the local terror. He’s caused a few awkward instances between us and neighbours — once a neighbour came round to tell us Mookie has caused their cat £400 worth of vet bills in a fight for dominance of the road. Mookie is a bit too protective of our garden, considering that another neighbour told us he regularly takes his second breakfast at their house, at the expense of their cat.

Ask Aunty Violet Have a problem for Aunty Violet?

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Mookie has certainly used up most of his nine lives. When he was still a kitten, he used to proudly bring pondweed from our neighbours pond to lay on the carpet.

Once, he fell in the pond in the process, and came back soaked through. At another point, he got hit by a car in the head, and spent a few mournful days at the vets who let us know he has the loudest meow they’ve ever encountered in a cat.

Once more, he fell in a bowl of varnish and paint. He also has a limp that he puts on when he wants to be dramatic.

Q

HILD BEDE

Q

SOUTH

Dear Violet, An urgent matter for you. After the Polo Social we’ve run out of Dom Perignon (Jonty got absolute blotto) and unbelievably, Tesco doesn’t seem to stock it! It’s quite the predicament!

Please send advice!

Dear Violet, I accidentally wore my pair of normal shoes to Klute instead of my Klute shoes. Now they’re wrecked and my textbooks cost too much to justify buying any new shoes, how will I rectify this?

A

A

Dear distraught reader, Thank you so much for sending in your query. I cannot imagine the trauma that you and the Polo guys are going through. t s uite difficult problem that you have proposed but I can only really suggest that you attempt drinking other beverages, have you ever encountered prosecco? It is a cheaper and much more readily-available type of sparkling wine. f you re struggling to find some, try raiding through your alcohol collection and there will certianly be a dusty bottle you’ve never cared about before. f you re trying it for the first time, perhaps have a sick bag at hand in case your delicate stomach is unable to process its rougher textures.

Dear poor darling, It really is the worst occasion when you wear the wrong clothing to Klute and end up damaging all your favourite belongings.

I think it’s completely valid to wear your soiled shoes to lectures and brunch with absolute pride - it is simply the mark of having made it into the worst nightclub in Europe and survived.

Back in my day, we didn’t care about all this ‘fresh kicks’ business and the dirty Klute-ed shoes signified a night well done.

22

Thursday 25th November 2021 | PALATINATE

Sport Sport

“I should be thanking Durham. This is the wrong way round” Continued from

e

“What is university life about?

Discovery, excellence in sport, a good degree at the end of it- in that order. Ultimately I studied rugby and played economics.”

The pair helped Durham to reach the 1 2 final at Twickenham, where Fennell led the Palatinates out in an 34-10 loss to Loughborough.

They are the first ones to admit that the result was fairly expected.

Ben reminisces that, “we sort of knew that we’d played our final in the semi, so we had two extraordinary days of celebration at the Court Inn. Will adds that, “Still, 30 years later, it’s ‘one more day’. It means we go again.”

This gets to the heart of what Will and Ben, still best friends today, look back most fondly on from their time at Durham.

Ben explains, “There’s something unique and special about this place that’s hard to put your finger on. There s ust a thoroughly special group of people that you end up finding.

My nearest and dearest and closest happen to be people I was at atfield ollege with.”

Greenwood is a Durham legend, who’s since been awarded an honorary doctorate from the University and a place in the Hall of Fame. Yet, despite all this, he still can’t quite seem to believe it’s real. He exclaims, “I should be thanking Durham. This is the wrong way round. Durham was my absolute launchpad, no question. It’s where I changed completely as a human being, grew up and created friendships, and understood life a little bit more.”

Despite his somewhat lackadaisical approach to his own studies, Greenwood is a big believer that going to university is still a key step in the life and careers of the rugby players of today.

“There’ s something unique and special about this place that’s hard to put your finger on” “They overspecialise too quickly. There may be a Marcus Smith, Jonny Wilkinson, or Zoe Harrison, who you know will be a global superstar from 18, but these are less than one percentile of those dragged into academies at 12 or 13.”

“You’re sold a dream that you’re going to play for England.

You pick up six grand a year, live in an academy surrounded by four other lads, and just play rugby or Playstation. Then at 23 or 24, you realise ‘sugar, I’m not

going to make it’, or you rupture an ACL and you’re invalided out of the game.”

“For me, I think there is a way to combine both. Go to Durham and be linked with Newcastle academy, or go to Exeter and be linked with Exeter academy. Go and do your 10,000 hours. Go and play amongst your own age group and develop as a player and as a human being.”

Another pressing issue in the world of rugby is the longterm effects associated with concussion. A group of players, including Greenwood’s former World Cup-winning teammate Steve Thompson, have spoken out about the effects of early onset dementia from repetitive collisions. It’s clear that this is something Will has put a lot of

thought into.

“It’s very sad to hear that some of my friends are going through some really tough times. I have no idea where I’ll be in ten or twenty years time, I had some pretty serious concussions in my career and it is a bridge which I will cross. Knowing what I know now, would I still lace up? Yeah.

Would I still go through those knocks and those hits to have the journey I’ve had? Yes.” He then went on to praise the changes World Rugby have put in place to protect players, particularly at a junior level.

“World Rugby is creating an environment where at a local rugby club, kids are having a lot of fun with their mates. They’re having 700 more touches than they used to in the olden days where it was just one big dogfight.”

“You then get to the stage where you’re 18 or 19 where, just like if you downhill ski, or ride a horse, or box, that there is a danger that comes with a pretty violent sport.

e finished by asking them each for one piece of advice which they’d gained throughout their extraordinary careers. After pondering over it, Will quotes “Being number one in the Mark Twain’s famous epithet: “If world, there was a feeling you only tell the truth, you don’t have to remember anything.” of relief because we didn’t He then goes on to explain, “At want to be another choker, the heart of that is don’t be afraid another English team that to speak out, don’t be afraid to speak your mind, don’t be afraid says ‘could have, should to ask for help, don’t be afraid to have” ask for support, don’t be afraid to offer ideas.”

Ben interjects, “There’s There could be no conversation pressure to be brilliant at with Greenwood that ignores everything. I promise you, age his exploits in Australia in 50, no fucker is brilliant at 2003. Being part of a World Cup everything. People who manage winning side is an incredible feat their careers well focus on what for anyone, but when asked about they’re brilliant at, and what his immediate feelings having they’re passionate about, and been crowned champions, it was they absolutely double down on those things. They put people around them who cover off their weaknesses.”

With his closest friend of thirty years sat opposite, Will is keen to emphasise, “ f you find people that allow that to happen, a r estay fucking close to them. Not everyone gets that. When you find them, then hunker down and stick in the tail of Halley’s Comet.”

Friendship and collaboration are clearly fundamental to Greenwood and Fennell as people.

They have the easy banter and almost telepathic understanding of two people who have spent a lifetime celebrating the good times together and supporting each other when things get tough.

Ben got Will’s extra ticket for the World Cup Final afterparty. e tells stories of ill finishing playing for England, before rushing from Twickenham to Ben Fennell and Will Greenwood (DU Business School) Rosslyn Park to celebrate his university captain’s simply “relief”. ridged forehead, saying ‘What’re former “I think you may get a you doing, get out of there’, which victories in what was then rugby’s different answer from different creates a total understanding in third division. It’s clear that for teams. Greece winning the Euros terms of our culture. This is me, these two, friendship comes first.

They thrive on teamwork and might be ‘oh my God what have this is you, this is how we look have learned to play to each we just done’. Being number one after each other.” other’s strengths, and protect in the world, there was a feeling of relief because we didn’t want “Knowing what I know now, their weaknesses, as friends as much as they have in the to be another choker, another respective teams they’ve been English team that says ‘could would I still lace up? Yeah. have, should have.’”

Would I still go through parts of over the years.

It’s with this in mind that “In reality, we played our best those knocks and those Greenwood tells us that, however rugby arguably eighteen months before. We had a bit of a purple hits to have the journey I’ve great the World Cup win was, he’d give it all back in a heartbeat patch, a two or three week blitz. had? Yes” rather than lose his university We went to Ireland for three “And then in terms of years. weeks, and went to Australia and “Don’t take away my three New Zealand and won there. But accelerating growth, you have by the orld up, the finish line a guy like (manager of the 2003 years at Durham. Those are my side) Clive Woodward, who’s mates. It would be like taking couldn’t come quickly enough.”

Quite rightly, that side has bringing in private equity people, away my right and left arm. I been dubbed as one of the hockey coaches, royal marines, cannot overstate just how much greatest English sporting teams trying to accelerate what we’re fun I had here.” of all time. Characters like Martin doing. He wanted us to learn fast, Write for Sport Johnson and Jonny Wilkinson mitigate the cost of failure, bring became icons of British sport, in interesting people to really Pitch to us at alongside partnerships such as speed us up or do those extra sport@palatinate.org.uk one-percenters that’ll make the Greenwood and Mike Tindall, or join the Palatinate Sport difference over what we’re doing which will go down in legend.

Contributors Facebook The makings of a team like this already.”

We’ve got to a stage where now you can make an adult decision of what is going on.”

central to the book which Fennell and Greenwood have written.

“Togetherness, difference and growth” are the three things which Fennell says make up a great team. “Whether sporting, commercial or military, we found those three things at play. Celebrate difference, forge togetherness, accelerate growth.”

Greenwood looks back on his time with England and agrees.

“Just look at me and Tindall.

Everything I couldn’t do, he could, and vice versa. If you want difference, there you go. In terms of togetherness, I’m at the bottom of a ruck against the French and you have someone like Martin Johnson over you with one bloke in his right arm, one bloke in his left arm and he’s busy headbutting the other Frenchman with his

23

PALATINATE | Thursday 25th November 2021

Sport

Steph Houghton: “I love the fact I’m from the North East” Sport spoke to England and Manchester City captain Steph Houghton about her career and all things women’s football in the North East Abi Curran & George Simms Sport Editors In Steph Houghton’s own words, she has been “fortunate enough to have been involved in some unbelievable moments.”

That seems to be a colossal understatement from the 33-yearold. The England and Manchester City captain has had a footballing career that most could only dream of.

From World Cups, to Olympic Games, to Women’s Super Leagues, Houghton has performed on the biggest of stages. But why would anything less be expected of yet another sporting star to be produced from the North East?

Houghton seemed to be stumped when asked to pick two highlights from her playing career, “God that’s a tough one.” A brief pause ensued. “I’d probably have to say the England captaincy, I think that was massive for me in terms of my career and also for me as a player.”

“I always knew I’d be playing football. I just didn’t know if it would be professionally.”

“To be given the opportunity to, first and foremost, play for your country but also to lead the side out at four major tournaments has been unbelievable and something that is more for my family than me.”

“I think to be able to represent two amazing clubs in Man City and Arsenal and to win trophies with them is up there too. I mean the Olympics as well, 2012 was unbelievable so I can’t really narrow it down.” Despite naming three highlights, we’ll let Steph off on this occasion.

Brought up in South Hetton, a village in between Durham and Sunderland, Steph’s career has taken her across the world, but her roots underpin everything she does, both on and off the pitch.

“I love the fact I’m from the North East” she tells us. “A lot of my career, the foundations of who I am today, are because of how I’ve grown up and the people I’ve been surrounded by.” Houghton came through the Sunderland Centre of Excellence, before moving into the underland first team in 200 , aged just 17, and leaving for Leeds Carnegie in 2007.

Around this time, she was also studying Sports Science at Loughborough. She explained, “I always knew that I’d be playing football. I just didn’t know if it would be professionally.” This changed when she became one of the first 1 players to earn England central contracts in 2009.

“To lead the side out at four major tournemants has been unbelievable.”

Despite her time with England and at Leeds, Arsenal and Manchester City, she still credits Sunderland with giving her the opportunity and foundation to start her career. “I can never be more thankful for my football career - the basics that I learnt and how I could be as a human because of them. I’m very proud to have come from the North East and to have represented a team that I support.”

Despite the lack of success for their teams in both the men’s and women’s games of late, the North East has a reputation as a hotbed of footballing talent, and Houghton is keen to emphasise that.

She explains that “It’s obviously produced some of the best internationals, especially in the women’s side, over the last few years.

There’s a lot of us that are involved, the like of Jill (Scott), Carly (Telford), Lucy (Bronze), Demi (Stokes) just to name a few. With the likes of Durham (Women) and Sunderland (AFC Ladies), it just shows that

everybody has a love for women’s football in the region and wants them both to do well.”

So what’s next for women’s football in the North East? A lot of that will depend on whether Amanda Staveley comes good on her promise to invest heavily in the women’s game in Newcastle.

Steph is keen to emphasise that just throwing money at women’s football will not automatically improve clubs.

“It’s important that clubs invest but there has to be some strategy behind it, it’s not just about throwing money in, there has to be a well thought out plan to allow the club to progress nicely and produce their own players, as well as trying to attract other players.”

She uses her former club, Sunderland, as an example of this, “ I went through a spell with Sunderland where they wanted to invest but did we really have the backing or was it kind of a bit of a talking gesture. At the time I wasn’t really so sure. Ultimately that’s why the club is potentially in the Championship.

With the players they have produced, t h e y should 100% be in WSL 1. It’s important to make

sure it’s not just about one season, it’s about the future as well.” Houghton is an instinctive leader and will want to explore this beyond her career on the pitch. On whether she can ever see herself managing, she said, “We’ll see. Obviously I’m trying to finish my coaching badges. hile I’m injured at the moment, I’m trying to fill my time ust to get it done before the busy games come around.

“You never know, whilst I’ve been out watching games I can see myself being a leader in some sort of sense. Maybe not a manager but something within first team and high-performance teams. I’m trying to leave my options open.”

Having already tried her hand at punditry and column writing, she said, “That’s something I’ve thought about, especially post career. It’s something I love, I absolutely love the game. For me it’s kind of a dream job but I think there are a few more strings to my bow than just punditry.”

But for all the talk of her postplaying career, there’s still plenty left to come for teph on the field.

All things being equal, she will lead England out of the tunnel for next summer’s home Euros and look to add to her 121 caps. he s only five games away from overtaking Peter Shilton, the English men’s footballer with the most caps, and joining the group of six women’s players with more caps than Shilton.

Now coached by Sarina Wiegman, who oversaw the Dutch victory at Euro 2017, England should have all the necessary tools to go one better than their semi finals at the most recent Euros and World Cup. Steph assured us, “It’s going to be an unbelievable tournament.

The girls are confident, obviously when you’re a home nation and

you’re going to have the whole country behind you, it gives you that little bit more confidence to go and do well. Fingers crossed we can go and do something that makes everybody happy.”

England are joined by Austria, Norway and Northern Ireland in Group A. They face Austria in a orld up ualifier at the Stadium of Light on November 27th, which Steph calls a “good test to see where we are as a team” after four relatively easy wins, with a combined score of 32-0, since Sarina Wiegman took over.

Houghton will likely cross paths with Durham Women defender Sarah Robson, who has 60 caps for Northern Ireland. Despite 6-0 and 4-0 wins over Northern Ireland in 2021 alone, Houghton is full of praise for Kenny Shiels’ side, calling them a “great team” and adding that there’s an “added bit of pressure against the home nations, because we’re expected to win”.

We ask if she might make it to Maiden Castle in April to watch Durham Women face her old side Sunderland. “If I can’t come, then my Grandma will be there” she quipped back. Steph’s love of football, and the North East, is infectious and this clearly goes for her family too.

“Fingers crossed we can go and do something that makes everybody happy.”

According to Steph, her footballing legacy isn’t something she thinks about often. But when asked what she would like it to be she replied, “I’d like people to think of us as someone that’s probably paved the way. I think ultimately just someone who’s stayed humble and been a good person. If people could say them few words about us then I’d be pretty happy.”

(Manchester City FC)

DUSC break records at BUCS Short Course Swimming Championships Abi Curran Sport Editor The pool at Ponds Forge International Sports Centre had not hosted a finals day in almost two years. So, when Durham headed down to heffield for the Short Course Championships, the club were on the lookout for a weekend of strong swims.

Joined by Olympians and European record holders round the pool, Durham Swimming Club

Perhaps the most successful (DUSC) were in good company.

Athletes such as Andreas Vazaios team was the women’s relay team. and Louise Hansson, national On day one, in the heats, the 4x50 swimmers for their respective freestyle relay team A set a new countries, raced alongside stu- record by over a second in the dents from 81 universities across 200m race. After coming in the top 20, the team then broke their the country.

In this respect, it wasn’t going own record in the finals. rodie to be an easy weekend for DUSC Judge, Amy Hodgson, Flora Forbut, if their Sky Sports-esque in- rest and Grace Maskell came away troductions via Instagram stories winners after a strong final race.

The story in the 4x50 women’s were anything to go by, the team meant business. A weekend of medley relay was not too dissimiimpressive swimming broke nineCitylar.

(Manchester FC)The same swimmers pushed hard and broke a seven-year-old Durham University records.

Durham record. The medley team managed fourth place this time in the final and, if that wasn t enough, simultaneously broke their own record again in the final race. Over in the mixed relay, both of Durham’s teams managed to break records, and then break them again. Durham A broke the 4x50 mixed medley relay record of 1:56:51 from 2019 by over a second, with Durham B cutting that time by over another second in their subsequent race.

It comes as no surprise that

Ponds Forge is famous for being one of the world’s fastest pools.

The depth of the pool is complimented by the type of gas that is used to chlorinate the pool providing perfect conditions for records to be broken.

After success in the Short Course Championships, Durham University Swimming Club will look forward to the Long Course Championships which are to be held in February, anticipating more records and success in the pool.

Thursday

24

Sport

th

November 2021 | PALATINATE

“I should be thanking Durham. This is the wrong way round”

Sport talk to Durham alumnus and World Cup winner Will Greenwood

Steph Houghton: “I love the fact I’m from the North East” The England women’s football captain talks ewcastle, Euro

and her legacy

Sixth-tier Gateshead into FA Cup second round after dramatic win Jonny Tiplady

Sport Editor

National League North side Gateshead have made it to the second round of the FA Cup for the first time in four years. They did so in dramatic fashion, beating Altrincham with a stoppage-time winner in their 3- replay win.

Having twice taken the lead and twice been pegged back by their ational eague hosts, talismanic striker Macauley Langstaff popped up with an injury-time scorcher from outside the box to wrap up the tie. angstaff has eight goals in ten league appeareances this season.

The Tynesiders had looked set to make the next stage in less hair-raising circumstances; they led 2-0 at home in the original tie with just seven minutes to go.

Gateshead have lost just once since the beginning of September

(Gateshead FC)

ut, Altrincham’s own injurytime heart-breaker, a 95thminute equaliser from Jake Moult, forced a draw and a replay on home soil.

The eed are no strangers to dramatic cup ties this season; they needed a replay and another 3- victory to reach the first round against eighth-tier Marske United, and the same scoreline to beat Runcorn Linnets, another eighth-tier team.

The game represented a break from a restless league campaign for a Gateshead side who have lost just once since the beginning of September. Currently sat in ninth place in the National League North, Mike Williamson’s team are just a point outside the playoff places. Their game against Altrincham was a real test of their promotion mettle and proved they can compete with teams in higher divisions. They have not been in the fifth tier of English football since being demoted for financial irregularities in 1 .

The next round of the A Cup will pose an even greater challenge, as they face eague One side Charlton Athletic in just two weeks’ time. uoyed by their fans at the 11,800-seater Gateshead International Stadium, and IT viewers at home, the team will be hoping for a shock win to progress to the third round.

If they do, it will be the first time since 2015 that Gateshead have reached the third round of the A Cup, where they then faced a heavy - loss at the hands of est romwich Albion.

Giant shocks have been synonymous with the A Cup in recent years. ho could forget Wigan Athletic felling Manchester City in the fifth round, or incoln City’s stunning run to the quarter-finals Some say the A Cup is losing its magic.

With underdog stories like these, fans can rest assured they will be easily enchanted once again.

In conversation with Will Greenwood and Ben Fennell George Simms Harvey Stevens 3 years ago and seven weeks, this was the first pub I came into.

I got a note in my pigeon hole, from Dan Sibson and Nick Keller saying, Shakespeare, ’o’clock’.

Yet when Durham alumnus ill reenwood M E once again ducked through the doorframe of The Shakespeare at pm last Tuesday, he returned a orld Cup winner. A crucial part of England’s 3 ugby orld Cup-winning side, Greenwood won two Premierships with the

eicester Tigers, before helping arlequins to two European Shields. e is joined by en ennell, another urham alumnus. ennell captained urham’s first in his time here, first inviting Greenwood to join a pre-season tour to Sicily before his first year had even begun. Although ennell’s rugby career perhaps didn’t reach the lofty heights of his counterpart, he went on to collect an Oxford blue before focussing on the world of business. After 1 years as CEO of advertising giant BBH London, Fennell set up his own agency, The rowth ouse.

More recently, however, the two have united to write a book: World Class, documenting their experiences in the world of sport and business. They sat down, in The Shakespeare with Palatinate to discuss their time at Durham, the world of rugby and what makes a great team. ill did go A O for first term ennell joked with us. e hadn’t had a year off, came straight up to Durham and found alcohol, women and freedom.

Greenwood laughs in agreement and philosophises.

Continued on page 22

(Find a Future)