Palatinate 859

PA L A T I N A TE

Student support for UCU strikes wavers

Ben Webb and Emily Doughty News Editors

The UCU has announced a further 18 days of industrial action at universities nationwide, with many Durham University lecturers and tutors joining the strikes.

These 18 days equate to 44% of remaining teaching hours for Epiphany Term (accurate from the UCU announcement on 24th January).

A poll conducted by Palatinate on 28th January found that 29% of Durham University student participants supported the UCU and all of their tactics. This is an increase of 1% compared to polling conducted in November 2022.

However, the poll saw an increase from 27% to 32% of students selecting the statement “I support the UCU but not their actions”.

There was also a decrease from 34% to 25% of students selecting the statement “I support UCU strike action but not marking boyco ”.

Palatinate also saw a slight increase in the percentage of students who selected the statement “I do not support the UCU at all” from 11% to 14%.

This means that student support for current strike action stands at 54%. Student opposition to strike action ranks at 46%. In November, support for strike action was at 62%

A total of 965 students took part in January’s survey, up 39% from the 692 respondents that participated in November 2022.

Testimony provided by students to Palatinate was mostly positive towards the strikers and their demands, with one student stating that they would “support strikers all the way until their demands are met. It’s the only way to make change happen”.

Another student wrote: “At the end of the day, the best way to make social change is to cause issues and if that means lecturers have to strike and stop lectures then that’s what they have to do. They deserve to be well paid”.

Some testimony places the fault of UCU strikes on the University. One student testified that “The

Continued on page 4

Mould,

Nicole Wu and Lucy Baldwin Editor-in-Chief and News Reporter

Since the beginning of Epiphany term, students at St Aidan’s College have complained about the “abysmal” food quality being served to students living in college. There have been college-wide complaints with students finding mould, hairs and plastic served within their food.

The University has said this is due to the construction of a new kitchen - students are expected to be served reheated food from Hild Bede College and Lindisfarne until at least the end of Epiphany term but most likely longer.

Students claim they were not appropriately informed about the University’s plans to provide reheated food. Aidan’s

reheated catering

students claim the first time they were formally told about the new arrangement was in a St Aidan’s wide email sent on 8th January, a day before Epiphany term and the new food arrangement began.

In the email, Susan Frenk, St Aidan’s College Principal addresses students saying: “While the project leader, Paul Taylor, and University Executive Chef, Michael Thorne, have assured us that the arrangements should run smoothly, the trial run is today and we ask you to be patient and understanding if there are any problems.

“The food is being prepared in the Hild Bede kitchen, transported to the Lindisfarne Centre (which has been requisitioned as a temporary kitchen to reheat the food) and then transported to the concrete area outside the Dining Hall. It is then brought inside in specialist trolleys

to the servery. Used crockery will be taken offsite after each service to be washed in the service kitchen in the Snow-South hub.”

Starting on 21st January, St Aidan’s students organised an open le er to the University’s Executive Commi ee that since has amassed 109 St Aidan’s student signatures as well as the support of: Dan Lonsdale, President, Durham Working Class Students Association; Halle Afflick, President, 93% Club Durham; Don Brooks, President, Durham Tenants Association; St Aidan’s First Generation Scholars; Joe Eaton, President, St Aidan’s JCR; all Executive members, St Aidan’s JCR as of Monday 6th February.

In the open le er, students criticise the University’s lack of quality of catered food and

the mental toll from the current catering arrangement, concern regarding increased discourse surrounding eating disorders, socio-economic divisions between students who are able to afford external takeaway meals. Students also had concerns regarding the environmental impact of the new catering arrangement, the feeling of St Aidan’s as a college becoming sidelined and marginalised compared to other colleges, as well as no monetary compensation for the reduced quality of catering.

Four demands were outlined clearly in the open le er, these are as follows:

• We would like for ‘Livers in’ to be compensated £1000 for the loss of quality of our catering, including mouldy and inedible

Continued on page 3

National Education Union and Universities and Colleges Union protested side-by side on 1st February (Thomas Tomlinson)

A sense of déjà vu...

Today, universities across the country are witnessing their second day of strike action this year. This marks Day Two of eighteen days affected by strikes in February and March which clearly subdue prior anger concerning the three strike dates witnessed last November. If you walk past any university buildings across the city, you’ll see UCU members keen to hand you a leaflet explaining their case and why they are on strike.

dies down until it happens all over again.

There is anger amongst the student body - anger that is readily available - but the majority of this is directed at the University. Some students join staff on the picket line, most do not. There is no counter-protest to the strikes that takes place, any disquiet with those on strike is kept to quiet murmurings amongst friends and this does not seem common.

Palatinate has reported on students’ a empts to gain partial refunds on tuition fees due to strikes in the past. These a empts had limited success, but they at least put pressure on the University and demonstrate that we as students are not satisfied.

sustained periods of strike action.

Now, more than three years ago, the UCU began 14 days of strike action and the only thing that stopped this being more was the arrival of the Covid-19 pandemic. For fourth year Durham students, at the end of this period of strike action, they will have undergone 40 days of strike action, averaging two working weeks each year - or very nearly 10% of teaching time over an entire degree.

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14-16

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Much like the cycle of college accommodation price increases that were the subject of last edition’s editorial, there is an element of frustrated acceptance with these strikes. Strike action is announced, everyone sighs, the dates are confirmed, students check their timetables to see what is missed. Some celebrate, some despair. The dates come around and rallying cries of solidarity come from the picket line, the local MP, Mary Foy comes to show her support and then it all

As a second year student, this will be the fourth set of strike action that I have faced in less than 18 months at Durham University. I have had the opportunity to cover most of the strike action that has taken place. Last year, striking staff and the University failed to thrash out a deal, which resulted in lost teaching time. This year, it requires a national solution which does not appear to be forthcoming.

The UCU have described this set of strike action as ‘unprecedented’, but I would argue that this is not the case.

No one was surprised by this announcement, partly because there had been fair warning, but also because there is precedent from recent history for long,

When I have spoken to those on the picket line, be it lecturers or Mary Foy, I tend to start my line of questioning with a very basic question: “Why are we still out here?” The response is always the same “because nothing has changed”. The employers have not budged and have not offered to budge to a level that satisfies the union’s demands, so we are stuck in this endless cycle.

What is curious however, is the fact that while I make the case that this action is not really unprecedented, it is a whole new level of wage consuming for

those who do not go into work. The UCU must re-ballot in April to reaffirm their mandate to strike and with 21 days of action over these two terms, it is more unaffordable than ever for those who participate. Will they reach the 50% quorum needed for the vote to be meaningful? Will they vote to strike again? Will their struggle be in vain? Time will tell. Spare a moment of thought for those international students who fork out anywhere up to triple the prices that domestic students pay. For some of my friends who I have spoken to, the lack of understanding of strikes for some of those who are international is because strikes simply do not occur in their native country, things run as they should. Oh for the day!

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(Rosie Bromiley)

There is an element of frustrated acceptance with these strikes

We are stuck in this endless cycle

Reheated food has been provided for the last 4 weeks: students demand a deadline

Continued from front food, and also to offset some of the additional food shops many students are now forced into spending as they can no longer eat college food. We recommend extra financial support for those who receive the Durham Grant.

• A set deadline as to when our kitchen will be back to normal, and promises for additional compensation should this deadline not be met.

• A timeline in which we will see refurbishments of college accommodation. Feeling the impact of work being done on our kitchen, for the benefit of other colleges, whilst we ourselves are living in run-down accommodation is unfair, demoralising, and reinforces the idea that Aidan’s is a college not valued by the University.

• Somebody from the UEC to come down to the JCR to listen to our concerns and explain why Aidan’s was decided as the college to be co-opted into a project for the be erment of self-catered colleges.

The open le er is signed off saying, “We understand that many of the points in this le er may have never been considered during planning projects. However, you can no longer hide behind naivety. We have provided clear evidence as to the mental, physical and communal detriment of this project. You must act accordingly.”

On 27th January, the coorganisers of the open le er received a response from Jeremy Cook, Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Colleges and Student Experience). In the le er, Cook wrote “As you know, a Central Production Kitchen [CPK] is required to provide formal and event catering for self-catered colleges. In recent years, the number of self-catered colleges in Durham City has increased in response to student demand for self-catered accommodation, and this is likely to continue.

“The University has rigorous protocols in place for its senior catering staff to manage specific incidents around food safety. The first step should always be to report any concerns in relation to food safety to your college’s catering team, who will initiate the investigation procedure. “

Liv Eren, one of the organisers of the open le er and St Aidan’s student, described the response from the Pro Vice Chancellor as “meagre” and “it doesn’t really address our concerns, if anything it blames us for being so upset about it”. She also argues that asking for £1000 compensation per student for the poor food quality is a fair ask considering the University is spending “huge sums of money on expansion and other projects”.

She described having personal experiences of mouldy bread and said she was only eating 30% of the food due to its poor quality. She said the food quality is “so bad, you just become desensitised”.

She questioned the University’s

decisions saying “Why on earth are we transporting Aidan’s food around Durham when you’ve already established that you have a spare kitchen in Hild Bede why are we suffering, eating meagre meals everyday for other colleges benefit?”

Students have expressed issues with the food triggering disabilities. One of the students who signed the le er said “the food changes have affected me quite a lot. I have an autoimmune condition which limits swallowing, meaning it’s important that the food quality is good. In recent weeks I’ve found myself skipping meals due to being anxious about the food triggering symptoms. I’ve experienced meals which are generally bad quality, reheated, and unappealing, such as the photo where we were trying to figure out what it actually was.”

in individual sauce, salt & pepper and yoghurt pots having a large environmental impact.

St Aidan’s JCR president, Joe Eaton said: “It’s clear that for some people living in college at Durham University is looking less and less a ractive. To be clear though, this is in no way the fault of the amazing catering and servery staff at our college. This isn’t their doing, it’s the doing of a flawed, reckless and over budget university infrastructure policy that has consistently overlooked the needs of both the students and the college. As a student leader, I will always support, at any opportunity, students standing up for something they believe in.”

Former St Aidan’s College JCR president and current Durham SU president Joe McGarry said “Students pay extremely high fees, and also have to put up with very low standards. The college staff and student reps raised concerns repeatedly about the implementation of the CPK, and we’ve seen the hard work the servery staff and chefs are doing in the kitchens in Aidan’s, but the poor project management is something even they can’t overcome without support.”

throughout the last decade. The proposed arrangements for St Aidan’s College were discussed prior to implementation with Durham County Council’s environmental health team, who were satisfied with our well-established processes for managing food safety.”

The le er further states that “within the planning of this temporary service, we carefully considered any additional workload which would be created for our staff. Aspects of the catering workload, for example logistics, have indeed increased; however, we have enhanced our staffing levels in response to support the delivery of these tasks.

environmental impact; as one example, we will be providing a reusable water bo le to every student in catered accommodation at St Aidan’s College, considerably reducing the need for single-use plastics during this period of development works. Our recently appointed food supply partner, Foodbuy, are commi ed to becoming carbon neutral by 2030.

“The University is investing over £100m in a residential refurbishment programme to improve the quality of college accommodation over this decade.”

Other students have referenced eating disorders as students are no longer willing to risk eating from college for their own health, others spoke about the difficulties in logistically receiving food they have paid for. A student said “Since our food is being transported from Hild Bede, we also need to sign up for packed lunches by breakfast two days before the afternoon we need it, compared to before when we could sign up the morning of, which is usually impossible due to timetables changing and other commitments clashing.”

A St Aidan’s JCR exec member told Palatinate about “habitual side-lining of the college [by the University]” - they said “This college, I feel, is where they often put people who are not fi ing into the conventional idea of what a Durham student is and it really plays into problems with classism and elitism”. The student expressed concern that the communal beer garden space had been built over in order to make way for CPK and the University’s Executive Commi ee showing li le respect for student’s spaces in college.

Students raised serious concerns about the environmental impact of transporting the food across the city. A member of St Aidan’s College Eco Society estimates that “1000 plastic cups per day minimum are being used” as well as the plastic

Laura Curran, Durham SU’s Welfare and Liberation Officer said, “This is not the first time that changes in catering have impacted students in terms of finances, physical health, and mental health. When catering became centralised in 2019/20, students saw a significant decline in the quality of the food. Inadequate portion sizes and improperly cooked food saw students left hungry after meals or reluctant to eat them at all. University management saw the consequences of major changes in catering back in 2019, so the fact that these issues have resurfaced despite this prior knowledge is, to me, inexcusable.”

Palatinate asked the University for comment regarding the claims. In response, the University provided the le er from Jeremy Cook, ProVice-Chancellor which was sent to the open le er organisers on 27th January. The le er states “we’re commi ed to providing a quality student experience to all our students’ adding ‘our catering is delivered to the highest industry standards.

“St Aidan’s College was chosen as the most suitable site [for the CPK] following careful deliberation, in the course of which the views of college management teams were sought and heard. I would ask all students to bear with us through the period of building works.”

In response to allegations made about food standards being lower for Aidan’s students the le er states: “I can reassure students that the methods of food preparation and delivery in use at the current time at St Aidan’s College are an industry standard, used in a wide range of hospitality environments in the catering industry and across a number of colleges at Durham

“We share students’ concerns around mental health issues connected to food, and around the cost of living, which affect students across the University. There are extensive support mechanisms in place. We would urge students affected by either of these issues to seek support from their College, from the Counselling and Mental Health Service or from the Student Money Advice service as appropriate. The University takes the mental health of its students very seriously and is currently working towards achieving the University Mental Health Charter.

“We are also determined to reduce further the University’s

Palatinate contacted Durham County Council: the Head of Community Protection Joanne Waller responded to the allegation. “We were contacted by the university’s health and safety team to inform us of the planned kitchen works at St Aidan’s and the intention to temporarily supply meals which had been cooked and blast chilled. Cook-chill systems are a safe method providing that appropriate control measures are put in place by the food provider.

“Food safety management systems do not need official approval from the council. However, food business operators have a responsibility to prepare and implement these measures and we do check these are in place during our routine hygiene inspections.”

Students demand monetary compensation for “meagre meals”

Aidan’s students found plastic in their meals (Photos from open le er)

A flawed, reckless and over budget university infrastructure policy... overlooked the needs of both the students and the college

Support for all UCU tactics increased by 1% while anti-UCU sentiment up by 3%

Continued from front

Uni should sort themselves out and treat their staff be er, and compensate students”. With another placing the responsibility on Durham to provide be er conditions - “The Uni needs to provide more support to staff who work in awful conditions”.

UCU Industrial action has caused unrest within the student body in relation to the University, with one student saying “This university is a disgrace” and another continuing to say “It’s disgraceful,

students have been impacted enough over the last few years”.

When asked their thoughts on whether they were partly at fault, Durham University did not respond.

Testimony shows that some students are demanding financial compensation for teaching missed during strike days. One student demanded “A refund if fees should be given for every single strike day” while another wrote that it is “Such a shame the uni won’t be reimbursing us for the teaching we aren’t receiving”.

In a statement to Palatinate Durham University said

UCU strikes explained: why are staff taking action and how are students affected?

Emily Doughty and Ben Webb News Editors

Why are staff striking?

The University and College Union (UCU) is taking industrial action after their members - made up of university staff - voted in favour of action in October last year over their ongoing pensions dispute, as well as issues regarding pay and working conditions. The UCU have called for a pay rise for staff in light of the costof-living crisis and for cuts to the USS pension fund to be reversed.

Will my contact hours be cancelled?

This depends on who is leading the class. Some academic staff are not members of the UCU and therefore will not be participating in strike action. However academic staff are not obligated to tell students if they are taking part in action. Most departments recommend assuming all contact hours are taking place as normal unless you are told otherwise.

Why is all action ending in April?

All action is officially scheduled to end in late April when the UCU’s mandate for national action ends. The National Education Committee (NEC) has already called for another ballot to be held, which would extend the amount of time that the Union could take action.

How is this strike different from last year?

The strike is different as unlike in previous years the dispute is national. This means the University’s role in the disagreement is limited, with a

“Tuition fees cover a whole University experience and are not directly linked to specific contact or teaching hours.

“Many staff will not participate in strike action. Those who do will be asked to follow the University’s detailed mitigation measures to minimise disruption to students and ensure that we protect their learning experience.

“The University will be monitoring the impact of the industrial action. There are no plans to offer compensation as we hope that the impact of the industrial action will be mitigated.”

Some students suggest that the strikes are pointless due to apathy on the part of the University, with one testimony asserting “Uni admin doesn’t care about the strikes. The only people affected are the students. Wrong move by UCU”.

taken on 28th January continues to recognise this with 25% of participants supporting UCU but not their marking boyco

employers in this scheme.

“We recognise that the decision to vote in favour of industrial action by some UCU members at Durham was not taken lightly. We continue to work collaboratively with our campus trade unions in respect of USS, pay and other issues where we share areas of common ground. Where we can take action locally, we do.

“Our wider terms and conditions of employment are very generous, for example our family friendly policies are amongst the most generous in the HE sector.”

local solution unlikely to end the action.

Durham University is a member of Universities UK (UUK) and University and Colleges Employers Association (UCEA) making them bound to sector-wide decisions on pay and pensions.

Will I be compensated?

The University has not yet confirmed whether students will be offered any form of compensation for teaching lost due to the 21 confirmed days of strike action this year.

In the year 2019-20 students were not offered compensation unless it was deemed that their “learning outcomes” had not been met. Similarly, in the 2021-2022 academic year only a handful of students received compensation.

In a statement, the University said that “Tuition fees contribute to a whole university experience and are not directly linked to specific contact or teaching hours.

“At this point in time, we do not know the precise impact of industrial action on individual students, but Durham is committed to providing students with an educational experience that is accessible, inclusive, and of high quality regardless of how it is delivered.

“Mitigating the impact of industrial action on students is our highest institutional priority and our staff will be asked to temporarily set aside other activities to support this goal”.

Will my work be marked?

Possibly. The marking and assessment boycott is only scheduled for April. However, if UCU members vote to extend their mandate for action, the NEC could potentially call for a continuation of the boycott.

Another suggested that “If lecturers truly had student interests at heart they wouldn’t strike. Never comes to anything”.

Industrial action taken by UCU has been seen to affect all students, with international and postgraduate students likewise testifying on the disruption they face.

International student testimony again places a focus on reparations and the financial burden of strike action, with one student saying: “As an international student, I am paying too much money to be able to support such strikes”.

And another breaking down this cost further: “I pay £7000 a term (international fees), each lecture costs roughly £110, so I’d love some money back”

There are also continued concerns from finalists over a potential marking boyco detailed by the UCU as a further measure if their demands are not met.

This has been unpopular with students in the past, and the poll

One student stated “Strikes sure, but if the marking boyco means I won’t be able to graduate, I will not be happy”.

In a statement to Palatinate about the marking boyco , Durham University said “The University has detailed plans in place to mitigate against any potential marking and assessment boyco to minimise the disruption to our students.

“We are particularly mindful of the potential impact on finalists and we will work hard to put measures in place to ensure that students are not disadvantaged. Students can be confident that our top priority will be to protect their learning and ensure they can continue with their education or plans for the future.”

When Durham University was asked if the demands made by the UCU was justifiable they said “The dispute is national, and currently affects 150 universities across the UK. It centres around pay and USS pensions.

Pay is agreed nationally for the majority of HE institutions by University and College Employers Association (UCEA).

The USS pension fund is one of the largest pension schemes for Higher Education.

Universities UK (UUK) represents

This is the first industrial action arranged by UCU this year, with the 2022-23 academic year already affected last term through walkouts.

The union are wanting demands to be met in two main veins; pay and working conditions, and pensions.

On the pay and working conditions dispute, UCU demands, “an increase to all spine points on the national pay scale of at least inflation (RPI) + 2% or 12% whichever is the higher”, nationally-agreed action, using an intersectional approach, “to close the gender, ethnic and disability pay gaps,” as well as for the standard weekly, full-time contract of employment to be “35 hours, with no loss of pay.”

On the pensions dispute, UCU demands “employers to revoke the massive cuts which they imposed on members of the USS pension scheme, and put pressure on USS to restore benefits to 2021 levels as soon as possible.” They also want UUK to put strong pressure on USS to ensure that the “next and all subsequent valuations of the financial health of the scheme to be evidence-based and are moderately prudent.”

The UCU were approached for comment but had not responded by the time Palatinate had gone to print.

Some students are demanding financial compensation

Durham University falls in Environment league table

Emily Doughty News Editor

Durham University has fallen in the People and Planet national league table, which focuses on social and environmental justice. The University ranked 39th, receiving a 2:1 grade and overall scoring 56%. This is a fall in nine places after ranking 30th last year.

While the University performed well in environmental policy and strategy, environment auditing and management systems, scoring 100%, they did less well in other areas.

This included 6 of the 14 total categories where the University scored under 50%. These were ethical careers and recruitments, workers rights, energy sources, waste and recycling, carbon reduction and water reduction.

The University also scored zero for both its living wage and equality for outsourced staff and in their failure to reach its emissions reduction targets.

They also scored 0 out of 5 for their ethical banking policy, as the University, according to People and Planet, did not have an ethical banking policy, or exclude banks that finance fossil fuels.

The University was also highlighted by People and Planet for not meeting their emissions reduction target, a result taken from the Universities estate plan.

A full link to the methodology used by People and Planet can be found online.

People and Planet is “the largest student network in the

UK” for social and environmental justice. They release their league table annually as past of their missions to promote change across Universities.

Jack Ballingham, Durham Students’ Union’s Opportunities

County Durham News

Durham Student Union received 0/10 in the ranking by People and Planet. This was due to the organisation not reaching the goal of “continual improvement towards environmental sustainability”.

Durham restaurant featured in prestigious Michelin Guide

Becks Fleet News Editor

run restaurant is the realisation of a dream for the three friends who crowdfunded its opening.

fficer recognises the fall in ranking, saying on Twi er, “Always good to see @durham_uni scoring fairly highly, but a bit of a slip from 30th to 39th this year - highlights the importance of student campaigns for fossil-free careers and the Real Living Wage!”

O

A Durham University spokesperson said: “Our vision [is] to deliver the University’s mission of excellence in education, research and wider student experience in the most sustainable way possible.

“We were the most improved university in the country in the People and Planet University League 2021, rising 66 places to 30th. In the 2022 rankings, we are still in the top ten Russell Group universities, and our ambition is to achieve a ‘First’ classification.

“Recently we have been ranked 53rd in the global QS Sustainability Rankings, become a founding signatory of the Nature Positive Pledge and launched new master’s programmes in environmentrelated subject areas.

“We have also introduced a Sustainable Careers Policy and actively promote sustainable careers. This summer we funded students to complete paid internships at businesses to implement initiatives aligned to the UN Sustainable Development Goals.”

People and Planet derived this score by looking at Durham SU’s website to see if their was a scheme for environmental sustainability and to see if the Student Union worked towards a “green impact”.

A Durham SU spokesperson said on the score that “While we recognise that sustainability work hasn’t been one of our priority areas recently as different candidates are elected to our Student Officer positions, Durham SU has continued working with students on these issues.

“We work with the University’s Environmental Sustainability Strategic Planning Group, and along with Eco DU and other student campaign groups, we have been lobbying the University on ethical careers policies.

“We’re also campaigning this year for the University to become a Real Living Wage employer.

“While the students’ union aspect of the score is worth 0.5% of the total, we recognise there is always more work to be done in this area.

“ We also recognise that the SU’s home at Dunelm House is very energy inefficient, and difficult to improve given its listed status. This is a University owned and managed building - SU officers have long been arguing for increased investment in the space.”

Durham Doctoral Scheme to end for most new PG students

Emily Doughty News Editor

Palatinate can reveal that the Durham Doctoral Scheme (DDS), a funding scheme available for Doctoral students funded by Durham University, will only be available for prospective doctoral students in the science faculty going forward, with funding for other faculties being cut.

However, it has been confirmed that funding will continue for existing DDS students.

In emails and presentations seen by Palatinate, it was said that the funding was to be discontinued for prospective students in non-science faculties, with one of the emails to postgraduate representatives saying that the University “understood that this will come as a disappointment to many”.

Durham University has since confirmed to Palatinate that “no new DDS Studentships will be offered in 2023-24 except in the Science Faculty”.

However, in a presentation seen by Palatinate the chemistry department had advised prospective PGR students that the

funding will not be continued.

In the email to postgraduate representatives it was said the decision was made due to financial limitations, with representatives being told that the decision was a ributed to “significant financial pressure due to a range of factors at international and local levels”. They said this decision was made to “reduce costs’’.

In a comment to Palatinate the University confirmed the decision was made for financial reasons saying “this decision was taken for financial reasons, but only after careful reflection given the

importance of PGR studentships to our academic community”.

When Palatinate asked what other funding will be available a spokesperson said “There are still a range of studentship options for people applying to Durham, including Doctoral training partnerships and centres for Doctoral Training”.

None of these options are funded solely by Durham University.

This decision comes after an investigation by Palatinate revealed the financial hardships caused by lack of funding for students.

Coarse, a newly opened ‘tasting menu’ restaurant based on North Road, has been featured as a “favourite new restaurant” in the British edition of the Michelin Guide, a prestigious guide to high-quality restaurants.

It has been included in the guide just four months after opening its doors for the first time, with ITV News speculating that it “has surely become one of the fastest to earn a place on the Michelin Guide”.

In the guide, Michelin gave Coarse a glowing review, writing: “Hidden away in a small courtyard in the centre of Durham, this warm, cheerily

“The simple, rustic décor belies the quality of the cooking found within; the set menu of modern British small plates changes seasonally and the kitchen’s skill is clearly evident in the quality of the sauces.”

Its opening has been a great success, often fully booked on weekends and has received a host of positive reviews, culminating in a highly soughtafter recommendation in the Michelin Guide.

On their website, Coarse says that they aim to “make tasting menus more affordable, accessible and fun”, and only offer “a 6-course tasting menu that uses local, seasonal ingredients”.

Paperchase faces closure

Paperchase, a leading brand in innovative and sustainable stationery since 1968, faces an uncertain future due to their recent fall into administration.

Tesco have recently announced their plan to buy the brand from insolvency specialists, meaning Paperchase stores are expected to permanently close in the future.

Jan Marchant, managing director of home and clothing at Tesco, said: “Paperchase is a well-loved brand by so many, and we’re proud to bring it to Tesco stores across the UK.”

With stores all over the country, including branches

in Durham and Newcastle, 106 shops are at risk, leaving 820 staff in doubt. Paperchase administrator, Begbies Traynor, has said that 75 workers at its head office have already been made redundant.

After a challenging few years of rising costs and falling sales, administrators were appointed as Paperchase received “no viable offers” for the company or its assets as the business failed to strike a rescue deal.

Administrator Begbies Traynor said, “The joint administrators will continue to monitor the trading in stores and further updates will be provided in due course.”

Gift card holders have been advised to redeem their cards as they cannot be used after two weeks.

Durham’s first gin distillery announces opening this Spring

Anne Parsons Proctor News Reporter

A new gin distillery is set to open its doors this spring in Durham. The distillery, which will be located along Durham’s river wear, will offer a unique range of courses from gin making masterclasses to distillery tours.

Founded by two local brothers Jon and Iain Chadwick, the Durham Distillery will be Durham’s first and only gin distillery. The Chadwicks have already received recognition for their award winning Durham gin.

A 90 minute distillery tour includes a guided tour about the history of gin accompanied with cocktails. The 2.5 hour gin making classes allow guests to mix and match botanicals with a take home 1.5-litre mini still.

(Thomas Tomlinson)

In a statement, Jon Chadwick said , “With almost a decade of industry experience under our belts, the time has come to step the brand on and open our beautiful new distillery to the public.

As well as taking our guests on a tasting journey designed to educate and show them exactly what we can do, our location and unique experience in the very heart of the city makes it essential.

It also gives our guests the chance to create something themselves by crafting their own version of Durham Gin in our gin-making school.’’

“I genuinely believe a positive change is in the air as far as Durham’s leisure and nightlife scene is concerned and we’re very much part of that. We can’t wait to welcome our first visitors this Spring.”

Nicole Ireland News Reporter

Census data revealed: 11% of Durham City identify as LGBO

Ben Webb & Emily Doughty

News Editors

The 2021 Office of National Statistics census has been published, with figures detailing various insights into the social and cultural makeup of the United Kingdom.

Analysis of this data by Palatinate has shown important information regarding the proportion of County Durham citizens who are part of the LGBTQ+ community.

According to the census, 2.85% of people aged 16 and over identify as LGBO, with 5.77% choosing not to answer. 91.38% answered as being heterosexual or straight.

This 2.85% figure is 0.35% less than the national average of 3.2%. That said, in Durham City, 10.90% of those questioned identified as Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, or Other (LGBO), an increase of 8.05%.

A map produced by Palatinate adeptly demonstrates the difference in proportion of those who identify as LGBO in County Durham, with the darker colour of the City of Durham standing out.

A County Durham resident suggested that members of the LGBTQ+ community are more likely to “gravitate towards the city centre” as they are more likely to “meet others from their community and feel accepted” within the larger

social se ing.

The ONS census data also details figures of gender identity. 95.07% of those questioned in County Durham identified as the same as the sex registered at birth.

84.75% of those in Durham City identified as the same as the sex registered at birth, providing again a greater number of those identifying as transgender or as having a different sex to that registered at birth.

In the City of Durham, 0.86% of those questioned identify different from their sex registered at birth, with the remainder choosing not to answer.

Although precise, this data is encouraged to be taken with a pinch of salt, as at times the proportion of those who do not disclose their answer may provide less representation.

A spokesperson for ONS stated on their website that “our own problem with accuracy at ONS revolves around those who choose not to answer, as it potentially removes a large amount of data from a particular data set.”

ONS states that census data can be extremely useful. They suggest local businesses, authorities and academics can use it in order to gain a greater insight into the mechanisms of society.

North East regions sign £4.2 billion devolution deal

Nicole Ireland News Reporter

On Friday 27th January, council leaders across Tyne and Wear, Northumberland, and County Durham met in Gateshead to sign a £4.2bn devolution agreement with Levelling Up Secretary Michael Gove sealing the deal.

The deal is expected to produce opportunities for people who live and work in the North East

The deal is expected to produce opportunities for people who live and work in the North East with the scheme generating 24,000 extra, be er paid jobs and provide improvements in educational

skills, transport, and housing.

Mr. Gove said that this agreement is “bigger, be er, and bolder” than the one that collapsed in 2016, due to fears of losing EU funding postBrexit.

There is now a public consultation running from 26th January 2023 to 23rd March 2023, allowing the public to have their say and share their views on the project. If approved, people across the region will elect a Mayor for the North East, a racting investment to the area and acting as a powerful local voice, representing local people.

Although the public will have the opportunity to display their opinion before the devolution deal goes ahead, Coun Georgina Hill, representative of the Berwick East ward on Northumberland County Council, raised concerns regarding the agreement as it was signed off before Northumberland’s consultation with residents had ended.

Two weeks ago, at the Northumberland County Council, Coun Hill questioned why there had been no referendum regarding the devolution deal.

She said, without a referendum, there is a “democratic deficiency.”

From the Archives

Council leader Glen Sanderson revealed that there is no requirement in the law to do so, and assured Coun Hill that the agreement is the right move for the county and its residents.

In March 2006, Palatinate reported that “many Durham lecturers have started an assessment boyco as part of a national campaign for higher pay”.

The strikes were organised by the Association of University Teachers (AUT) which later merged with other unions to create the UCU in 2007.

The front page piece describes that “many Durham students are worried about the threat that the assessment boyco poses to their degree. With dissertation and exam marking coming up

final year students in particular are anxious about the effect the boyco might have on their graduation.”

Keith Seacroft, Head of Media & Public Affairs said the University is pu ing in a contingency plan “to deal with issues such as exam invigilation and the secure storage of examination scripts.”

Professor Michie, Head of Durham University Association of Teachers told Palatinate, “The average starting salary for a lecturer is £24,000 but this is after years of doctoral and often post-doctoral research”

Coun Hill concluded, “It’s not democratic. Not only has the public not had a say, it hasn’t even been put to full council.”

She continues “There’s people who are really annoyed at the lack of democracy. It’s a big decision and things are going to change.”

Despite this, it is hoped that the deal will be successful in bringing greater opportunities and powers to the North East.

Not only have the public not had a say, it hasn’t even been put to full council

A survey of homelessness in Durham

Joseph Manley

Palatinate met David at Durham Action on Single Housing (DASH), a charity providing temporary accommodation and help to people who are homeless or about to become so in Durham. DASH offers 45 bed spaces across Durham, and helps people to move towards their own private tenancies.

David was born in Middlesbrough, he has lived in Durham for over four decades. He reminisced, “I classed myself as very normal. I lived in a lovely house in a lovely area. I had a good job, with good money, and I had a nice car”.

In 2021, David found himself living in a hotel, struggling at the same time with alcohol addiction and mental health issues. “Had it gone on another month, I don’t think I would have been here,” he tells us. After some time in hospital, David was able to overcome his addiction and find a place at DASH.

According to Shelter, in 2022 on any given night in the UK, 271,000 people spent the night homeless: a rate of 1 in 208 people, including 122,000 children. The North-East had the highest rate of homelessness of any region in the UK.

In this investigation, Palatinate spoke to the general public, Durham County Council, students volunteering to help support those facing homelessness, local nonprofit organisations tirelessly working to help people into safe accommodation, and those who have faced homelessness themselves.

change.

Bringing Ross’s experience from working with Under1Sky in London, they established a branch in Durham, that now has over 40 student volunteers. Under1Sky seeks to confront stereotypical assumptions on homelessness, and challenge the stigma and fear of engaging with their friends on the street that is prevalent amongst the public.

“Many people have negative associations with homelessness, and are often misinformed about its causes and its symptoms” they tell us. Under1Sky’s student volunteers hand out essential resources like clothing and food, but claim that their most important function is one that costs nothing.

When speaking to Palatinate members of the public in Durham said they had varying assessments of the level of rough sleeping in Durham City. However, many admi ed that they knew li le of the factors that led people to sleep rough. One resident noted, “You see people in the shop’s entrances.

“Not just Durham, but the whole of the North East has got worse. I go to Sunderland a lot and you can see that early morning and during the day. I think that the cost of living has had a big effect on it”. A student said that it was “kind of depressing to see”, and that they hoped that “the Council is doing something to offer support, and charities would be around to help out”.

Palatinate went to one charity run by students. In 2021, Durham students Ross and Oli had noticed that there wasn’t a student initiative for helping street-connected people directly, and wanted to make a

Under1Sky’s approach prioritises making connections, restoring pride and dignity, and emphasising our shared humanity. They say that rough sleeping is “part of a longer story that’s very complex, and at the heart of the issue is human connection”.

Many Durham students have been going on walks with them to talk with their street-connected friends. Ross notes that the biggest response from students occurs afterwards: ”Everyone on the walk is a bit struck by what they’ve seen, and who they’ve talked to. They really learn something from it”.

Through their work, Oli and Ross say they have felt a far deeper connection to Durham and its communities, developing friendships with people on the street. Oli says, “We want to connect to them as people, befriend them, share in their hard times and share in their good times, and just spend time with them”.

Oli tells us of one woman in Durham with whom he has connected over the past few months, who enjoys reading. “We could pass that woman and ignore that about her, relegate her to living on the streets and that’s all she amounts to… that’s how most people view homeless people, and that’s the narrative we want to change”.

Unfortunately, Oli and Ross have become familiar with the emotional anguish that comes with being ignored on the street. They remind us, “If you’re a Uni student who is clothed and fed, and you’ve got all the things you need to survive, but everyone ignores you, no-one talks to you, no-one even looks at you… that’s a huge issue, and it’s not something we can overlook. That’s one of the main things that’s hard for these guys.

“We want people to see our homeless friends, and not just see through them or look at them awkwardly, but to engage with them, smile at them and see their humanity. We’re not naive, and I’m aware that there is an element of awkwardness around this because we can’t understand it sometimes. But that shouldn’t be a barrier.”

Councillor Alan Shield told Palatinate, the council are “very commi ed to addressing the homelessness situation across the whole of County Durham” however, “The Council cannot do everything itself, and we aren’t the be all and end all. What we need to do is to engage with other partners who can enhance the support that we can give”. He also noted that, although assessing the level of rough sleeping is notoriously difficult, homelessness had “not necessarily increased” since 2019, and asserted

that Durham had done “extremely well” in its housing strategy response to the pandemic.

has been reduced considerably over the last few years. If you can, build more homes and make more funding available for the supported accommodation, for those who don’t just need the bricks and mortar.”

Providers like DASH warn that people only approach the council at crisis point. David at DASH said, “There is always hope for somebody. No ma er how low you get, just reach out, they will help... Don’t suffer in silence. Do not. Reach out, get help, both in accommodation and mentally through the NHS.” Both Shield and Smith agreed: “There’s some education to do to the public, saying please do come, we’re here to help you, rather than waiting until it’s too late”.

Fears of an increase in homelessness have come during the current cost of living crisis, private rents boom, and there is a lack of supported housing.

Shield said, “We have to take a very careful narrative to people on the streets… They are people who have fallen into severe difficulties socially, economically, financially, and need that level of support from local people, local organisations, and central government to get them back into habitual living”.

Marie Smith, Housing manager at Durham County Council said “While there are some spaces for accommodation at places like DASH... We have a lot of people taking up B and Bs, when really we want to move them on.

“We just need more homes. The house-building programme

David warns against the stigmas surrounding homelessness and its impact upon him, “the feeling of being helpless, relying on others, is not nice, it’s really not nice”. He said he felt “embarrassed” at his situation, having previously been “held in a position of trust, as a team leader and in a managerial role”.

The volunteers at Under1Sky emphasised how many students struggle to break down social barriers and make connections with those who seem so far away from their own situation. David emphasised that homelessness can appear like something removed from many people’s lives, yet “It can happen to anybody, it really can, it just takes a trigger point”.

The North East has the highest rate of homelessness of any region in the UK

No ma er how low you get, just reach out, they will help...

Don’t suffer in silence

Students volunteering with Under1Sky (Theo Taylor)

Satire Editors: Sascha LO & Rory Cronin

'Emily in Durham'

Arjun Seth

*caution contains spoilers and a very profitable idea*

As we are now well into term-time, and have many a deadline looming, I thought it would be fun to imagine how our lockdown pal, Emily Cooper, would enjoy some time away as a second year student in Durham. Swapping beret for puffer jacket, heels for white trainers and boulangerie for Greggs’, our pandemic alter ego, Emily, is ready to take on the North-East. Let’s hope the producers don’t read this before I’ve sold the rights and made a buck or two.

Emily, of course, would choose to bring all her wardrobe with her. Yet, as with all the other cool kids,

Durham Council set to welcome Greggs to 77 Hawthorn

Ollie

McKenna

On 30th January 1823, a day etched in history, the first sausage roll was rolled. A hundred years later, on 30th January 1923, the first steak bake was baked. And, on the 30th January 2023, Durham City Council opened a Greggs on 77 Hawthorn Terrace. This is a tale of engineering, bakery and deceit. My story begins, as most brilliant things do, with 10 white male students and a crate of brewskis. A er musing our way through discourses of spring weeks, internships, and skiing, we finally arrived at an important topic of conversation: sausage rolls. In our state of deep

she’d of course be residing in the Viaduct. Due, to limited space options, she would be required to pay two rents to keep all her clothes.

But at least she’d get some chic paparazzi shots outside of the North Road betting shops.

Instead of running into Camille or fashion executives, she would instead make eye contact with her tutor and her onenight stand at Market Square Tesco despite having been “too ill to get out of bed” an hour prior.

In the classroom, Emily’s contributions would provide eye-opening clarity and clearcut answers to all the big problem questions straight away. Tutors would beg for her to be dropped from their modules. Otherwise, nothing would be le to be debated or pondered.

contemplation, hunger and drunkenness, we agreed that the two Greggs in the city centre could not fill our insatiable appetites. We needed more, lots more.

Emily could turn Spags and its famed ‘penne alla vodka’ into an overnight sensation a er posting a cute date night pic. Spags would naturally go on to win a Michelin Star, leading Emily to become informally known as the ‘Nonna of the North’ amongst the two local Italians.

Emily’s contributions would naturally provide eye-opening clarity and clear-cut answers to all the big problem questions straight away

over drinks at the North Road Spoons. With just a few posts, she could save the place from closure and put the street on the map more than levelling up ever could.

Emily would grab that shoe… I mean Jimmy Choos’ and drink straight from it before stumbling her way up Silver Street to Jimmy’s ‘just to see who’s about’.

In the romantic smoking area LEDs, a setting more aesthetic than any Parisian streetlamp-lit boulevard, Emily would find her Gabriel, perhaps not a famed chef, but indeed a DU Rugby C team player who reheats pesto pasta for each meal.

With some minor tweaks, Émile à Durham could work and easily knock its continental spin-off right off its perch, driving PalTV to overtake Netflix as the world’s favourite streaming platform.

fund opening Durham’s 3rd Greggs. We continued our drinking and allowed the thought to dissipate through gentle sips of Carlsberg.

The next morning, I stumbled out the door and silently crept my way into my seminar. A er 2 hours of trying to convince my group members to lend me £100,000 and join me on the pastry coated path to wealth and health, I succumbed to the greasy truth.

Perhaps my dream was nothing more than hungerfilled hallucinations.

A er my seminar leader reaffirmed my assumptions that I was indeed a fool, and was indeed going to fail her class, I skulked my way into the city centre and bought a sausage roll (not a vegan one for obvious reasons).

A note on: The housing crisis

Morgan Wicks

With an increase of 50,000 residents in the past 10 years and a lack of support for new homes from the government, the Durham housing market is reaching a breaking point. According to the local news website Durham Cool, council members were reported as saying - “Twenty new people move to Durham each day. They’re arriving in a city in the midst of an affordable housing crisis”. Additionally, the county council has stated that there are currently “113 people sleeping unsheltered in Durham”.

defence.

All hope of a verdict looked lost as the judge walked over to remind me that it was closing time.

However, as of early 2022 Durham mayor Elaine O’Neal outlined a plan in which the city would buy existing homes to sell to residents at an affordable price. This would raise the number of homeowners in the city, which currently stands at 52% of the population.

The university is the largest employer in Durham with around 35,000 employees, however the median household income in Durham unfortunately stands over 10% lower than the national average.

In 2020 a group of university students wrote an open letter, published in The Chronicle, that stressed the importance of “stable, safe, [and] affordable housing” and criticised local landlords for the state of their properties – “It is unacceptable to allow human beings to live in the conditions many individuals have described, including being plagued by black mould, roach and rat infestations, and sewage leaks”.

A

Headlines of the week

For half an hour, I attempted to reach a settlement with the pastry that I had clenched in my hand. The negotiations were so rigorous that I proceeded to purchase 4 more sausage rolls, as I had eaten the four previous members of the

New

There is not necessarily an article for you here. This is not a statement of independence (on account of the paperwork) nor do we really have anything of great importance to say. After all, we are here

As I began my slow exodus from the scene, the judge confided in me the missing evidence that I had so required. “Don’t worry pal, they’re opening a Greggs at 77 Hawthorn Terrace”. I was saved.

to make you laugh. Not god forbid, think (see someone else’s section). And most certainly not, something-else forbid, impress you with astute classical references and an overuse of words like 'hence' or 'evoque' (see Indigo). This is honestly just put here to irritate all of you slaving away on your summatives. Those readers who pompously assume that their white towers of academia might have saved

This unrest has even spread to social media, with one frustrated citizen commenting on a council Facebook post –“Maybe the councils new year’s resolution can be sorting out the bl***y housing situation, this is the second year my rent has increased!”. So as a new year dawns, the housing crisis shows no signs of slowing in Durham, North Carolina.

you from this comically sans fate. Still, it could be worse, we could have mispelled something. (Our editors might have accepted that joke had it been in italics, however, our novel font apparently 'doesn't do such intonation'- Hence, you must accept our brazen article with whatever emphasis you think might have been intended. Although, how's this for provocative?

font irritates readership and editors alike

My story begins, as most brilliant things do, with 10 white male students and a crate of brewskis

We continued our drinking and allowed the thought to dissipate through gentle sips of Carlsberg

"Law students miss mock exams, claiming 'far too much work' as an excuse"

"Durham University proposes selling Billy B to fund new college in Maiden Castle"

"Hatfielder was saddened by Queen’s death- they were her favourite rock band"

"Le ear hoop shortages cause havoc in St Cuthbert's Society"

er crunching the numbers and munching the steak bakes we realised that 10 students simply did not have the liquid capital to

Emily would charm locals

Anxieties of a finalist amid UCU strike chaos

Holly Downes

As the UCU strike action is underway (yet again), I always get nightmarish flashbacks to my first term in Durham in 2020. It is a year we all would rather forget about; the year stolen by the Covid-19 pandemic and the year that betrayed us all. I naïvely thought I would be immersed in the Durham fresher lifestyle – busy lecture halls, college bar crawls, and of course, Jimmy’s –but every lecture was via Zoom, and I was forbidden to socialise with people outside my ‘house bubble’, and nightclubs only reopened in my second year. Admi edly, not the most enjoyable of all times.

But it seems that history is repeating itself. Although the pandemic and UCU strikes are vastly different – funnily enough, striking lecturers don’t stop me from going to Jimmy’s – they both disrupt the continuous education all students deserve. When lecture timetables are released at the start of the academic year, we all have visible contact hours and details of when and where our lectures, tutorials, or seminars are. Some have more hours than others – as a humanities student, very li le indeed - but nevertheless, as feepaying students, contact hours are crucial to claim what we’re all here for. That is, a degree.

That means no lectures, no office hours, no seminars -

In the pandemic, these hours were just moved online, but strike action means these allocated times simply disappear. On strike days, which will impact 44% of epiphany term alone, lecturers don’t work. That means no lectures, no office hours, no seminars – nothing. And as a finalist, I am slightly (well, extremely) concerned. It means I will miss several two-hour seminars that are the springboard for the two 3,000-word essays required for the module. Lectures that cover topics that will appear on my exams in May will not be delivered. My dissertation, which is due at the end of this term, will be affected by infrequent emails and meetings that clash with strike days. And to make ma ers even worse, my final year is weighted at 60%.

And this is the very purpose of these strikes: to reinforce how crucial university staff are for a functioning university education. The essays and exams that determine my final grade will not be of the highest standard without the help of lecturers. Instead, I fear that I’ll have to teach myself half the module and write important essays blindsided. The staff are the backbone of the system, however, because universities are run like businesses – operating on the profit-maximising model – staff are mistreated to ensure the university gets richer. They are underpaid and overworked, so, they must use their bo om-up power and withdraw their contributions to the university to spark change.

so out of control. These questions that float around my head will only be answered if the university representatives strike a deal with the UCU. Staff and students alike can speak up, protest, and strike to give voice to this mistreatment, but it is down to the university to put an end to all this. Yes, the university can mitigate the impacts of the strikes, as detailed in an email from the Pro-ViceChancellor on the 27th of January: “No student will be disadvantaged in assessments and examinations as a consequence of industrial action”. But this fails to solve the issue at heart. No one deserves to have their education disrupted, pay reduced, work in poor conditions, and have their pension cut because of money-grabbing institutions.

they pay thousands of pounds for. And the culprit – large university institutions - are bombarded with deflated students and angry staff Education should not be this disruptive, but when injustice is occurring, staff simply aren’t going

to stay silent. Instead, they are going to march through the streets of Durham carrying signs, stand in large groups outside the Bill Bryson library and talk to students, and get what they rightfully deserve.

Education should not be marked by anxiety and fear. It should be one of enjoyment, growth, and a system where all involved are treated with respect. Instead, universities are abusing their top-down power and making it harder for education to be what it should be. Finalists, like me, now live in fear that if a marking boyco is called, my dissertation will not be marked. 12,000 words on a topic that I’m interested in –a Word document driven by pure brainpower, determination, and passion - poured down the drain. And I am scheduled to graduate in July; but how can I graduate if lecturers refuse to mark my work that completes my degree? Is the degree I specifically wrote a UCAS le er for in year 13, the degree I am passionate about, and the degree I have worked towards for three years, now worth…

How can I graduate if lecturers refuse to mark my work that completes my degree?

And it is saddening that it has come to this; it is unfortunate for everyone involved. Staff are forced to spend long days (made drearier in the winter months) demanding justice and aren’t even paid for the days that they strike. Students are refused contact hours that

(Rosie Bromiley)

When injustice is occurring, staff simply aren't going to stay silent

The essays and exams that determine my final grade will not be of the highest standard

(Thomas Tomlinson)

And the worst part is that I feel

Multifaceted music: engaging young fans in politics

Chloe Hares

Once a rather small indie band who were admired almost solely by grunge teenage girls on Tumblr (not an insult, I was one of those girls) in 2014, The 1975 have become one of the biggest bands of the 2020s. This past year, particularly since their replacement for Rage Against The Machine at Reading and Leeds Festival 2022, the band became exposed to a new younger demographic - the age of people who upload festival snippets to TikTok. With this, word spread about their late 2022 album ‘Being Funny in a Foreign Language’, and 2023 tour, ‘The 1975 - At Their Very Best’, of which further videos from the tours have gone viral. Frontman and nepobaby, Ma y Healy, was certainly born to perform. He brings charismatic yet enigmatic energy and is cognizant of his audience and the media. He curates a narcissistic façade we hate to love, but when he speaks seemingly so honestly about politics we realise he is in fact, a British citizen as well who has seen many political failings and thus has valid opinions. The tiktokification of The 1975 has really done them a favour in pu ing them on the pop culture map, but has this band of just four men from Cheshire really changed their branding in light of this, or has it just been finally uncovered?

Their debut self-titled album, and their proceeding work ‘I like it when you sleep, for you are so beautiful yet so unaware of it’ mostly contain songs about sex and drugs, with the odd songs on trepidation and grief. What you would expect a northern indie band to be singing about in the peak of Tumblr's use. They

released an album in 2018 as Healy started recovering from heroin addiction called ‘A Brief Inquiry into Online Relationships’. Their music became more experimental with meaningful political lyrics, most notably the song ‘Love It If We Made It’, in which Healy screams “truth is only hearsay, we're just left to decay, modernity has failed us and I'd love it if we made it”. It seems the band predicted Covid-19 two years prior, but from this point in their career the band (especially Healy) have been vocal about their political stance.

However, being the bizarrely intelligent and self-aware man that he is, Healy has set aside time in his concerts to talk about politics, ranging from the need for Labour to represent the working class and supporting industrial action. Often this takes place in tune to the introduction to songs and thus concert goers and TikTok users will find themselves singing these philosophies to their own amusement. So, Healy is now catering to the audience knowing they want more than just music; The 1975 fans are intrigued by almost anything Healy has to say. So far, it seems he is yet to say something majorly harmful and does appear to be speaking out because he is passionate and perhaps wishes to prove himself human like the rest of us.

This really isn't new, though. It is something we have seen done in the music industry before to the extreme where we cannot recognise the original artist. I am, of course, talking about Steven Morrissey - frontman of The Smiths. Morrissey's lyrics avoid a gendered perspective and often criticise the monarchy, education system, religion and the government with the kind of arguments which we still consider today, pu ing him far ahead of his time. In spite of this progressive outlook during Thatcherite Britain, Morrissey seems to have regressed. In more recent years, he has expressed sympathy towards the UKIP party, spoken out against multiculturalism, and made misogynistic comments on well-established women in the music industry. His bi erness and outlandishness seems to be everything that his 1982 self would despise. We question if this is a pitiful a empt to stay relevant? A late appeal to new demographics? Or a plain narcissistic urge to create a legacy, no ma er how notorious? Regardless, while once delivering insightful and important messages, his need to thrive off of such has led him to become largely 'cancelled'.

So, while politics and pop culture go hand in hand to deliver varied political voices, Morrissey's career should be considered a cautionary tale. When a celebrity gets political for seemingly no other reason but popularity, it is a marketing technique. But we cannot take away the fact they are people with the right to free speech, and their views should be considered; it would be naïve to follow them completely and it should be encouraged that everyone does their own political research. Healy has seen what can happen to those who become obsessed with maintaining a name and so should feel warned on orating with vain and selfish motivations.

(Chris Devers

The North East deal: it's time to level up

this fresh deal specifically but instead how the levelling up system is being conducted in its entirety.

Those who have grown up in and around the industrialised North will know the scene well: broken paving slabs spla ered across streets and the pervasive sense of fear when strolling around every town and city centre. Sha ered people with sha ered dreams and sha ered lives – a world that looks doomed and feels abandoned. Any grazing sentiment of hope or true happiness withers in such an environment. How can it exist when care does not?

Nevertheless, this is the norm for many across the country. Communities that were once bustling with spirit and pride have been steadily reduced to nothing more than a place to live and trudge on with apparent existential futility until the day one dies. If that image seems depressing, that is because it is. A drop of water and nourishment is needed for any flower to grow.

So, with the scene aptly set, it is time to embark on a discussion concerning the recent £1.4 billion deal agreed by the local leaders of the North East and the United Kingdom’s very own Levelling Up Secretary, Michael Gove.

According to the Government’s official press release, this agreement “guarantees” the new North East Mayoral Combined Authority (MCA) such an amount to be spent over the next 30 years. As part of a wider package to further devolution in the area, this deal will seek to aid advances in education, housing and regeneration, transport, and local leadership. Prayers answered? Not really.

Firstly, issues have arisen in relation to how these funds will be managed by the local authorities. For example, Councillor Carl Marshall has claimed that this deal has merely swapped “governance in London for governance in Tyneside.”

Understandably, one would desire power to be as close to home as possible in such ma ers. It is simply common sense to have wants of this nature. But as the adage states, beggars cannot be choosers – and beggars we are in this situation.

However, my focus lies not with

To put it quite bluntly, the North East is being burgled and this Conservative Government has barely bothered to switch the lights off afterwards. If anything, they are still si ing in the living room, waiting for the MCA to return home.

In a recent article by PoliticsHome, it was revealed that the North East has secured merely 5.5% of the total spending allocated since the beginning of the ‘levelling up’ project. Meanwhile, the North West is set to receive almost £587 million, approximately 10% more than their neighbours occupying the opposite stretch of coast.

This project in its entirety has been marred by misunderstandings, incompetence and political foul play. Calculations for funding are decided per person, applications extend to over 200 hours and cost many more pounds than they are worth. This idea has touched the hearts of many but effectively reached none thus far.

Some local authorities practically lack the expertise and expenses to permit applications fi ing the problems they face. As a result, they are left deprived of the funding they require. This is the same story throughout the country. If one does not have a voice, then they cannot speak on their own behalf. This is a flaw that has rendered the levelling up project unweighted since its effective conception.

Thus, the most recent deal may sound and read as though it has arrived to bring the forgo en man back to remembrance. Nonetheless, do not be fooled. The cash will, inevitably, not be seen for a generation or so.

The MCA is yet to learn how to walk and conflicts regarding distribution and power allocation will reign for the time being. It goes without saying that the agreement and its many millions will bring about some form of positive change for the local area. Yet, those broken paving slabs are not going away any time soon.

The Gateshead gambit between the leaders of today promises hope and potential happiness for the North East in its future. Once the proceeding phases of play are complete, true judgement on its deliverance will be possible. Until then, one must a empt to enjoy the wilderness.

The 1975 fans are intrigued by almost anything Healy has to say

(DeShaun Craddock via Flickr)

via Flickr)

Oliver Jervis

A look into Saudi Arabia's 'The Line': a futuristic utopia or dystopia?

digital rights researchers to deem it a ‘surveillance city.’

Intended to be a 110 miles long smart city with a population of nine million, resulting in a population density 38 times that of Hong Kong, Saudi Arabia’s ‘The Line’ raises questions as to whether it is merely a vanity project or an effective plan for some futuristic utopia.

Located in the province of Tabuk, near the border with Egypt, it is estimated to cost around $200 bn (some estimates placing it near $1 tn) and bring more than 400,000 jobs to the region.

As part of Crown Prince Salman’s ‘Saudi Vision 2030’ project, it is the latest in a whole heap of futuristic developments in the gulf region, the most recent being of course the Qatari FIFA World Cup. It is indeed hard not to contrast this project with the current atmosphere in employment; the region’s seemingly lax approach to workers’ rights and often underpaid South Asian immigrant labourers working under wealthy employers illustrate a different picture than that of the project.

In terms of engineering, it seems like a challenging project and will no doubt be one of the wonders of the modern world, should it be completed. It is intended to be completely carbon neutral, with no cars or roads. Logistically, however, it will be interesting to see how the state deals with supplying a city 110 miles long.

Logically, cities span an open area; the rationale behind the linear design is an interesting one that will ostensibly provide a shorter travel distance. Will we see transportation of the future, with possibilities including Maglev or even ‘Hyperloop’ trains?

In its early days of construction there have already been ‘issues’ to say the least. The project has displaced the native Howeitat tribe, even sentencing three to death after refusing to vacate their homes.

No ma er the investment and engineering complexity, from a moral standpoint, actions as rash and strict as this so early into the project do not bode well for the future.

From an economic point of view, even for a state as rich as Saudi Arabia, financing the project has proved challenging. The ‘Public Investment Fund’, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds in the world, saw certain contributors withdraw from the project.

This began with the assassination of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul around four years ago. Since then companies such as JPMorgan, Blackrock, Google pulled out of conferences, alongside major media houses.

Thus, even with the project’s estimated £514 bn worth of assets, it is unlikely for construction to be completed on time, especially if Western, ‘supports’ continue backing away.

Transportation of the future with possibilities including Maglev or even Hyperloop trains

Also, whilst the regime has made sure to emphasise the ‘no emissions’ part of The Line, worldwide construction industry itself accounts for nearly 40% of worldwide energyrelated CO2 emissions.

It is difficult not to see the dystopian aspect

To take a more philosophical point of view, however, it is difficult not to see the dystopian aspect. Coming from an absolute monarchy with a differential approach to human rights, the city’s data collection scheme has caused some

It is physically impossible to build a 1,600 ft tall building out of low carbon materials. Philip Oldfield, of the University of New South Wales, has estimated the carbon footprint of construction to be approximately 1.8 Gigatonnes of CO2 equivalent (for comparison the entirety of the UK produced 0.5 Gigatonnes CO2 equivalent in 2021 according to the ONS).

To summarise, whilst it will no doubt be a testament to mankind’s ingenuity and be a leap into the ever-promised ‘cities of tomorrow’, The Line is yet the latest thought experiment that is gone too far. The human cost has already been large enough, with the mentioned death sentences, and it is a harrowing thought to wonder what lies in store.

The great outpouring of support for Jacinda Ardern this past week marks her widespread impact as a leader adored by many beyond her nation’s borders. Ardern first a racted significant international a ention as the country’s youngest leader in 150 years. When she had a baby in office and brought her newly born daughter to the floor at the United Nations she was portrayed as something of a feminist icon for juggling such a politically demanding career with motherhood. Nevertheless, reactions to her departure reflect an interesting array of interpretations of her time in office.

Women have often been plagued by patriarchal expectations that they cannot embody the ‘true’ masculine traits of leadership: decisiveness, confidence, an ability to make ‘tough’ decisions. Yet once female leaders embody such traits, they are labelled coldhearted, unlikeable and ‘bossy.’ Moreover, Toril Aalberg and Andres Todal Jenssen’s research ‘Gender Stereotyping of Political Candidates’ shows that women are more likely to be asked how they will balance their careers with domestic-life and childcare than their male counterparts. Additionally, women’s private life get more media coverage and their appearance is highly scrutinised by the press, namely the misogyny directed at Hilary Clinton during the 2016 election. Such circumstances have long disincentivised many women from a political profession. Thus, like many before her, Ardern had to contend with sexist lines of questioning such as in 2017 when she was asked if a Prime Minister should be allowed maternity leave. More recently, when meeting Finnish Prime Minister Sanna Marin, both leaders were asked if they were meeting because they

were “similar in age and have got a lot of common stuff there.”

The question is how did Ardern manage to avoid sexist labels ascribed to her while in office? How did she become famous for inspiring ‘feminine’ leadership in contrast to female leaders before her? Sheer political success may be the answer. From her decisive handling of the Christchurch terrorist a ack to her careful management of the coronavirus pandemic, it's no surprise personal a acks have less sting when political success remains high. Moreover, her unique leadership style and political honesty has bolstered her popularity. Her emotional intelligence and willingness to engage with voters in a down to earth manner has served to build a sense of trust that politicians usually struggle to create. Her advocacy for kindness and empathy contrasts heavily with the hallmarks we see in the populist ‘strongman’ leaders like Putin, Trump, or Bolsonaro. Finally, her willingness to admit self-doubt has humanised her to voters and begun to break the taboo that leaders should always be 100% confident in their own political decisions.

at older women like Clinton or women of colour like Diane Abbot. Her heterosexual relationship and position as a mother has no doubt reassured those suspicious of her ‘feminine qualities’ that she retains certain gender roles. Thus she has been saved from the criticism directed at single or childless female politicians, such as Julia Gillard who was told her decision to remain “deliberately barren” proved she was an unempathetic leader. Thus, while we should commend Ardern’s more humane and a less masculine form of leadership, we should not ignore the benefits of her compliance with received notions of womanhood.

It was inevitable that some pessimisticjournalistic commentaries would condescendingly read Ardern’s exit as the final proof she had to face up to the restrictions imposed on her by her gender. The same publications that once celebrated her achievements as a woman now argue she maybe wasn’t that exceptional after all. The BBC came under fire for its headline: "Jacinda Ardern resignation: Can women really have it all?" condescendingly implying that Ardern’s departure was a result of her trying to juggle more roles that any woman is capable of. Fortunately, the BBC retracted the headline, but it raises the question of whether high achieving women suffer from increased gender bias once they leave office and the glamour of their ‘exceptionalism’ fades.

Nonetheless, part of the reason Ardern has received more favourable media a ention is undoubtedly due to certain social biases. Her youth and status as a white woman prevents her from receiving cruel criticism levelled

If anything, Ardern’s reflection that she no longer has ‘enough left in the tank’ should not be taken as caving to the calls of motherhood. Instead, it should be seen as a courageous decision by a well-established leader to hand the reins over to someone else with more dedication to give. If only other political leaders were as self-aware and less concerned with their political legacy, we might have more selfless and truly democratic leadership.

Jacinda Ardern's resignation: courageous or yielding

Women have often been plagued with patriarchal expectations

Zarah Drummond

Fawaz Zaman

Jacinda Arden (Prachatai via Flickr)

Profile

Sebastian Payne: “Just grab any opportunity you can and don’t be picky!”

Former FT writer and Mildert alumnus speaks to Profile about his uni band, growing up in Gateshead and Miles Davis

Maddie Parker

Sebastian Payne is a think tank director, political journalist and Durham alumnus. Having been a student journalist whilst at Durham, he has gone on to write for The Spectator, the Financial Times, two books and has recently become director of the think tank, Onward.

I don’t use that phrase, ‘proud Durham alumnus’, lightly. Si ing down for a chat with Payne, it was hard to miss his choice of shirt – proudly emblazoned with the Van Mildert College crest. “This is vintage Mildert 2009” Payne said with a grin, and as a fellow Mildertian, I definitely approved.

We begin by discussing his university experiences – “There were so many! The first big thing I did was run Purple Radio from the end of my first year to the end of my second year. I did a radio show called ‘An Hour of Payne’ on Sunday night but then also I oversaw 12 hours of programming, six or seven days a week.

“I also did Palatinate - where I was Music Editor - and we were in this kind of ‘landfill indie’ stage where we had all these bands that were very popular and some of them are still going now, like The Wombats, Arctic Monkeys, The Killers”.

Beyond student journalism, Payne was also the Vice President of Van Mildert JCR where he found himself responsible for anything from budgeting to maintaining discipline at rowdy formal dinners. “Being JCR Vice President wasn’t party political, but you are actually doing stuff and we managed to revitalise the college finances, running lots of good social events, and doing freshers week. That is what I look back at - doing politics now - as a really great thing”.

Another fond memory for Payne was as bassist for the band ‘The Gatefold’ whilst at Durham. “We did all sorts of crazy gigs and one of them was a Back-to-School event at the DSU and there was nobody there at all! We had learnt all kinds of school related songs, including ‘Another Brick in the Wall’ by Pink Floyd, so eventually we just started playing. As we got to the very end of our set, loads of people turned up so we had to do the whole thing all over again! The security guard who was standing at the bar just said, “you were be er the first time”.

Over the past few years, Britain’s tumultuous political landscape has churned up scandals, drama, and intrigue in abundance leading me to ask Payne whether it’s a journalist’s dream or if he ever wishes it would all slow down.

“Well, if you’re a journalist you

want the best stories to cover, so in that sense you never want it to calm down. With all the meaningful votes and late hours, it was proper parliamentary drama and the kind of thing you read about in textbooks about the 1970s where day-by-day the government was just trying to be propped up”.

“It was unbelievable, and I don’t think there will ever be another reporting time like that because you just didn’t know how it was going to end. Was the government going to fall? Was Theresa May going to get a Brexit deal?”.

Having recently left his post as Whitehall Editor of the FT, Payne is now director of the think tank, Onward.

It was proper parliamentary drama and the kind of thing you read about in textbooks ... I don’t think there will be another reporting time like that

“I have absolutely loved it so far. It is really fun to be running something and our view is that we have to win some big argumentswe have been pushing really hard on childcare reform and have started a debate in government on how we get mothers back into the workforce”.

“We have a big focus on levelling up and that was one of the things that drew me to Onward - I grew up in Gateshead and went to Durham, so for the first 21 years of my life I lived in the North-East where lots of places struggle with postindustrialisation and aren’t as prosperous as the South. We really are trying to focus on what we can do now before Westminster shuts down and gets into election mode.”

Alongside journalism, Payne has also wri en two books - the first, Broken Heartlands: A Journey Through Labour’s Lost England was published in 2021 with the second, The Fall of Boris Johnson, was released a year later.

“Broken Heartlands is partly a personal thing and the first chapters of that book start off in Gateshead and that is about me, my background, and the people I grew up with. In some respects, it is semiautobiographical so that was a very

different thing to write.

“I often say that Broken Heartlands was finding ten different ways of saying ‘I sat on a cold park bench, two metres away from someone talking about why their town needed help”.

“The Boris Johnson one was very different - it was a bit more like conventional political journalism and had a timeline of events. Broken Heartlands is the book that is from my heart, and on balance I sort of preferred it because in 20 years’ time that story is going to ma er more. Many more books will be wri en about Boris!”

Broken Heartlands revolves around the red wall seats which historically voted Labour but supported the Conservatives in the 2019 general election, but will we see a swing back in 2024?

“My view is that the umbilical cord between working class England and the Labour Party had been pulled and Brexit snapped it. You come to this moment where people wanted to get Brexit done and they didn’t like Jeremy Corbyn. I mean if you wanted a caricature of someone that would not appeal to those places it would literally be him - combined with the fact that they did love Boris Johnson”.

“I think there have some very good Conservative MPs who got in for the first time and have a good chance of holding on to some of those places, like Richard Holden in North West Durham, who was great at campaigning and is now a cabinet minister. But I think a lot of it will depend on the national picture, with the government and the economy.”

The umbilical cord between working class England and the Labour Party had been pulled and Brexit snapped it

Payne has been at the heart of British politics and met all the big names that spring to mind.

“I think the person that I was most engaged with was Tony Blair as he was such a big figure during my childhood. I spent time with Boris during the Hartlepool by-election

and watching him campaign there was kind of incredible. I wrote in my book that Boris was the Pied Piper in the middle of a hurricane. When he was walking through Hartlepool people were literally running out of their cars for selfies. I just don’t think there is any other politician, except maybe Blair in his prime that could have done that”.

“But to be able to capture those final moments was unbelievable. Tim Shipman from The Sunday Times described it as ‘a fly on the wall that felt he was on hallucinogenics’, because it was so crazy the way people were acting in Downing Street when it was all falling apart.”

I finish by asking Payne what advice he can offer budding writers at Durham.

“Fraser Nelson, who was one of the most helpful and influential people I worked with said that writing is like a muscle, and it is something that you have got to keep working on and that is often underestimated”.

“To break into national journalism, you have got to find a USP. For me, I had studied computer science so was good with data and maths and was able to adapt myself in a way others weren’t able to”.

“Just grab any opportunity you can and don’t be picky!”

You can read about more Sebastian Payne’s work on Onward’s website – h ps://www.ukonward. com

Quickfire

Hill or Bailey?

Hill

Best college bar?

Van Mildert

North or South of England?

Both

Best story?

I wrote about the secret plans to relocate Trident in the event of Sco ish independence and it took months.

Who’s going to win the next general election?

Too soon to tell!

If you could take one album on a desert island, what would it be?

In a Silent Way by Miles Davis. I like to think of it as 2am music - I listen to that whenever I need relaxing or a calming influence, so it would have to be up there

(Sebastian Payne)

Durham Revue: “my mind is like a jumble sale of comedy and telly”

Profile speaks with the Durham Revue about their creative process, taking a show annually to the Edinburgh Fringe and their upcoming final show in Durham at the Gala theatre

Christian Vince Profile Editor

The Durham Revue is Durham’s oldest, and first, comedy sketch group. After being established in 1974, the group has seen alumni go on to achieve success in the world of comedy and acting. From comedians Ed Gamble and Nish Kumar to the likes of Jeremy Vine and Peaky Blinders actress, Charlo e Riley. The group’s “longstanding relationship with the Edinburgh Fringe” has pushed them out of the Durham bubble and onto a national stage.

Co-presidents Leah Pinter and Tansy Adam spoke to Profile along with Henry Gwilliam, a writer and performer about their time in the Revue. We start by discussing the “year-long writing process”.

Adam revealed that each member of the group writes three sketches a week, spending a total of 9 hours together working on the show weekly. “Our work is so collaborative that by the time the show reaches the fringe, it is hard to tell who wrote which sketch”. Adam mentions that a major part of the group’s ethos is that “we are a team and we work as a team” so no one ever feels possessive of their work or afraid of alteration. The previously mentioned “yearlong process” is not just a process of writing, but also “of building comedic relationships”, says Pinter. As the troupe change annually, it is important that these relationships are built in order to have true comedic chemistry.

However, due to the pace and creativity of the group, Pinter hit the ground running. Adam drew upon the importance of having others to refine her ideas as she admi ed to her mind being “just like a jumble sale” of comedy and TV references.

the show will naturally change as it moves away from Durham. Pinter notes the “no Durham references rule” and clarifies “we don’t want to be alienating certain groups of people”. “It is all about figuring out what works for an audience”. For example, at the fringe, “we could have an audience of 7 who are roaring with laughter and then we could be sold out and not even get that much”, Adam says. The group all nods in agreement over the subjectiveness of their comedy but with a group of writers from a range of different backgrounds, there is bound to be something in the show for you. Unlike other sketch groups (“who will not be named”) making jokes about Chekov, the Revue ensure that everyone watching can somewhat relate to their writing.

Switchboard and Durham Hygiene bank previously, the Revue are donating the money raised to Durham’s branch of the Trussell Trust, fighting against poverty and hunger.

How would you each describe the upcoming Gala show?

It is discussed that each member of the team has an individual writing style, with Pinter drawing inspiration from daily observations, Adam from pop culture and Gwilliam from character work and accents. Pinter notes that, prior to joining the Revue, “I had never wri en any sketch comedy”.

The group’s yearly appearance at the Fringe is a highlight. All three performed at last year’s Fringe in which “we did an hour long show every day in August”, says Pinter. “We would wake up and spend the morning flyering on the royal mile”. This was no walk in the park as they were “joined by hundreds of other people to get people to come to their shows”. Having been to the fringe myself, I must admit that people physically bend over backwards at an a empt to lure in an audience, so it is important for each show to stand out.

I ask about the instances in which sketches have to be reworked when they have not landed or need to be adapted depending on the audience and how the team approach that. Adam recalls a “Prank Patrol sketch” based on the CBBC programme from the 2010s. Some people did not understand the reference (which in my opinion is a big loss on their part) but found the sketch funny despite this. “Some sketches just stand alone by themselves”.

Pinter accepts that “some sketches will fly unexpectedly, and we just have to lean into that”. The team recall a few instances on the contrary in which they performed in Collingwood and the sketch flopped. “We all thought it was hilarious but the audience didn’t find it funny… it was mental to us!”.

The whole premise for their sketch shows is that their show is accessible to its audience, therefore,

Having caught wind of their upcoming show, I want to give the team an opportunity to plug it here. “We have a show at the Gala theatre on Sunday 19th February at 8pm”, they say. With it being Pinter’s and Adam’s final show to a home audience, it is important to grab your tickets. If this isn’t enough of a reason to pop along, the team “have been working with WHAT’S A POUND? to donate a pound of every ticket sale to a charity of our choosing”.

Having worked with

Having worked with Switchboard and Durham Hygiene bank previously, the Revue are donating the money raised to Durham’s branch of the Trussell Trust, fighting against poverty and hunger

Gwilliam sells it as “a cheap night out” if nothing else! Make sure you grab your tickets to see the troupe perform their best show yet.

Pinter: “It’s going to be warm. We have bonded so much as a group that there is a clear visual sense of togetherness”

Adam: “Electric!” (this arose following an order from Pinter not to use the word “slay”)

Gwilliam: “fast-paced”

We could have an audience of 7 who are roaring with laughter and then we could be sold out and not even get that much

Our work is so collaborative that by the time the show reaches the fringe, it is hard to tell who wrote which sketch

(The 2022/23 Durham Revue troupe (Archie Collins)

Requiem for a drug: undersupply of pharmaceuticals in the UK

Cas Gudgeon SciTech Editor

There have been increasing reports of significant shortages of pharmaceuticals in the UK and across the globe. A recent survey of 1,562 UK-based pharmacists found that 54% of respondents believed medicine shortages were pu ing patients at risk, and a further 25% of pharmacists felt unsure about the effects of such shortages. Last year, the UK government issued medicine supply notifications for a wide range of drugs, including specific formulations for medicines used to treat conditions such as bipolar disorder, prostate cancer, and endometriosis.

Among the many drugs which were reported to be affected by shortages, life-saving medications such as alendronic acid (used to treat osteoporosis) and semaglutide (a type 2 diabetes medication) featured prominently. In May 2022, the UK government also issued over a dozen serious shortage protocols for hormone replacement therapy (HRT) products, meaning that pharmacists were permi ed to restrict patients’ prescriptions, and make substitutions without first consulting with patients’ GPs.

One pharmacist, works in a hospital in England, explained that the shortages were affecting patients in palliative care. “There was no alternative for one patient who had to deal with an additional symptom in his last days of life due to lack of available treatment.”

Another GP pharmacist said they were “always firefighting”, adding: “Presently, hardly a week goes by without at least one pharmacy asking us to give an alternative. Such requests are often not easy to navigate and can sometimes be quite dangerous. It creates a lot of stress to both patients and professionals alike.”

Other notable examples of drugs affected by supply deficits included painkillers such as eletriptan, which is indicated for migraines, as well as epidural kits and the opioid remifentanil, both of which are used for pain management during childbirth.

The oral suspension of paroxetine (brand name Seroxat), an antidepressant, was also discontinued by GSK in 2022, resulting in more governmental medicine supply notifications. The discontinuation of the paroxetine product was met with frustration and ‘horror’ by patients, who noted the importance of the oral suspension in safely tapering off of

the medication.

Sarah Tilley, in correspondence with The Pharmaceutical Journal, said “Many people trying to wean off Seroxat know how vital it is to get hold of the liquid version of the drug to help facilitate a safe and gradual taper [...] The decision to stop making liquid Seroxat is both concerning and hugely disruptive for those trying to come off.”

Another correspondent said that they had started taking Seroxat in their early twenties, and had been trying to taper off of the medication since 2004. “For my latest a empt to stop Seroxat, starting from 20 mg in 2018, I have used the oral suspension form to follow a hyperbolic taper. Doing so lets me precisely measure doses, avoids the risks of crushing tablets to make my own suspension, and is quicker and easier to order from my GP.”

Contractors are reporting problems obtaining more and more drugs

Just a few months after the announcement, The Economist published a piece titled, ‘Most people on antidepressants don’t need them’, citing a recent trial in Britain with 478 participants , which found that 44% of patients were able to discontinue antidepressant use without experiencing relapse within a year. The participants were longterm users of antidepressants (≥9 months of use), who had experienced multiple depressive episodes but felt well enough to consider stopping their medication. Though the claim is controversial, it’s clear that the abrupt withdrawal of these medications from the market poses a credible threat to patients who may wish to safely discontinue their use of antidepressant medications – and in the future one might reasonably expect more patients to turn away from antidepressants, given the growing uncertainty surrounding the widespread use of SSRIs to treat depression.

Across the pond, similar struggles have ensued in the US. Amoxicillin supplies are low in both the UK and the US, and the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has reported that 191 drugs – including antibiotics, cancer

treatments, ADHD medications, and anaesthetics – are in short supply this month.

But what’s causing these shortages? And how long have they been going on?

In the UK, alarms began to sound over a year ago. In February of 2022, the Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Commi ee (PSNC) raised the issue of drug procurement with the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC). Mike Dent, the director of pharmacy funding at the PSNC, told The Pharmaceutical Journal, “Contractors are reporting problems obtaining more and more drugs, with a number of complex factors at play in the supply chain once again.”

In the US, these problems have been apparent since 2011, at least – for the past five years, the American Society of HealthSystem Pharmacists (ASHP) has reported that hundreds of drugs have been in undersupplied in every quarter.

Though Covid-19 contributed to these issues, these issues were prominent well before the pandemic years. Carolyn Wickware (Investigations Editor for The Pharmaceutical Journal) laid out several major factors which have contributed to shortages. One such factor is that the UK is an increasingly una ractive market for medicine manufacturers. For instance, manufacturers which signed up for the 2019 voluntary scheme for branded medicines pricing and access (VPAS) will have their tax rates increased to 26.5% this year. Just two years ago, the VPAS tax rate was 5%.

VPAS is designed to ensure that NHS medicine bills do not increase by more than 2% each year. But the UK is only a small component of the global drug market. Mark Samuels, chief executive of the British Generics Manufacturing Association (BGMA), explained: “If it’s a branded generic that’s subject to VPAS — and therefore the margin on that product in the UK is extremely slim — and there’s a finite amount of stock, then global headquarters of shareholderowned companies are going to prioritise other countries over the UK if they make a negligible margin in the UK as a result of the VPAS rate.”

But removing these pricing controls could also have devastating results for the NHS. And the UK isn’t the only country to exert financial pressure on manufacturers. David Taylor, an emeritus professor

of pharmaceutical and public health policy at UCL, says various medicine price controls exist across Europe. “It’s only really in [the United States] that you’ve got free pricing.”

licenses are lost due to the delay in manufacturing – and even when applications are approved, a two-year delay means that in the meantime, there may be just one supplier for the medicine in question.

Beyond the red tape, an elaborate cocktail of supply chain issues looms over pharmacies. The PNSC a ributes supply issues to staff absence due to Covid-19, post-Brexit trade, and increased oil prices. The resulting shortages have driven up the cost of generics significantly.

A litany of other issues have been cited by pharmaceutical manufacturers and distributors, some of which are related to Covid-19. Samuels also stated, “There’s been a global shortage of shipping containers, and a challenge with shipping containers, not necessarily always being in the right parts of the world.”

“Medicines get no particular priority when it comes to shipping. There’s no preference to medicines over somebody shipping in a container full of socks.”

Marketing authorisation approvals for generic medicines are also a source of frustration for manufacturers. The Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has a ‘sunset clause’, which means that manufacturers will cease to have marketing authorisation for a medicine if the drug is not placed on the UK market for 3

When pharmacists are unable to obtain a generic medicine at its usual price, the NHS pays for more expensive versions of a generic medicine. OpenPrescribing, a project which analyses NHS prescribing data, estimates that over the last 12 months, NHS England spent £257,590,000 on pharmaceutical price concessions. This month, the projected spending for price concessions is £30.7 million. OpenPrescribing also estimates that the total cost of price concessions for the Claypath & University Medical Group in the last year came out to £70,038.

Moreover, price concessions don’t always mean that pharmacies are compensated for cost increases. A pack of temazepam, for example, may cost a pharmacy more than £20 – but the price concessions only subsidise pharmacies at roughly £16, meaning that pharmacies make a loss on certain medications.

A spokesperson for the DHSC said, “We have well established procedures to deal with medicine

Companies are going to prioritise other countries over the UK if they make a negligible margin

Are neutron stars truly squishy? Perhaps not

Cameron Sco

Imagine compressing some hydrogen gas. The volume occupied by the gaseous vapour shrinks and the interactions between the constituent hydrogen molecules strengthens. At a certain pressure, the hydrogen molecules coalesce and transition into liquid hydrogen. Compress it further and the liquid solidifies. What would happen if we continued applying greater pressure?

With further compression, the atoms making up the hydrogen solid would approach so close that they combine, producing helium and releasing energy. Nuclear fusion has occurred. This is exactly the process by which stars operate. The universal a raction of gravity gathers, compresses, and fuses hydrogen, releasing energy that we receive in the form of visible light and other forms of electromagnetic radiation. The energy from fusion also acts as a kind of pressure pushing against the compressive grip of gravity. For small enough stars like our own, the outward pressure of fusion can counter the compression completely and the star remains steadily fusing hydrogen for many billions of years.

But what about larger stars? In this case, the energy from fusion is not sufficient to halt gravitational compression and the star continues to feel the squeeze. Helium is then fused together to form heavier elements, and these go on to form progressively heavier elements

with each step in the fusion ladder producing diminishing energy and struggling to stave off gravity.

– quarks and gluons – would form a sea of much greater density than the neutron star. This phase of ma er would presumably be the most compact thing possible. The la er option implies that instead of undergoing this phase transition, a neutron star too dense to remain stable would continue collapsing into a black hole.

Eventually, the pressures become so great that the individual protons and electrons constituting these elements are combined into neutrons in a last-ditch effort to prevent gravitational collapse. The resulting objects has a mass approximately equal to that of our Sun but is now compressed into something around the size of the island of Manha an. This miraculous density is one of the defining characteristics of the neutron star. Naturally, the questioning could continue. What if the energy released during the formation of the neutron star is still insufficient to prevent further compression? Are the neutrons somehow combined into some unimaginably dense material or does the story end in neutrons?

The former case is intriguing. It implies that as the neutrons are forced together, their components

In order to determine which of the two outcomes are the correct, two pieces of information must be very carefully measured. The mass of the neutron star is the first of these and can be ascertained by observing the motions of light that passes nearby. The more massive the star, the greater the deflection of light. Detection of the deflection determines the mass.

The second piece of crucial information is the diameter of the

star. Obtaining this value is much more subtle and is predicated on the fact that a large star is rotating at a constant rate. Upon collapsing into a neutron star, this rotation must continue (the principle of conservation of angular momentum) but as the neutron star is now considerably smaller than the original, the rate of rotation must be much higher. In fact, the rotation of the neutron star becomes so fast that charged particles near the surface are accelerated to huge speeds. This leads to another key piece of physics – accelerating charged particles emit huge amounts of electromagnetic radiation. The observational puzzle is completed when you realise that this radiation must, like light, be bent by the strong gravitation field of the star. The gravitational field of the neutron star is so strong that radiation originally emi ed in a

direction away from Earth will be bent round and sent towards Earth. The delay in radiation signals from the Earth-facing side against the other side provides some measure of the size of the neutron star.

Exactly these kinds of measurements have been performed using NASA’s Neutron star Interior Composition Explorer (NICER) X-ray Telescope mounted to the International Space Station. Data recorded from J0740, a neutron star three thousand light-years away from the Earth, was analysed by two independent teams. J0740 has a mass of 2.1 solar masses (the largest neutron star currently known) and was calculated to have a diameter of around 26km. Compare this with results from J0030, a neutron star of about 1.4 times the mass of the Sun and a diameter also about 26km across. Two vastly different masses of star have the same size. What does this mean?

If the hypothesised quark sea were to form in the larger star, you would expect the heavier star to have a smaller size – the quark sea makes the star squishier. This has not been observed. Clearly a neutron star of 2.1 times the mass of the Sun is not heavy enough to create this novel phase or if it does form, it can only possibly form in the very centre of the core with a negligible effect on the star’s overall size. Unfortunately, the experimental results indicate that this fascinating form of super dense material remains tantalisingly out of reach even in this most extreme of locales.

It can't draw fingers, but the AI arms race has begun

Will Brown SciTech Editor

Microsoft has fired the first shot in the artificial intelligence arms race. Rumours had swirled about the extent of Microsoft’s collaboration with OpenAI for some time following a $10 billion investment last month. Everyone wondered which Microsoft service would be the first to see the impacts of this partnership – and the answer is Microsoft Teams. With the power to automatically generate meeting notes, summaries and action points, this new premium AIpowered version of Teams signals the start of this multi-billion dollar partnership that is likely to spread throughout the Microsoft software offering. And with OpenAI rumoured to announce the next generation of their chat software, GPT-4 (we’re currently on GPT-3), in the coming weeks – Microsoft is looking to be in an increasingly strong position for capitalising on the current artificial intelligence hype.

Google have been on edge ever since OpenAI’s Chat-GPT made headlines late last year, declaring it a ‘Code Red’ and redirecting their teams from other projects to focus on artificial intelligence. Now, in a recent speech from Google’s recent earnings call, CEO Sundar Pichai spoke of the company’s plans to focus in hard on AI. According to

Pichai, Google’s AI chatbot – which the company have been working on since early 2022 – will soon be available for interaction with the public in the same way as their rivals OpenAI.

Pichai was cautious about how quickly this technology will be available, and indications say they’re going to take it comparatively slowly.

To paraphrase Steve Jobs, they’re not trying to be the first to the party – but they’re trying to be the best. But from what we’ve seen so far, Google are definitely going to be competitors in this market. Take, for example, the recent demonstration of MusicLM that was made available. Whilst OpenAI have cornered image and text generation, Google have made a system that can produce music from prompts. You can check out the samples they’ve released online, and it’s scarily good – even if the vocals are complete gibberish that feel like they would be at home in The Sims. And it’s not just Google and Microsoft drinking from the well of artificial intelligence. Similarly to Google, artificial intelligence was a focus of Apple’s recent earnings call. CEO Tim Cook emphasised that AI is a “major focus” at Apple – noting that many of their services already integrate elements of AI – and have plans to involve it in almost all of their products. We’ve seen the potential benefits of that already when, in early January, Apple unveiled a series of audiobooks that had been narrated by artificial

intelligence. This isn’t likely listening to Siri trying to read your texts, these sound like real people. Whilst many within the world of literature criticised the feature as taking something away from the art of the process, it’s undeniable that it costs far less than hiring narrators.

With all these companies simultaneously competing for dominance in the AI market, it’s unsurprising that various journalists and random people on Twi er (myself included) have declared an imminent AI-arms race amongst Big Tech.

Reference to any kind of race leads us to question – what’s the end goal?

What’s the ‘man of the moon’ that

will declare a winner? Many believe that artificial general intelligence is AI’s Apollo 11. Artificial General Intelligence, or AGI, is not a term with an entirely concrete definition. Nevertheless, the overall concept is an artificial intelligence that is capable of performing any task that a human could do. It’s a term often conflated with the idea of the Singularity – the point at which artificial intelligence becomes intelligent enough to improve itself, creating an exponential increase in computing capacity. Are we close to this? Not really.

We’re probably decades away from the point at which any of the major tech companies are able to create artificial general intelligence, and OpenAI’s CEO Sam Altman has urged people to lower their expectations of what the company is capable of.

So what’s really next for the artificial intelligence race? Altman commented in an interview in January that they’re planning to embark on a project to create video with artificial intelligence, something that Meta and Google are also working on. If you’re keeping score in the AI game, that’s likely to be the next goal.

Two vastly different masses of star have the same size. What does this mean?

(Generated with OpenAI's Dall-E 2)

(Generated with OpenAI's Dall-E 2)

They're not trying to be the first to the party - but they're trying to be the best

Peter Vickers on future-proof, facts and public policy

Cameron McAllister SciTech Editor

The Sun orbits the Earth. Light travels through space via a luminiferous ether. All diseases are transmi ed by bad air. I think it’s fair to say some ‘facts’ from the history of science have aged like milk (which can, incidentally, definitely transmit disease). In this context, how can we determine which of today’s scientific claims will last forever, and which we should take with pinch (or few) of salt?

Peter Vickers, Professor of Philosophy of Science at Durham University and author of the recent book Identifying Future Proof Science published by Oxford University Press, thinks he’s found the answer – and it doesn’t involve looking at the primary evidence in scientific journals, a ending conferences or scouring reports.

Identifying Future Proof Science is, in his own words, “an a empt to identify scientific claims that are established scientific facts in the sense that they're future proof. They're not going to be overturned by scientific revolution in the next 100 years, or even in the next 1,000

But while Vickers argues that some claims are future-proof, that doesn’t mean that nothing is going to change over the next centuries, or even millennia. “You might look back 1,000 years and say, look at what's changed, won't loads change in the next 1,000 years? And I think it will.” Nevertheless, Vickers claims that “some scientific claims [are] are so firmly established that we can have full confidence that they will still be believed in the future.”

What kind of claims does Vickers believe are established scientific facts? “The claims that are being made are […] not ambitious claims, they're just things that basically everybody accepts and has accepted for years and have been established over a period of many decades with a huge amount of research.”

“Or even something more banal than that, like the water cycle. Like, why doesn’t the sky run out of rain? You know, things like that. I think we know there's not going to be a new theory of the rain anytime, even in 1,000 years or 5,000 years.”

But the work isn’t just relevant to academically establishing whether simple facts can be thought to be “beyond reasonable doubt” or not.

Scientific consensus is also key to implementing appropriate policy, with climate change and public health pertinent areas.

“IPCC [Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change] authors do have to write after their statements, ‘low confidence’ or ‘medium confidence’ or ‘high confidence’ or sometimes they use ‘very high confidence.’ One of the things that inspired me was reading this article where they interviewed some IPCC report authors and asked them about their opinions on these qualifications, and the person replied that they need a way to distinguish high confidence from scientific fact, and they don't really have one.”

opinion’.” That would allow the IPCC to more rigorously apply confidence ratings and public health bodies to produce more effective messaging.

But in the provisional institute’s provisional name – the Institute for Ascertaining Scientific Consensus (IASC) – there’s something missing compared to the rest of Vickers’s work: the word ‘fact’. While there’s a “core” of the team that would support using the term ‘fact’, it was (aptly?) difficult to achieve consensus amongst such a “big international team”. It seems Vickers’s criteria might not have passed its own test, yet.

The main point of dissent within the team seems to be that ‘facts’ could be seen as too paternalistic. “People want to make up their own minds about things, otherwise it's too Big Brother.”

advances within a paradigm, “which are then punctuated by big scientific revolutions” or ‘paradigm-shifts’, which are accompanied by a new set of ‘weak’ facts. “For Kuhn, facts were relative to a paradigm, and we might have new facts in 50 or 100 years”.

But unlike scientific antirealism, this produces a practical approach that’s more in line with how we actually experience the world and act within it. “With something like smoking causes cancer, I want to say it would be ridiculous to say that in 50 years people will look back and say ‘look, people used to believe that smoking causes cancer, now we know differently’ or ‘now we have a different theory’.”

a ‘scientific fact’. I’ll leave it as an exercise to come up with counter examples, though the book already debunks many of the most obvious ones.

The diversity criterion in particular is doing a lot of heavy lifting. Many apparent counter examples from the history of science, namely the dogmatic belief in classical mechanics in the 19th century, may meet the 95% criteria but fail on diversity.

“The physics community in the 19th century was nearly all, you know, middle to upper class white men. So, it's sort of a cheeky way to rule that case out.” Lord Kelvin, who reportedly stated at the turn of the 20th century ‘There is nothing new to be discovered in physics now’ definitely fit that description.

Vickers also cites a Nature paper by researchers from the Czech Republic, which showed that properly informing the public of the medical consensus on the safety of Covid-19 vaccines increased vaccine uptake, as inspiration. “In the back in the back of my mind there's this idea that you can influence public opinion, which in turn influences what policymakers can actually bring in without ge ing voted out of the next election.”

The problem is “humanity doesn't have a good way to measure scientific community opinion.” Vickers is keen to fix this and is involved in a pilot study for a future institute (“I'm calling it an institute, but it's not an institute yet.”).

The aim of the institute would be “to ask tens of thousands of scientists a question” and “to very quickly, within a couple of weeks, get a response back on the scale of, you know, many thousands or tens of thousands, where we can say ‘this reflects scientific community

“So what you can say is ‘look, you know, we've measured opinion, and here's the result’ and then hopefully people would think ‘well if 75% of the experts think it's inevitable to reach 1.5 degrees, that's quite high, and the consequences of reaching more than 1.5 degrees are really bad, so maybe we should act.’”

Vickers hopes that there are some cases where “you would sway community opinion and that would help policymakers to bring in policies which […] the public would support because we've got this information about where the policy is coming from.”

Let’s consider some more modern scientific claims. Smoking causes cancer. The Universe is 13.8 billion years old. Humans evolved from fish.

To some, they will all be obviously true. To others, the currency of science is models, with facts being largely irrelevant. Many would further argue that given the turbulent history of science its hubristic to talk of scientific ‘facts’ at all.

Vickers points to the influence of the titans of 20th century philosophy of science – Thomas Kuhn and Karl Popper – for why many in the philosophy of science community distrust the idea of established facts, and potentially for why an institute like the IASC hasn’t been founded before.

To simplify, Kuhn believed in scientific revolutions; there are “periods of stability in science”, during which science

Karl Popper on the other hand “disagreed with confirmation entirely. He was a falsificationist. He thought the scientific method was all about trying to prove things wrong.” His view of science didn’t leave much room – or any – for scientific facts.

Vickers also calls out the scientific anti-realists who are sceptical about science, often based on the historical record (“the idea that you know scientific ideas have always been overturned and they always will be”), calling it “sort of a simplistic symmetry argument”.

With his criteria, Vickers almost creates a reflection of this reasoning, arguing based on the historical record that claims meeting his criteria haven’t been overturned, therefore modern-day claims also meeting the criteria also won’t be overturned.

But what if this is all just a simulation? Vickers paraphrases the philosopher of science Carl Hoefer: “If you push the sceptic to the limit where they’re actually a Cartesian sceptic, then you’ve won.” Vickers distinguishes between reasonable scepticism and radical scepticism, and argues that we should ultimately ignore the radical sceptics, and the Cartesian sceptics who believe “this might all be a dream or there might be an evil demon inventing my thoughts”.

“The idea behind trying to find the 95% threshold is that usually that threshold is such that the remaining sceptics in the less than 5% are usually being unreasonable. That’s sort of the idea. I don’t think I say that explicitly, but I suppose that’s the idea, that, you know, once you reach a really solid international scientific consensus, then whoever is left not believing in it is probably being unreasonable.

“There will always be scientists like that, very professional scientists, affiliated with an academic department, with a PhD, who for whatever reason have a radical view about some theory that everyone else takes for granted. But they often think of themselves as the lone voice of reason or something, I think that’s something that, you know, effects scientists as well as, you know, the people who we sometimes see on the TV – maybe in America especially!”

Curiously, Vickers’s criteria implies that if you want to know if a statement is a fact you might not need to do science at all, you might instead just need to ask enough scientists. There’s an interesting contradiction in the power of Vickers’s method being in the secondary evidence of scientific consensus, while scientists themselves are busy looking at the primary evidence to make their decisions.

“It is [interesting], and it’s potentially delicate. That's why in the book at some point I say ‘I don’t want scientists to read this book’, because I want scientists to keep looking at the first order evidence, and not think ‘oh, the best way to truth is to look at the second order evidence, I’ll do that’ because if they all did that the whole thing would collapse.”

That's why in the book at some point I say ‘I don’t want scientists to read this book’

(Peter Vickers)

(Peter Vickers)

People want to make up their own minds about things

£9156: the politics of student rent increases Student

Amber Tait

The increase in cost of a standard catered room at Durham University has been met with outrage from students. The University has been criticised for reinforcing structural class divides, and pricing working class students out of the city.

The cost-of-living crisis has already resulted in a housing crisis in the city, with many students still uncertain about where they will live next academic year. The rise in the price of college accommodation means that what had previously been a safety net for those struggling to rent privately, is now less affordable than in the past.

The University has justified this increase in college rent, arguing that increased costs of supplies have forced them to drive up their prices, but many students have questioned what this money is being spent on.

A standard catered room will now cost £9,156 for a 39-week contract – with the maximum student loan for students living away from home outside of London now being £9,978, leaving just £822 after rent has been paid.

Student Finance England will only be increasing student loans by 2.8% for the 2023/24 academic year, compared to the current rate of inflation at 9%. This decision has been met with mass criticism and will put every student in receipt of student finance in a worse off position.

With prices rising for students around the country, a university education is becoming increasingly inaccessible for working class students, and those whose parents are not earning higher incomes.

The current student loan system is limited and does not consider the various factors that may affect a student’s ability to fund their studies. The system ultimately considers parental income, the type of course being studied and whether a student has learning difficulties or extenuating circumstances that may hinder their education.

or the price of basic accommodation at the university they have chosen to a end. This means that every situation is assessed with the same broad conditions that most people’s situations do not fit into. Ultimately, a student who has no siblings, whose parents may pay out a small mortgage every month will be awarded the same loan entitlement as a student whose parents pay a large sum in rent every month, if their combined annual income is the same. As such, the way in which a student’s income is assessed is flawed, resulting in some struggling to afford their university experience.

In the past, a Durham education was far more affordable. According to a 2005-06 occupancy agreement for Collingwood College, tuition fees cost £1,175 each year with a standard catered room costing £3693 (around £5,622.84 in 2022, according to the Bank of England’s Inflation calculator). Despite the rise in tuition fees being a policy introduced by the Government, the rise in accommodation fees is something the University is responsible for. Although this can be explained by an improvement in facilities in Durham, or an increase in pay for staff, the significant increase in the cost of accommodation against inflation seems difficult to justify.

The system does not consider the amount of money a student’s parents may spend per month on rent or a mortgage, other debt they may acquire, or the number of dependents their parents may have,

Durham University has justified the increase in college rent costs by arguing that the worst off students will be eligible for the Durham Grant - set at £2,500 for the year 2023-4 - although this will still leave

students struggling to get by, even on top of the maximum student loan.

The options for a student in this situation seem clear: miss out on entertainment throughout the year that their peers will be able to afford, such as formal dinners, joining societies or balls; or opt for cheaper self-catered college where one may be able to save money on food. The reality is that an ever-present divide is appearing in Durham, where students from lower socioeconomic backgrounds populate the self-catered colleges in greater numbers than their wealthier peers who populate the Bailey. The increase to rent prices will result in this divide expanding.

Politics

Those in the “silent middle” will also continue to suffer; those whose parents have a combined income of £50,000. They will receive a maintenance loan of around £6,412 according to Student Finance England. Students whose household income reaches this threshold are not eligible for any extra help from the university, and will therefore have to rely on their parents. If their parents are unable to support them, they will have to work whilst studying in order to cover their rent. This amount of money will not cover standard self-catered accommodation, potentially encouraging these students to a end another institution, where accommodation

explains:

Madeleine Ballay

Politics Editor

The cost-of-living crisis has dramatically affected student incomes. The House of Commons reported that, in 2022/3, the maximum student loan value decreased by 7.2% in real terms, despite a cash value increase of 2.3%.

In Durham, we have seen college accommodation prices steadily increase in the past decade. However, the jump in the cost of catered accommodation from £8,301 in 2022/3, to £9,156 next academic year, is what has caused anger in the student population.

is more affordable.

It is important to consider that tuition fees were introduced as a “top up” sum in the 1990s, paid merely to supplement government funding; since the tripling of fees to £9,000 in 2010, this amount has been meant to replace government funding altogether, and has turned students into customers in an ever-changing market, rather than citizens exercising their right to education. This approach has inflated the cost of higher education, resulting in the poorest accumulating the most debt, thus perpetuating economic inequality between generations.

student cost of living crisis

Universities

around the country

are raising the price of rent. The student housing charity Unipol has estimated that the average cost of rent has risen by 60% in the past decade. It now outstrips the average maintenance loan of £6,900.

In response to the crisis, students around the country have taken decisive action. In Manchester, approximately 150 students have, or intended to withhold their rent due in January.

In response to mounting financial pressure on the student population, the Russell Group has called for a review of parental earning thresholds. These have been frozen since 2008, leaving

them unadjusted to the economic fluctuation of the last fifteen years.

The Department for Education’s response to the crisis has been to freeze tuition fees for the sixth year running and a “multimillion pound package to help students cover living and other costs”.

Amidst the national crisis, with strikes affecting schools across the country, it is unlikely that a broader policy response will be developed by the present government. Students will have to continue cobbling together a living from loans, parents and part time work to afford the bare necessities.

Durham Castle (Russell Wills via Geograph)

In the past, a Durham education was far more affordable

Police Met with controversy

Alex Jennings

Content warning: This article contains references to sexual violence.

“The police are the public, and the public are the police.” When Sir Robert Peel, the founder of modern policing, said this in 1829, he envisioned a civil force which derived its legitimacy and effectiveness through public support rather than physical duress. Yet the idea of ‘policing by consent’ now seems more futile than ever given the deep sense of disgrace and inadequacy which surrounds British policing today.

With recorded crime in England and Wales at a 20-year high and public confidence in the local police forces continuing to decline, it’s no surprise that seven police forces in England were placed in special measures by the watchdog last year. Clearly, policing needs significant reform to reverse collapsing trust, and it must surely start with the largest and most prominent failing force: the Metropolitan Police.

become a stream. Rowley has warned that in the coming weeks and months, two or three Met Police officers per week are expected to appear in court on criminal charges, including cases of violence against women and girls. Evidently, the Met will look worse before it can get be er, but Rowley will hope the public can see him confronting the issues and finally purging his force of its toxic culture, in contrast to his predecessor Cressida Dick’s claim that there was only the occasional “bad’un” in the force.

performing officers, overhauling the current system which many say sets the bar for expulsion too high.

Commissioner Mark Rowley pledges to fight “toxic culture” within force Labour on asylum seekers : “Nothing is happening”

are structural

There are structural changes which could help the Met’s performance as well, with some arguing a return to neighbourhood policing is the most effective way to cut crime and restore public trust. Until 2018, all 32 London boroughs had a chief superintendent in charge of local policing, but many boroughs have since been merged under single police command units. If the Met returned to a more localised strategy, with more decision-making at a local level and a crackdown on the most common crimes such as burglaries, antisocial behaviour and fraud, the force’s standing could soon be put on the road to recovery.

Deputy Politics Editor

After coming under immense pressure, the Home Office have now revealed that 440 of the 4,600 child migrants housed in government hotels have vanished since July 2021. This, terrifyingly, puts each asylum seeking child at around a 10% chance of disappearance. In spite of efforts to locate the children, 200 apparently remain missing.

So, where are they all going? The Government have been tentative to discuss the possibility of these children being absorbed into organised crime, despite significant data that suggests this is the reality. The Observer published a report in late January which concluded: “Most of the children disappear into county lines”. Such findings are becoming harder to ignore for the Home Office, who originally claimed kidnapping claims were “not true”, but have now begun to name people-smugglers as a chief cause of the disappearances.

MP for Hove, Peter Kyle, challenged Jenrick on his commitment to the wellbeing of child migrants. Kyle pointed to 96 such children who had been accommodated in a hotel in his own constituency, and said, having visited the hotel, “To suggest that these are specialist facilities is ignorant.”

Kyle went on to say, “The uncomfortable truth for us is if one child who is related to one of us in this room went missing, the world would stop. But in the community I represent, a child has gone missing. Then five went missing. Then a dozen went missing. Then 50 went missing. And currently, today, 76 are missing, and nothing is happening.” Met with a round of applause, Kyle’s words were potent and compelling.

The revelation of these missing children comes after a winter of controversy surrounding the housing conditions of asylum seekers.

If Sir Mark Rowley, the Met’s recently appointed commissioner, is to turn around the force’s reputation, he will have to begin by enforcing discipline throughout the organisation, driving out the culture of impunity and bigotry which appears to have taken root.

The murder of Sarah Everard by a serving police officer who was nicknamed “the rapist” by his colleagues; the contempt for the bodies of two women stabbed to death; the strip-search of Child Q. No doubt, the Met has been ridden by scandal for some time. The recent conviction of another officer, David Carrick, on 49 charges relating to more than 80 sexual offences, highlights the appalling behaviour to which the Met has turned a blind eye for too long. In October, it was revealed that more than 1,800 officers and staff had faced multiple allegations of misconduct since 2013, but only 13 of those people were sacked.

What has so far been a trickle of public revelations of criminality in the Met, though, could soon

However, a further problem for the Met is that the majority of good officers are demoralised: a result not just of the scandals which have consumed the force in recent years, but also a consequence of being over-stretched and understaffed.

The Met is currently a quasinational police force, meaning it is constantly balancing the need to deal with the most serious, national and international crimes, including terrorism, with fighting crime in London. If the burden of being a national force could be separated from the day-to-day policing of London, many argue the Met could be more effective in tackling crime and restoring public confidence in policing.

But if more crimes are to be solved, more officers will be needed too. Like many police forces across the country, the Met is still working to regain the staff lost to austerity measures introduced by the Conservativeled coalition after 2010. Yet when it comes to recruiting police officers, it is often argued that government quotas are unhelpfully forcing the swift employment of substandard candidates, sometimes without adequate ve ing of prospective officers.

If the Met are to improve the quality of their policing, it needs to only hire right-minded people who are up to the job. The Government can also help by making it easier to dismiss poorly

As Britain’s most high-profile constabulary, the Met should provide an example of modern policing to the rest of the country and lead the way in restoring public confidence in civil law enforcement. Rowley may only be in the initial months of his tenure as commissioner, but for the sake of British policing, he needs to succeed.

A Home Office spokesperson has since released a statement claiming, “The wellbeing of children in our care is an absolute priority,” following this with, “In the concerning occasion when a child goes missing, local authorities work closely with agencies, including the police, to urgently establish their whereabouts.”

Robert Jenrick, the Minister for Immigration, appeared in Parliament on 24th January to answer emergency questions regarding the disappearances. Jenrick reiterated the Home Office statement, and argued that, “many who go missing are traced and located.”

But for many, Jenrick’s simple self-assurance in the face of tragedy has been unsatisfactory. The Labour

The Manston asylum centre, which could hold 1,600 migrants for 24 hours at a time, had been housing 4,000 migrants for weeks on end until December 2022. Diseases such as scabies and MRSA spread through the camp, alongside reports of violence and drugmisuse.

Chris Philp, the Minister for Policing, defended the centre last year, saying “If people choose to enter a country illegally and unnecessarily, it’s a bit of a cheek to then start complaining about the conditions.” Critics would claim that migrants don’t have to arrive through conventional means to legally claim asylum, and that fleeing war and persecution wouldn’t qualify as unnecessary. Even so, the UK’s capacity to ensure a reasonable duty-of-care to all asylum seekers remains in doubt. The pressure atop Westminster can, and will, only continue to grow.

Evidently, the Met will look worse before it can get be er

Sir Mark Rowley (Open Government License 3 via Wikimedia Commons)

Guy Seagers

If Sir Mark Rowley is to turn around the force’s reputation, he will have to begin by enforcing discipline

There

changes that could help the Met’s performance

Haiti: just another failed state?

After a series of violence and natural disasters caused havoc , what is the outlook for Haiti?

Rory Smith

‘State Failure’ is a dirty term in the West. It conjures up images of tinpot dictators, vicious warlords and devastating humanitarian crises. A horrific and lamentable situation, but one that only occurs far away from us in the West, in places like Somalia, South Sudan and Afghanistan. They are felt to have li le impact on the West, and are easily forge able. Less than two hours away from Miami, a state is collapsing before our very eyes. Haiti has been destabilised by years of foreign intervention and sits on a fault line that causes powerful and regular earthquakes - an earthquake in 2010 caused $8 billion worth of damage, and left lasting social impacts.

In the summer of 2021, Haiti all out collapsed. Amidst an atmosphere of general political unrest, the President, Jovenel Moise, was assassinated. A quirk of timing and the Haitian Constitution meant that there was no clear successor. Instead, former Prime Minister Claude Joseph, Prime Minister Ariel Henry (who had been declared PM the day before the a ack but had not yet been sworn into the role) and Senate Speaker Joseph Lambert were all able to lay claim to the role.

Haiti has been detabilised by years of foreign intervention

The government, weak and riven by infighting, declared a state of emergency. It did not have the ability or funds to mitigate the damage, estimated at 10% of Haiti’s GDP. Criminal gangs stepped into the vacuum left by the state. Due to suspected links to the Haitian political and business elites, two major gangs, G-9 and G-Pep, were able to use earthquake relief money to buy weapons from the impoverished Haitian military.

The circumstances of President Moise’s death further aggravated the situation. Henry, who eventually won the presidency, promised elections that still have not yet happened, and was accused of involvement in the murder. The former PM was allegedly killed on the orders of a cabal of prominent Haitian political and civil leaders whom he had been investigating for corruption, and Henry had allegedly had contact with a key suspect. The choice of Henry for President was thus not one to inspire confidence in the Haitian political elite.

The final seeds of state collapse were sown when a 7.2 magnitude earthquake hit Haiti in August 2021, killing more than 2000 people.

Meanwhile, gangs provided a safety net for newly homeless and unemployed men, left resourceless at a time when the government was too weak to respond to the crisis. Gangs now control at least 60% of Port-au-Prince and there is open warfare on the streets. The UN estimates 1,377 people were lost to gang-related violence between June and September in the capital last year. It is too dangerous to travel the streets, except under guard: 1,107 people were kidnapped between January and October 2022.

Haiti is still without an elected president and the government is accused of being in league with the gangs, rendering it unable to solve the crisis. Senate Speaker Joseph Lambert has recently been sanctioned by the US for his alleged involvement with organised crime. MPs cannot access their own parliament building, as it is in gang territory. In September last year, gangs captured Haiti’s fuel port and held it to ransom for two months, crippling the economy further whilst increasing their share of its income.

Recently, Haiti has been hit by more violence as the police, fed up with gang a acks on police stations (14 police officers killed in the first two weeks of January), have rioted. There looks to be no end to the violence in sight. There is a failed state in the western hemisphere.

Seemingly out of the blue at a routine press conference, the Prime Minister and Leader of the New Zealand Labour party resigned. Kiwis, and the world along with them were shocked when Jacinda Ardern, a beacon of progressive politics in populist times, announced her plan to step down. Most Prime Ministers rise to power on their own terms, and few leave without being marred by scandal or party revolt. Perhaps it is emblematic of her premiership that Ms Ardern, in her signature Kiwi dignity, could admit to herself that she no longer had “enough in the tank” to carry out her job.

Most Prime Ministers rise to power on their own terms, and few leave without being

by scandal or party revolt

Her reputation for good governance and quiet competence was shown by her deftness and delicacy after the Christchurch Mosque shooting and her willingness to sacrifice longterm economic damage for the preservation of life in response to Covid-19. This la erly has become much more controversial. While having six times fewer deaths than the UK adjusted for population, the

lockdowns Ardern employed were much more brutal, and the vaccine roll-out was much slower.

The social and economic ramifications have caught up with Kiwis, with Ardern’s party being punished in the polls, down from her historic 49% landslide, to polling at 30% this January. She has offered li le in terms of economic recovery, only proposing a tax on the top 2%, and the hope that tourism may rescue soaring inflation, currently at a 32-year high of 7.3%. It is unusual for a party in a proportional system to be able to govern outright, but this has landed Ardern with the curse of personal responsibility for all her successes and failures. Those down under blame her and her alone for their version of the costof-living crisis, a dangerous game for any government.

Her replacement, Chris Hipkins, her odd-jobs man in government, was appointed Prime Minister unopposed. Known for his upbeat persona and quiet competence, he is seen as a continuation of the Ardern ministry. He pulled the strings behind New Zealand’s Covid-19 policy, and then after a rise in gang crime as a side effect of Labour’s failed social housing policy, Ardern dispatched him on a mission to oversee the national police force.

However, if the tank is running dry, why go for continuity? Mr Hipkins has promised a back-tobasics approach to government; he has stripped back the pursuit of unpopular policies on water companies and the treasured state broadcasters, and has set his sight on reducing the squeeze on Kiwi pockets. He has also been seen as competent in the way he dealt with the recent Auckland landslides, landing him some popularity win the polls. Only time will tell if this

will translate into the ballot box and overcome their National party rivals.

Now that the ‘Jacinda-mania’ has worn off, many are asking what her future holds - when she was elected, she was one of the youngest heads of government in the globe at age 37. Many ex-heads of government struggle to replicate their successes after their taste of power. In the short term, she has commented on the ‘sacrifices’ made by her family during her time in power

Now that the ‘Jacinda-mania’ has worn off, many are asking what her future holds

Many people have speculated that she may get involved on the international stage, in the UN or another NGO, or potentially representing New Zealand. As a young head of government, some have speculated another potential term in office; at 42 she is nearly half the age of US President Joe Biden. Or she may, in the long line of former heads of government, set up her own foundation. Either way, while she is refilling those tanks, her premiership will be remembered for her dignity, compassion, and competence, and the way that projected onto the world stage.

Jacinda Ardern (right) (Government House/General Governer of New Zealand via Wikimedia Commons) Jacinda Ardern: what is her future?

Will Dixon

Two major gangs, G-9 and G-Pep, were able to use earthquake relief money to buy weapons from the impoverished Haitian

marred

As your season comes to an end, it’s time to let love into your life once and for all. Break down those walls that have been holding you back from commitment, they are thinner than you think.

Palstrology

This week brings self-realisation –you will finally start to recognise your self worth. If your relationship is no longer sparking joy, it’s time to spark them out.

Venus is entering your intimacy zone, perhaps that prolonged eye contact in the Billy B can lead to something more.

All eyes are on you – and it’s not a bad thing this time. Strut your stuff down the Bailey and you just might get scouted for Scczqccccfs.

With Venus joining Saturn in Aquarius, you’re going to have a profound realisation. Valentine’s Day is a capitalist myth. think.

This week brings self-Time to update your LinkedIn page and check your direct messages. You never know, one of your future business connections could be the shampoo to your conditioner.

Due to your recent romantic endeavours, you didn’t quite manage to steer clear of the wave of tonsillitis going around college at the momentit’s ok to turn to Calpol (it isn’t just for children).

That gro y old shed that you call a house will feel more homely than ever this week, invite people round for a cuppa. You’ll be able to spend some much-needed time away from your Lego obsessed beau.

Venus will bring you gifts in the form of love this week, and don’t be rolling your eyes like you normally do. If someone asks you to Riverview, just brave the queue.

The Sun-Mars Trine (we’ve never heard of this either) signifies it’s time to get in touch with your emo side. Perhaps you should request ‘Sk8ter boi’ from DJ Dave next time you see him.

VAN MILDERT

CASTLE

QDear Violet, I am beginning to get stressed out, as my situationship has left me on delivered for nearly six days. We went on a few dates last term, and she even cooked me dinner. But out of the blue, she’s disappeared! Do I double message, or will that make me look desperate? Please bless me with your wisdom.

QDear Violet, I am quite frankly losing the will to live. I was straightening my hair last Friday, before a wild night spent wiffing and waffing to some afro beats. But I somehow managed to burn off a huge chunk of my hair! I look terribly lopsided, and I have no idea how to improve my appearance.

Ask Aunty Violet

Have a problem for Aunty Violet?

As you are ruled by the romantic Venus, it seems impossible to not get swept up by your situationship. You can still enjoy tacky Valentine’s gifts while giving some much needed a ention to your friendships.

Communication is more than important than ever and no one thinks so more than your partner lecturers. Be more concise.

PalatiDates

In this edition, will Marley and Tom fall head over heels on their riverside walk date?

Marley on Tom

Initial vibes?

Incredibly wholesome vibes. He brought an actual map with a pre-planned route.

What topics arose?

A comprehensive explanation of how one can use just the moon for directions.

Tom on Marley

Initial vibes?

An unfortunate bird poo incident slightly killed the vibe.

What topics arose?

A startling amount of time was spent talking about map coordinates.

ADearest reader, I am so sorry to hear about this tricky situation you have found yourself in. Perhaps there is a rational explanation for why she hasn’t messaged you back. Maybe she is unwell, or stuck in a dissertation wormhole. I would encourage you to message her, but keep your tone calm and caring, rather than overbearing!

Perhaps you could ask if she is okay as you haven’t heard from her in a while, and mention that you just wanted to check in. Alternatively, if you are intent on sending a more heated message, you could wait until your next night out - and at least that way you can blame your behaviour on the alcohol the next morning!

This is a trick I myself have used from time to time, and it (sometimes) works!

ADearest reader, This does indeed sound like an upse ing predicament to be in. Fortunately, Aunty Violet has a couple of suggestions to help you out with your seared hair struggles.

1) Have you considered investing in a funky hat? The Durham fashion scene is all about quirky clothing and statement pieces. The new vintage store on North Road might possess the perfect hat to disguise your singed locks!

2) A li le birdy tells me that buzzcuts are going to be totally in this February. Maybe you should take the plunge and get rid of your hair entirely. There is however the risk of revealing a rather badly shaped head.

I would advise you to follow up with one of these options ASAP, so you don’t feel silly stru ing about all scorched!

Fill out the form via the QR code!

How would they describe you? Like bambi on ice (I fell over twice in one hour).

Describe them in three words. Adorable, wholesome, goofy.

Most awkward moment?

When a bird pooed on me ten minutes into the date (meant to be good luck though?)

Which Durham college would you place them in and why?

Mary’s for the wholesome vibes.

Did they meet your expectations? Any surprises?

His route planning skills were impressive, his route following skills not so much. We may have ended up in Pity Me.

Is a second date on the cards? Certainly, but safely indoors, I hope.

Marks out of 10: 8

How would they describe you? Big dad energies.

Describe them in three words. Clumsy, sweet, wi y. Most awkward moment?

Me accidentally guiding us so far out of Durham that we had to Uber back.

Which Durham college would you place them in and why? Castle, nothing but the best.

Did they meet your expectations? Any surprises?

I got more of a workout laughing at her jokes than from the walk itself.

Is a second date on the cards? Hopefully, if I haven’t been friend-zoned, I can’t currently tell...

Marks out of 10: 7 Signups

Gabi Gordon and Eve Kirman, a prophetic pair, look to the stars to offer some Valentine’s insight

(Images: Nicole Wu)

Sport

“A mixture of basketball, netball and futsal”: Introduction to DU Handball

Sanjay Suri & Joe Harston Sport Editor & Deputy Sport Editor

One of the key factors that made Durham University named Sports University of the Year by The Times was the huge breadth in sport that it offers. One of those is handball — a sport popular in mainland Europe, but less well-known in the UK.

We sat down with DU Handball’s club captain Sophie Granville, men’s B team captain Tom Melling, and new player Ozzy Agyapong Beach to discuss how handball is growing at the University and across the country.

Handball is a high-scoring, fastpaced team sport where players a empt to score goals by throwing the ball into the opposition net. It is often end-to-end and never short of exciting moments.

“That’s the big thing to get used to.” Tom tells us. “A full match is an hour long and you’d expect ge ing around one goal a minute so you get many high scores and that can be a weird thing to get used to.”

He also described the sport as “fast, exciting and a sense of togetherness.” This has been something that the University team has tried to introduce to its newest members. In recent years it has developed from a team that would

“struggle to get teams for matches and train in Hild Bede without goals” to “being selective with who we want to play”. Sophie points towards an increase in the number of UK students taking up the sport.

“We started about six years ago, but the team was reliant on Erasmus students. I joined three years ago but that was the first year with a women’s team, but it has just grown and grown. Now we have enough for four teams: two men’s and two women’s and now because more English people are ge ing involved, it means the team can progress more, because people are staying for three or four years at university.”

Sophie is the first ever female club captain at DU Handball and this season marks the first time that both the men’s and women’s teams have had supplementary B teams. They have worked closely with DU Women in Sport and Team Durham to ensure that the sport gets more publicity. “My drive this year is to make the women’s team more well known. A lot of people have been messaging the account asking if it’s just men who can get involved.”

“DU Women in Sport, which started this year, has helped too. We have been tagging them a lot when we are doing women’s only stuff so that gets on there as well.”

Unfortunately, this season has been one of transition for the women’s

team, but the speed of development with new players has been very encouraging viewing.

“We beat York for the first time at the end of last term and at the beginning we didn’t expect to see that much progression. We’ve got so many players this year and I didn’t expect that.”

The men’s team are currently competing in Division One, with the aim to consolidate their place in their league. However, the B team have their eyes on not only promotion, but also winning the Division Three title.

Given that this is their first ever full season, that would be an outstanding achievement. For the A team, they have the excitement of competing in the National Cup, having progressed in the first round back in November.

“We have entered the national cup for the first time, that’s not a university thing; that’s like handball’s equivalent to the FA Cup. We have the next round of that in a month so that’s exciting as well.”

This, combined with BUCS fixtures for all teams and the Summer Cup (which will feature universities from across the country) provides plenty of landmark matches over the coming months.

For the A teams, the focus is on success. However, for the B teams development is paramount. “It’s the first year we’ve had a proper B

team, so that’s quite exciting which, similar to the women’s, mainly has people who haven’t played before, so it’s been about development, ge ing them used to playing the sport. We’ve been playing lots of friendlies which helps get experience.”

Players are not only a racted to the sport but to the social side of the club too.

“Because people are really enjoying it, they are staying to be part of it even if they’re not necessarily good at the sport or are still improving. That’s a racting others and people have just brought their friends in because it is a nice welcoming environment as it doesn’t ma er how well you play so long as you want to turn up and people hear about it through that.

“For handball, the skill level in the UK is a lot different to in Europe. It’s a lot more beginner friendly which has helped a lot. It means that anyone can come along and play at a competitive level which is amazing as you can bring someone along.” The a itude that the country has towards handball shows how it is helping to grow the sport from all levels.

“It’s definitely growing in England. We’ve had quite a few schools in Durham and County Durham approach us wanting us to coach them because they want us to help them start out and I know that England Handball Association are

starting to push handball in schools and there are lots of clubs and it adds to the quality levels.

“As everyone gets be er that’s when it’ll start to grow as there is more reason to publicise it. At the moment no-one really knows about the national cup or the league. But, as we get be er, people will think it’s more worth their while.

“The GB men’s team has just got

Game, set, unmatched: a review of the 2023 Australian Open

Florence Clifford

This year’s Australian Open began under the cloud of big-name absences and unease over Novak Djokovic’s return to Australia. By the close of play on January 29th the organisers could breathe a sigh of relief, although it was by no means a drama-free fortnight.

From the outset, the tournament saw the falling of titans, epitomised by Rafael Nadal’s limp second round defeat. When world number one Iga Swiatek was swept aside in the fourth round, the tournament became the first in the Open era to wave goodbye to the top two male and female seeds before the quarterfinals. Other big names featured in the new documentary Break Point fell early, victims of a supposed ‘Netflix curse.’

As ever, the best players made it through a tumultuous draw. The women’s final was a high-quality affair between two powerhouses, Elena Rybakina and Aryna Sabalenka. Sabalenka had won her three previous matches in three sets; this made it four. She won her first Grand Slam title 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 after a gutsy fightback from a set

down. The match was an enjoyable contest between one of the calmest, most composed players on the tour - Rybakina - and one of its most emotional and fired-up, Sabalenka.

Sabalenka has long had the physical prowess for major victories but struggled under pressure, notably tormented by serving issues - including the WTA record for double faults last year. A year spent working on her serve and a itude certainly paid off

Both women present a real challenge to Swiatek, whose vulnerability was exposed in a series of underwhelming performances.

The men’s draw was a different story. Djokovic arrived in Australia with a chip on his shoulder and a point to prove, which he did emphatically, bulldozing through the rest of the field to a recordequalling tenth title. Djokovic has never lost a semi-final or final at Melbourne Park, and his 6-3, 7-6 (4), 7-6 (5) victory over third seed Stefanos Tsitsipas draws him level with Nadal at a record 22 Grand Slams. It also makes him only the second man to win ten or more titles at a single Slam: Nadal’s 14 French Opens remains the number to beat.

Djokovic’s self-righteous anger was an extra weapon in his arsenal of unparalleled athleticism and fitness, mental fortitude, and ability to neutralise all opposition. However, it did li le to dispel his controversial image.

Djokovic. He called this “probably the biggest victory in my life considering the circumstances,” and collapsed into tears as the enormity of his win and its a endant pressure hit him.

Another one of the spectacular stories of the tournament was the Andy Murray renaissance. Four years after a tearful first-round exit from the Australian Open, hampered by the hip injury he feared would end his career, Murray produced some vintage tennis to twice rescue himself from defeat. He triumphed in five sets against Ma eo Berre ini and Thanasi Kokkinakis, the la er match ending at 4.05am, the third-latest finish in the Open era.

This year, again, the spotlight was rarely off him. First there was suspicion over his hamstring injury; then his father caused another PR nightmare by being pictured with Putin supporters. A different player would have cracked under the strain, but not

Murray’s a rition ba les took their toll: he was eventually defeated by Roberto Bautista Agut, the same man who knocked him out in 2019. Despite this loss, Murray’s dogged determination and phenomenal ability - with a metal hip - cemented his place among the best in the sport. It was proof that the old guard of tennis might be down, but certainly aren’t out.

Besides Murray, this was largely a forge able tournament for the Brits, with the notable exception

of wheelchair tennis stars Alfie Hewe and Gordon Reid. The duo added a fourth Australian Open to their remarkable sixteen Grand Slam doubles’ victories together, while Hewe also won the singles after twice finishing runner-up. Wildcard men’s doubles pairing Rinky Hijikata and Jason Kubler ensured a happy ending for the home nation despite disappointing singles’ performances and major absences. They beat seven toptwenty seeds in their surprise run to the title, ensuring an Aussie successor to last year’s champions, Kokkinakis and Nick Kyrgios. Djokovic’s victory capped off a remarkable two weeks of tennis but also leaves us with questions. The farcical late finishes led to renewed calls to change the format of the night session, but for the moment ratings gold trumps player welfare. The awkward geopolitics of the women’s final ensures tennis governing bodies can’t escape the spectre of war in Europe and how to respond (Sabalenka is Belarusian and Rybakina was a Russian citizen before playing for Kazakhstan). And finally, is there anyone out there that can stop Djokovic in his march to the all-time record?

It was proof that the old guard of tennis might be down, but certainly aren’t out

further than they ever have done before in the Euros qualification, so it is growing at the highest level and the lowest level. As people hear more, they start to watch it and it is a very exciting sport to watch so that will just help with the exposure.”

So, what makes a beginner good at handball?

“I’d say if you have any sort of athletic ability, you’ll already

have some advantage. If you can jump high, run fast and if you are agile, you’ll be good. Obviously if you can throw and catch the ball that’s more than ideal. Ge ing in initially, athleticism is good. A lot of the movement is similar to other sports. If you’ve played rugby before, your footwork will be good”

However, goalkeeping in handball is a different ma er. Goals

“Durham itself was rocking”

Continued from back page

And that is exactly what they sought to do. The adage ‘new year, new me’ was taken to a fresh level by Durham as they kicked 2023 off with a thrilling 3-3 effort against eventual champions Stirling. Having been in possession of a 3-1 lead at half time in that fixture, the signs were encouraging for the Maiden Castle mob.

The arrival of Hild Bede forward and fresher Fin Gwillim would also pay dividends after a debut goal in this match. Hope was the word, and this time it wasn’t being proffered by Barack Obama – instead, it was M1s captain Jack Gibbons inspiring the masses.

Next on the calendar was a fixture ready to make any Durham football enthusiast froth at the mouth with sweltering saliva: Newcastle University at home for the annual charity match – in aid of ‘Sport in Action’.

This occasion in 2022 had produced a thrilling 3-2 victory for Durham over an otherwise marauding Loughborough side. Live on PalTV and under the lights, destiny awaited beyond the glossy posters plastered around each college bar.

The build up to the match was tense, with spectators flocking in from all corners of this cathedral city se led calmly by the River Wear. Billed the ‘North East derby’, a sense of exalted expectation arose: was it fault or fortune wri en in the stars?

Cameras were duly switched on, floodlights flickered and shimmered upon the pitches around Maiden Castle, and the goals flowed delightfully.

A ha rick for Tom Hizze , Durham’s seemingly omnipresent talisman, was complemented by further additions to the score sheet from the boots of Gibbons, Gwillim, and substitute Ned Ventham.

Newcastle’s disheartening own goal equaliser soon became a mere consolation finish for the visitors. The hosts had simply been dominant in pervasive fashion. Durham were rocking; Durham itself was rocking.

A grandstand finish was thus set up at home to former football heavyweights Loughborough, with membership of the Aldi Premier North Division on the line. As aforementioned, characteristic mental fortitude, moments of genuine brilliance, and distinctive pace and passion saw the M1s cross that previously elusive line.

Euphoria ensued as members of the club and Team Durham in its swathing entirety swarmed the starting and finishing XI. History was made with the capture of survival. Careers had been duly defined, heroes had been miraculously uncovered, and now the national knockouts await for the side.

Whether the new year niceties of successful intuition can be continued remains to be seen. Following this resurgence in form - odds are suddenly in their favour.

play in goal is about changing the mindset.”

Contrary to football, handball matches tend to become higher scoring as the quality of the players increases. “At a low level, you wouldn’t see a lot of goals. If you’re good at handball it’s almost impossible to stop the ball.” Whilst players are not allowed to shoot in the D, the ability to throw the ball with such power and accuracy means that most close-range shots are unstoppable.

it was quite an international sport. It was a really nice group of people and having so many international students made me feel more at home. Now though, it’s just the main sport I play. I’ve ditched the others.”

Ozzy points to the diversity of players that you get in DU Handball as a key reason why it has such a friendly and relaxed atmosphere.

“It is also very inclusive and diverse in the sense that we’re from many different countries. Asia, Europe, Latin America to name a few, so anyone can come along and find someone who’s got a similar background.”

Handball at Durham evidently caters to all levels of players and is starting to a ract social members too, despite being handed some tricky training hours to make. “It’s the first year we’ve had 7am training sessions twice a week but people are turning up which I didn’t expect. Even some people have come along and not particularly liked the sport but have stayed on as social members.

are common, and a ackers almost always have the upper hand.

“This year the women’s goalkeeper played football and, whilst she knows how to play in goal, she says it’s so quick and said, “they’re scoring so many goals.” Because handball is such a high scoring match having the ability to

What makes DU Handball stand out amongst other Team Durham sports and other university level handball teams? Sophie certainly had a more unorthodox route into DU Handball.

“Me and my friend first started because we wanted to get stash! I lived in Brunei, and we played handball, but it was a different sport there.

“We went along but it wasn’t that sport, but I stayed because people were nice and, in that year,

“There’s no problem with that. And 7am sessions aren’t compulsory! We train every day except Saturday, so there’s plenty of opportunity to come along!”

Handball certainly is growing in the UK, both amongst players and spectators. Durham is at the heart of this growth, with even Ozzy hearing about Durham’s set up when he was studying at Bangor for his undergraduate degree. However, there was certainly one selling point that stood out above the others: “If you want DU stash, this is the society for you!”

Break Point: a resounding success or just another documentary?

Break Point: a resounding success or just another documentary?

Tom Ewart Smith Sport Reporter

Tom Ewart Smith Sports Reporter

Over recent years Netflix has produced a great array of sports documentaries, whe ing the appetite of sports fanatics.

The popularity of Drive to Survive has made way for the production of a new sporting insight, Break Point, by the same producer – Box to Box Films. Break Point explores the ups and downs for those playing on the ATP Tour and WTA Tour – the two major tennis circuits for men and women, respectively.

So far, only five episodes have been released, exploring the experiences of young and promising talents at the Australian Open, Indian Wells Masters, Madrid Open, and French Open. Such talent includes the likes of Nick Kyrgios, Paula Badosa, and several others.

Break Point is particularly interesting due to its focus on the pressure that young players feel to succeed. The media has been hyping up the younger generation for several years – particularly on the male side – which has been accompanied by the narrative that the emerging stars should be stealing the crown away from ‘the big three’.

Break Point is therefore able to explore the mental challenges that players face because of immense

expectation, and it allows for a discussion about mental health.

For example, although Paula Badosa has previously been open to the public about her struggles with depression, the series allows us to understand her experience in greater depth.

In one emotional scene, Badosa hangs her head and begins to cry at the end of an interview as she explains her feelings after a tough loss in her hometown of Madrid. The use of a Spanish explicit as she begins to tear up further highlights the emotional toll faced by highperformance athletes.

Break Point is also captivating given the range of characters examined. Perhaps the most controversial of these is Nick Kyrgios, who is the focus of episode one – fi ingly named, The Maverick. The series allows us to see the Australian’s mindset and the reasoning behind some of his choices.

For example, he explains why he doesn’t play all-year round, unlike most players; he feels the need to make time for family and friends, as well as look after his mental health. Therefore, having perhaps been labelled as a villain and hothead by the media, the documentary allows viewers to reassess their views of ‘the maverick’.

A focus on Ons Jabeur, the female trailblazer from Tunisia,

is another positive aspect of the series, seeing as she is such a significant inspiration for the Arab and African world – particularly for the female population. In May 2022, she became the first Tunisian and Arab player to win a WTA 1000 final – doing so in Madrid – and, conveniently, Break Point is able to capture the moment and journey. Her interviews within the series allow the Tunisian to express her belief that Arab females can break free from any societal norms and rules that may hold them back and she is a perfect example of this.

At times, the documentary comes across as slightly anticlimactic and underwhelming given the lack of success that the cast achieves. While Kyrgios and Thanasi Kokkinakis won the Australian Open doubles, and Taylor Fritz and Ons Jabeur won their first significant titles over the course of filming, there is li le to cheer about for the other players who are followed throughout Break Point. This, therefore, deprives the viewer of excitement at various points in the series.

Nevertheless, Break Point is more often than not compelling viewing and the failure of some of the players adds value to the documentary as it highlights the hardships and pressure faced by young players. Whether you enjoy tennis or not, I would recommend watching Netflix’s latest endeavour.

(DU Handball)

Now though, it’s just the main sport I play. I’ve ditched the others

Sport

Australian Open

Durham University A.F.C. secure safety on final day

Men’s

1s stay in top flight following Loughborough victory

Oliver Jervis & Joseph Saunders Sport Editor &Sport Reporter

The game

Durham University A.F.C. M1s beat Loughborough University 3-1 in their final game of the season, securing their place in the league for next season. Both teams went into the match knowing a loss would see them drop out of the division.

Loughborough took the lead early on and carried it into half-time. However, Durham flew out of the traps in the second half, finding two goals within ten minutes – scored by Tom Hizze and Zach Alfalahi. A late strike from Fin Gwillim sealed survival.

The game began in an understandably cagey fashion, with both teams playing tentatively due to the importance of the result. The first opportunity went to Loughborough; an accurate low drive which Durham goalkeeper George Arnold pushed just past his left post.

Only a minute later, the visitors found the breakthrough. After a fortuitous ricochet following a header, the ball dropped to the feet of their number nine, who was able to slot past a helpless Arnold.

The be er chances continued to fall Loughborough’s way. A well struck effort turned the lights out briefly for Durham’s Jack Camarda, before a shot from a similar area was dropped on by Arnold. Durham’s Ollie England heroically hooked the ball away from danger with a Loughborough player about to pull the trigger.

Arnold continued to be busy, as Loughborough’s ever dangerous number eleven couldn’t squeeze his header past him at the near post. Durham would have been pleased to hear the half-time whistle.

Dazzling wing play allowed Loughborough’s number eleven a close-range volley three minutes into the second half, but his flicked finish span over the bar.

They paid the price for poor finishing only two minutes later.

Following sharp interplay on the left channel, Ollie England lifted a ball into the box. A brave header from Durham’s freshest talent, Gwillim, was stopped by a mixture of a scrambling keeper and post.

To an enormous roar, the rebound was tucked away by Hizze for his

ninth goal of the season, adding to his ha rick against Newcastle the previous week.

Only three minutes later, bustling midfield play from M1s captain Jack Gibbons released Alfalahi into a one-on-one against the retreating Loughborough right-back. Quick feet ensued. Suddenly, he shaped to shoot into the far bo om corner. The sound of the inside of the post and net rippling paid homage to the vintage wing play and expert execution. Just like that, Durham were in the driving seat.

Loughborough continued to run themselves ragged but no longer had the ingenuity that saw them take the lead and momentarily crush Durham hearts. Few chances arose until the 75th minute, when a header from a corner landed plumb in Arnold’s outstretched arms.

With four minutes of regular time left, Hild Bede’s finest combined to ensure Durham’s survival. Alfalahi set Gwillim free down the right. Driving into the box, his shot across the goalkeeper was palmed into the ground and in off the post, making

it three goals in three games for the flaming fresher.

Durham can be proud of the gri y performance they displayed under significant pressure. Full-time celebrations showed how important it was to them. Hopefully they can build on this ahead of next season.

What was said:

Following the match, M1s captain Jack Gibbons – grinning with obvious delight - said:

“The boys deserve it. We’ve worked hard all year, trained hard, played hard all these games, got some injuries back and the boys deserved it. We fought through eventually, so it’s Premiership football for the team next season.”

The ‘Great Escape’ Momentous occasions require moments of pure magic. Nothing else can save one in those dark hours of almost crippling desperation. No amount of willed struggle, frustration, or cries of despair are capable of amounting to such miraculous endeavour.

This may seem to be overdoing it slightly, and perhaps it is.

Nevertheless, such lessons were learnt the hard and tiresome way by both Durham A.F.C M1s and Loughborough University M1s in their final day ba le to beat the drop on Wednesday 1st February.

The scene was raw, riotous, and downright rip-roaring towards the end of the match. Yet, the longdesired box of magic and tricks arrived – and how Durham needed it. They finish the regular league season having scored 12 goals in their last three games; however, the story runs much deeper than such statistics.

To set the scene in slightly more detail, a decade of presence in university football’s highest division was on the line for both sides on that fateful BUCS Wednesday.

The permutations made for enthralling but sickening reading: victory for Durham would effectively guarantee safety and relegate their opponents. A loss for the hosts at Maiden Castle would send them down to the unknown abyss of the second tier. A draw had

(DUAFC)

many tangled opportunities up its sleeve, with only few promising hope for the boys in white and purple.

Regardless, the M1s had been forced to climb a mountain in order to reach this point. It was expected that any fazing or anxieties would be banished following such a journey. Why allow things to slip up now?

In the final four games of the ten-match season, eight points had been necessary to secure safety. A 1-1 draw away to No ingham Trent before the turn of the calendar year ensured that some glint of hope lay on the horizon. Three consecutive home matches were to come. The side’s fate was firmly in their own hands. It was, on the face of it, time to perform.

Continued on page 23

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