· , 7'he Beaver is printed on l 00% recycled paper. Please recycle yourcopy . .srYLE·B,,,ki,, ~ "-'__ FILM-21>... ~u1.,,,_&c-Sl-,Si..1,1,.,__ _ ELECTION P.Ullout inside 27February 2007Issue661 The newspaper of the ISESUg. ( Conspiracy theories pA . · JFK 9/11, Holocaust denial Pa es 12 & 13 PeacockTheatreasbestosscare ASBFSI'OS LEAK LED TO AN EVACUATION OFANAREAOF TIIE PEACOCK TIIEA1RE lASfYEAR AIRQUAUIYOF TIIE PEACOCK THEATRE ISCHECKED QUARIBRLY FORASBFSI'OS LEVEIB from asbestos related diseasesRajan Patel willcontinuetoincrease for the Senior Reporter nextfive decades. Most of these deaths will involve construc­ T he Peacock Theatre suf-tion and maintenance workers fered a release of including plumbers and elec­asbestos fibres last year, tricians. after a maintenance workman The website also identifies drilled into a door containing "panel[s] on or inside fire the dangerous material. The doors" as potentialACMs with-incident caused an asbestos in buildings and encourages disturbance that forced evacu-employers to check their fire ationanda one-dayisolationof doors when conducting stan­anarea inside theTheatre. dard asbestos surveys. The accident occurred on There are three different 14 June 2006 in the plant room levels of asbestos survey, two of of the Peacock Theatre, when staff drilled through an asbestos panel contained with­in a fire door. Upon noting the release of suspicious dust, staff ere 1s. no contacted the School's Asbestos Manager who insti­ issue with tuted the standard clean-up procedure. exposedIn accordance with Section Four of the School's Asbestos asbestos on Policy, the damage was classi­fied as "slight". The affected campus at all. area was sealed off to prevent asbestos fibres spreading to surrounding areas and an asbestos removal contractor spok was called in to decontaminate the plant room. The damaged panelitself was removed. survey had not been carried has to consider the risk of dis-immediately stopped work, fol-plant room -are far removed Asbestos materials areused which -type one and type two out. turbance while removing the lowed the School's asbestos from areas frequented by stu­for fireproofing and acoustical -are undertaken as a standard The results of such surveys ACM.Inthe case of theundam-management procedures and dents andtheACMs themselves ceilings among other uses. bythe School. are used to build up the aged doors, it was decided that the area was made safe imme-are kept under lock and key. Products with asbestos content · 'Iype one surveys involve a School's 'asbestos register', there was a greater chance of diately. The Health and Safety The School's Asbestos are frequently referred to as relatively superficial examina-which aims to detail the nature releasing asbestos fibres ifthey Committee, which includes Policy encourages awareness of asbestos-containing material tion of suspected ACMs, while andlocationof all ACMs on the were removed. four student representatives, possible ACMs andvigilanceon (ACM). While ACMs are used typetworequiresthe collection LSE campus. Fire doors in the The School's asbestos regis-Estates staff and others, the part of all staff and stu­widely, the inhalation of some and analysis of 'representative Peacock Theatre were not on terhas been updated to include received a report about the dents. Exposure to asbestos types can result in serious ill-samples'for asbestos. the School's asbestos register the remaining fire-doors and incident at its next meeting, can cause asbestosis or lung nesses, including cancer. 'Iype three surveys are the before the accident in June. the risk of casual disturbance and noted the report and the scarringthatleadstobreathing Air quality in the Peacock most intrusive and most com-Since then, every door at the of thepanels has been declared action taken. The School's problems and possibly heart Theatre is monitored as per plete sampling method, often Peacock Theatre has been mininlal. Asbestos Management Plan is failure. Lung cancer and regulations and checked quar-requiring examination of wall checkedforinnerasbestospan-An LSE spokesperson said: regularlyreviewed andis being mesothelioma, a cancer of the terly for asbestos levels. Other cavities and other immediately els sandwiched between layers "There was an incident in June updated, following recent leg-chest and abdomen lining is buildings on campus are inaccessible areas. They are of plywood and plaster.Several last year when a small amount islative changes. There is no also a risk. Any suspicious pan-checked less frequently. usually conducted only before doors in various areas of the of asbestos was discovered as issue with exposed asbestos on els or exposed fibrous material The website of the Health major refurbishment work theatrehavebeenfound to con-part of the infill between some campus at all." should be reported immediate-and Safety Executive, a gov-because of their destructive tain suchpanels,butonly those door panels in the Peacock There are ACMs in many ly to the School's Asbestos ernment body responsible for nature. that are superficially damaged Theatre. The discovery was areas of the Peacock Theatre, Manager, Emma Lovegrove, or enforcing health and safety As there were no plans to have been removed. made by a member of mainte-particularly in the 'void' above to the Health and Safety regulations in the workplace, refurbish the affected area of This is in accordance with nance staff installing a vent in the auditorium. However, most department. estimated last year that deaths the Peacock Theatre, such a asbestos control policy, which a door. The member of staff of these locations -such as the .., 02 -Eeaver NE\iVS I.SEreport on councilhousing;Unionconcernsoverprivatisation;SUplansforonlinevotingsystem; l,!l!!!!!!!!'!.,___________......:;;;____________,,,;;;;;________.ISE highest paid union leaders Pictureoftheweek--------­ Inothernews IGHER EDUCATION NEWS n1u·11Mu HIGHER fuu:A110XS!IPl'W.!11~'!1.T V-cs' 7.9% payrise 1is twice tliat of staffs The salaries of university chiefs rose by more than twice that of academic staff in 2005-06, according to The Times Higher's exclusive annual vice-chancellors' pay survey. Vice-chancellors earned an average of 7.9 per cent more in 2005-06 than in 2004-05, according to an analysis of official figures for vice-chancellor pay pub­lished by universities. EducationGuardian Audit office criticises spiralling costofacademies The prime minister's flagship academies pro-gramme is raisingattainment levels in deprived areas -but athuge cost, a NationalAudit Office report said today. 1\vo thirds (17 out of 26) of the first academy build­ings have suffered cost over­runs averaging £3m (the other nine were within their original budgets), and acade­mies have cost an average of £24m each, which' makes them more expensive than other secondary schools, noted the NAO. NIVERSITY OF CAMBRIDGE VARSITY Streeting hangs CUSUouttoc1Iy Former CUSU President Wes Streeting has been accused of "betraying"former student union by current Exec members after changing his stance on the inclusion of Cambrdige students in the National Student Survey(NSS). Streeting, who initiat­ed the CUSU boycott of the survey while President in 2004-5, went before the Common's Education Select Committee on Monday February 19 and accused the CUSU policy of"perpetuating I the old school tie and secret handshake"and"doing them­selves no favours". OF OXFORD Cherwell College plunged into turmoil asstaff axed Financial problems have forced St Peter's to eliminate a number of key staff posi­tions. The head porter, the catering manager and the Senior Common Room butler have been asked to leave bythe College in a move to bal­ance its budget. Staff have described how the cutbacks have destroyedmorale and students are out­raged at changes they believe will have serious effects on the life of the College. .,ac..:.06lzti.Mon.:.·,')_~c,:.N.aJc.MonttM..H.F.,.e: .,.aoc,61­ •..,.~_..,,ot T his year's Students' Union (SU) Lentterm elections are proving to be some of the most exciting and intriguing to date. Since nomina­ions closed on Wednesday, there has een widespread campaigning, with candidates presenting their policies at six seperate hustings, posters placed across the School and emails sent to societies in order to receive their acking. NEWSINBRIEF Northumberland elevatorescapade T wo LSE students trappedin a lift at Northumberland resi­dence in the early morninghours of 13 February called the London Fire Brigade after security guards refused. Dominic Rampat and Shane Garvin, the two trappedstudents, pressed the emer­gency alarm and securityguards told them that help was ontheway, butitappeared that security were unable to make contact with the engineer they were trying to call. Rampat tried to call the LFB but was unable to get a wireless signal for his mobile phone. One of the securityguards informed Rampat that it was not standard protocol to call the LFB in the situation. Security guards were able to pry the door open a few inches, after which Rampat was able to get some reception on mobile phone. He called the LFB but lost the connection signal, and the LFB subse­quently arrived prepared to handle a range of situations. SexinSenate Houselibrary T he student newspaper of UCL revealed that the Senate House library, the main library of the Universityof London, is used as a meetingplace for members of a sexual­ly explicit website for gay men looking for sex. The page dedicated to the library on the website, which is subtly named'Squirt',has been viewed more than 1,500 times. In emails revealed to the UCL newspaper, it was sug­gestedthata particularwebsite user, who has said "I work in the library upstairs", may have had sex with students on uni­versity premises, but this has not been verified. In one email, the sender said, "There's a few places to go up here -toilets in basement around five usually." When confronted, the library staff member vehe­mently denied having solicited sex in the library, though the emails were sent from his account. Hruvardelects firstfemalechief H arvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts in the United States has elected the first female presidentin its 371 year history. Drew Gilpin Faust, a histo­rian specialising in the American South and the Civil War, has been the dean of Radcliffe Institute of Advanced Study since 2001. Herpredecessor as Harvard President, Lawrence Summers, formerly served as secretary of USTreasury. Summers resigned last spring amid controversy and accusations from the faculty of the College of Arts and Sciences · about his public remarks. Faust is the first President to be chosen from within the university since Derek Bok, former dean of Harvard Law School. r NEWS 03 £12,000raiseforDavies I.SE DIRECTOR 14THHIGHEST PAID VICE-CHANCELLOR INTHE UKAT £226,000 NATIONAL AVERAGE UP 7.9% FROM £153,061 TO £165,105 Laura Deck News Editor L SE Director Howard Davies is the 14th high­est paid vice-chancellor in the UK, with a salary of £226,000 in 2005-06. Davies had a 5.6 percentincrease between 2004-05 and 2005-06. He also had a pensioncontribution of £29,000. The average pay packagenationwide increased from [Large sa aries can] exacerbate tensions that too often exist between faculty and administration £153,061 in 2004-05 to £165,105 in 2005-06, represent­ing a 7.9 percent rise. Several universities have recentlyarguedin favour of the chancellors were paid an aver-defended increases in vice-tions." £187,077 current average salaries of age of £217,927 in 2005-06, chancellors' pay by arguing Academicstaffsalariesup3% LABOUR FORCE SURVEY SUGGESTS TEACHERS AND LECTURERS WORKMORE THAN 11 HOURS OF OVERTIME A WEEK Laura Deck News Editor W hile vice-chancellors' s,;1laries increased by an average of 7.9 per­cent, academic staff salaries increased by only three per­cent. The Trades Union Congress (TUC) recently concluded from a Lal;>our Force Survey that lecturers and teachers usuallywork more than 11 hours of unpaid overtime every week. The TUC estimated that teachers would make an extra £10,000 per year if they were paid for theirovertime working hours. The Guardian newspaperreported that teachers and lec­turers work one hour longerthan the senior officers in the fire, police and armed services, the next busiest professional group in terms of overtime working hours. The General Secretary of the University and CollegeUnion (UCU) Sally Hunt said, "What we really need is a recognition by universities and colleges that we cannot build a world-class education sector on the exploitation of staff." Hunt said that she was unsurprised that highereduca­tion professionals were work­ing extra hours to completetheir duties, given increases in vice-chancellors due to the necessity to compete with the corporate sector and maintain high-profile leadership. Davies is a prominent fig­ure in both the public and pri­vate sectors. He was formerlythe Chairman of the Financial Services Authority and has numerous other directorships in the corporate sector. In 2004, he joined the board of Morgan Stanley as a non-executive director. The Times Higher Education Supplement (THES) conducted a survey of vice-chancellors' pay and found that the average pay increased by more than £12,000, includingbenefits butexcluding employ­erpension contributions. THES also reported that large pension contributions for vice-chancellors areon the rise, either as annual or 'one-off' payments. Davies'pension con­tribution was £27,000 in 2004­05, and £29,000 in 2005-06. The Vice-Chancellor of the University of Birmingham,Michael Sterling, received a pension contribution of £126,000 in 2005-06. He is also the third-highest paid vice-chancellor with a salary of £250,000. Russell Group universities, a group of high-profileresearch institutions in the UK that includes the LSE, is often compared to theUS Ivy League and had the highest paid vice-chancellors. The Russell Group vice-indicating an 8.2 percentincrease. Laura Tyson, former direc­tor of the London Business School, had the highest salary, with £322,000. ImperialCollege London Rector Sir Richard Sykes followed Tysonwith a salary of £290,000. Derek Bok, former President of Harvard University, has argued that large salaries for universitychiefs can"exacerbate tensions that too often exist between faculty and administration." UK universities have Salaries for high-profile public positions: Head ofTrans_port for London Boh Kifev earns . £1,146,4'..!5 H1!acl of Roval Mail Adam Crozierearns £1,038,000 l·foad ofBBC MarkThompsoncams £619.000 Metro1JOlitan PoliceC(JrnmissiouerSir Ian Blair earns £:no.ooo Prime Minill'ter Tony Blair makes that it reflects the high qualityof the performance of vice-chancellors and their contribu­tions to the universities. The Higher Education Funding Council for Englandsaid that it did not have the power to influence vice-chan­cellors'salaries orpension con- years average remuneration tributions. A spokespersonUniversities UK said: for "This ' level for vice-chancellors is much lower than the averagegross pay of directors and chief executives of major organiza- Union Jack TAMPON'S TIME IS SOON UPAS MASS-DEBATER CONTINUES TIRADE A full hour in the Old Theatre and Jack emerged squeaky clean, having surfaced from beneath glorious showers of saliva. Generous helpings from the likes of Green "Hit-and-Run" Ken and the rest of the execu­tive aspirants, sugar-coatedwith sweet-nothing promisesand delicate commitments. The smooth operator parade pro­duced several men of the hour, whileothernameless few prob­ably should use this campaign to prepare for elections '08. Unfortunate as it is, our flabbergasted four are the onlyviable targets in Jack's sightsthis week. With Jack's lipzipped up by foul election reg­ulations, Jack shall bored you with further melodramatics of the mass-debating Dewj bag.Perhaps our dear Miskommunications officer took a leaf from the page of a Chinese proverb guide when he cursed at the locust tree while pointing at the mulberry tree. His thinly-veiled assault on his media groupies made while directing a general questiontowards the four miscommuni­cation hopefuls can perhaps be euphemistically described as "out-of-line". But if Jack has anything to say aboutit-itwas totally in character! Jack spies with his little eye,andspots Kreepy Krebbers drowned in the crowd. Whyisn't the FlamboyantDutchman on stage, declaring his nightly wish to take over the world? This amazing turn of events has left Jackin bewil­derment. The astounding num­bers on Facebook watch (push­ing 900 the last time Jack noticed) rather disappointing­ly, revealed not a gargantuanpolitical hunger but perhaps a deep-seated insecurity thatcan only be mended by a earth-shattering, ego-boosting friend count. Or maybe Jack is being mean, and Kreepy Krebbers does have 900 numbers in his phone and 900 cards to post every Christmas holidays. The jury is still out. While the glorious oratory spouted forth from Green "I­ran-for-GenSec-for-the-hell­of-it" Ken, Jack could not miss the incessant jibes directed back towards a forlorn figurethat sat behind him. Jimboid Tampoon might have been busy with his dissertation on the public-speaking skills of SU hacks, but surely he could not fail to sense the fiery passion emanating from centre stage.Envious he must have been, for if he himself had possessedsuch ardent fervour, the unful­filled promises of yesteryearwould never have been. Alas, consigned to the stage corner, Tampoon probably recognisedthat his 15 minutes is fast becoming a memory. class sizes, competition and bureaucracy. LastyeartheAssociation of University Teachers (AUT),which is associated with UCU, called for a strike that disrupt­ed some Summer Term exami- After the agreement was reached, which 71 percent of members voted in favour of, Hunt said that it was "a solid first step towards restoring pay levels in our universities to those of comparable profes­ sions". She added that employ­ers should expect additional claims in 2008-09. ·since the AUT negotia­tions, salaried lecturers and research fellows at the LSE are paid between £35,662 and £41,310 a year. Senior lecturers and research fellows are paidbetween £42,543 and £49,282. The standard teaching rate at the LSE for guest teachers and graduate teaching assis­tants starts at £14.70 per hour. The rate for lectures starts at £44.09 per hour. The hourly rates apply to casual staff working irregular hours, while staff working regular hours have annual salaries. The THES noted that"uni­versities receive large amounts of public cash, but they are not centrally directed" and that a few thousand pounds added to a vice-chancellor's pay could be used elsewhere in universi­ties. Derek Bok, the former President of Harvard University, argued in The Chronicle of Higher Education newsletter in 2002 that "The influence of money is already too strong on many campuses,distorting priorities, distract­ing faculty members, and erod­ing academic values." Lecturers in the UK have an average salary of £36,000 peryear, while vice-chancellors average £165,105 peryear. nations at the LSE. The AUT reached an agree­ment with employers in July2006 which would increase academic and other related staff salaries over the next two years. Safe_ · gwater scarce at I.SE andinhalls Redtaperestricts postering Snowsaysfeesstifle . they can be placed and when also prompted environmental tud t cti• • The ~uthor IS an they can be taken down. concerns from both the School s en ..:)I VlSffi T election candidate Several SU societies had and the SU. u ------------complained that their posters Part of the new rules state he LSE Students' Union hadbeenprematurelyremoved, that posters can now only be (SU) has decided on a causing them to lose opportu-placed along the length of Photograph: Erica Gomall new set of rules and nities to publicise their events Houghton Street, and must Erica Gornall restrictions for the application on Houghton Street. have the words 'LSE' or 'LSE Senior Reporter and removal of posters follow-School staff, unaware of SU' on them. Whenever any ing controversy in recent any regulations for the posters, event is taking place, SU soci-Award-winning news weeks. tended to remove the posters at eties are obliged to refer to presenter Jon Snow The SU has decided that their discretion. themselves as a specific argued that student good to ask putting up posters will now be The large amounts of paper 'LSESU'society. activism is being limited by the questions and subject to constraints on where used on Houghton Street have SU Societies Officer Arthur pressures on students to live up Krebbers said that he was to high expectations of a more get answers. I "extremely pleased that we expensive degree created byhave managed to come to an rising fees. agreementwiththe School on a Snowspoke atan event last consistent postering policy. I week organised by the LSE have received a lot of corn--Students'Union (SU) Question plaints from societies about Time Society, which has hosted this issue, who have found both panel debates and indi-School staff unaware of any vidual speakers in pastyears. regulation and thus randomly Snow discussed his own taking down their posters. This student days, where his is obviously a waste of society activism at Liverpool time, energy and resources,and University led to his expulsion. detrimental to the environ-He said that he still ment." believes that activism is neces- The School is hoping that saryforahealthystudentbody: the new rules will be fairer and "I think it is good to ask ques­more transparent for stewards tions and to get answers. I who must enforce the rules. would be active to make them The School also said that give answers." they hope the new rules will Snow also discussed his help smaller societies with a move into journalism. He high-lower budget for publicity. lighted the difficulties in get- New methods of advertis-tingjobs at the end of a univer­ing are also being researched sity education: "In my day you by SU societies. Special notice could go into the workplace boards are being considered as and know that a job was there. a new advertising method on Itis different now." Houghton Street. The increase of financial There have also been dis-responsibility for students is cussions of placing television seen by Snow as restricting screens along Houghton Street, activismwithin universities.He · in an attempt to remove the said that students feel they environmental concerns of have to live up to the pressure paper waste. placed on themby thefinancial This week's SU elections investments undertaken bywill also generate paper waste parents or the s~udents them-from fliers and posters. selves. Candidates can put posters on Snow's argument was par-noticeboards, but not on the ticularly relevant in light of buildings on Houghton Street. recent student direct action on 't." issues such as the Living Wage campaign and university gov­ernance. Last term, students partici­pated in a controversial sit-in protest in the Old Theatre, which prevented Peter Sutherland, the incoming Chairof the LSE Council, from speaking. There have been recent calls from members of the SU Executive and student repre­from postering on Houghton Street Peter Barton Senior Reporter .Limited availability of drinking water on the LSE campus and in halls of residence has raised con­ cerns about the sustainability of the School in light of recent efforts towards more environ­ mentally friendly policies. Many students buy bottled water on campus due to the shortageofdrinking waterout­lets. In halls of residence, stu­dents are often unaware that they are drinking unsafe water from taps. Arecentsurvey on drinking water outlets at the LSE fow1d that there are 30 water foun­tains on campus. The School is planning to install more. LSE Students' Union (SU) Treasurer Joel Kenrick has voiced concerns abouttheenvi­ronmental sustainability of the LSE campus and the money wasted by students buying bot­tled water. Kenrick said, "[The SU] and the School have a commitment to move away from bottled water to the use of filtered water." The SU shop has started stocking bio-degradeable water bottles. Water by-laws and work­place regulations require buildings to have acceptable drinking water outlets for employees. The School complies with these regulations. However, there is no requirementfor stu­dent access. Academic institu­tions are only required to have enough access for employees. Many water taps in LSE buildingsandhallsof residence do not meet drinking water standards. The School is making moves to improve the situation in response to pressure from the SU to reduce environmen­tal waste from plastic bottles. Accessto drinkingwateronthe LSE campus t emen s 4 access pomts *Access point: any source of drinking water, including water fountains and taps in toilets and kitchens Two additional water out-Drinking water in LSE because these are not pressure not to drink.the tap water. lets are to be installed at the halls of residence is accessible, sealed and are left for long In most halls, all of the tap LSE bythestartoftheSummer but many students are periods of time, thewaterisnot water, including the drinking Term. The School has also unknowingly drinking unsafe safe for drinking. This water water, has high mineral con-agreed to place drinking water water from taps.This is due to supplies taps in rooms and tent. Hard water is a problem outlets in all new buildings. a lack of information in some bathrooms. in many parts ofLondon and is Kenrick said that it was halls. At the beginning of the In Passfield Hall, there are caused by a_ high level of calci­good that the School was year, many students were not no taps that deliver healthy uminthewater.Inexcessitcan responding to students' warned about the unsafe water drinking water, while in Carr-be damaging to health and in demands. in individual rooms'taps. Saunders Hall only the water smaller quantities it causes Currently, seven buildings Some halls keep large in the kitchens is drinkable. skin to dry out and sore have access to drinking water water tanks on the roof to-In neither residence have throats. for students. maintain water pressure, but students been clearly warned LSE activists join anti-war den10 Lindsay German of the Photograph: Jess Cartwright the Edwin Starr song "War Laura Deck Johannes Opfermann U p to 200 LSE students and staff marched from · Hyde Park to Trafalgar Square in a demonstration organised by the Stop the War Coalition, the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament, and the British Muslim Initiative, on Saturday. Participants protested the war in Iraq and proposals for the replacement of Trident, Britain's submarine-based independent nuclear deterrent. Protesters also warned against military action against Iran. An LSE Students' Union (SU) Executive Officer said, "It was fantastic to see so many members of the student body spending their Saturday prote­sting against unnecessary wea­pon replacements and bloody and illegal wars.This show of strength by the anti-war move­ment is a positivestep in oppo­sing future wars and weapon replacement." Kit Flemona, an LSE stu­dent on the march, said,"Our interventionist wars and Trident replacement must be kept in the public eye. Four years on from the war, our involvement continues to make matters worse." national Stop the War Coalition said that many feel Itwas 11111\!ntastic to see so many members of the student body spending their Saturdayprotesting SU Ex tive that the government is"addict­ed to war". Germanadded thatshe was not placated by Prime Minister Tony Blair's recent announce­ment that 1,600 British troops would return home from Iraq in the next few months: "Whether 2,000 troops come home this year or not, it is too little too late and we must (What Is It Good For?)" by text-message. Gailoway told protesters "Put your phone inl the air.Let's get this to number Up to 200 LSE students participated in the anti-war protest on Saturday in Trafalgar Square intensify our call for all troops ded relatives of soldiers killed but demanding that troops are to be withdrawn and for in Iraq, Caroline Lucas MEP, brought home and Trident is Britain to break links with the and Stop the War Coalition abandoned." Bush Administration's foreign PresidentTony Benn, who said George Galloway MP asked policy." he was "not protesting against demonstrators to "vote for Speakers at the rally inclu-war and Trident replacement, peace" by purchasing a cover of one a send a clear message to Tony Blair." Galloway was later seen dancing to a performance of the song. Military families and rela­tives of soldiers killed or serv­ing inIraq cameto 10Downing Street on the day before the protestand delivered a letterto the Prime Minister asking for troops to b~ withdrawn from Iraq. The LSE SUStop the War Coalition Society made a ban-· ner on Houghton Street last week as partoftheirpromotion of the demonstration. LSE stu­dents were invited to add their own anti-war messages. By the end of the week, approximately 150 messages and signatures in 30 different languages were on the banner. The Metropolitan Police estimated that between 10,000 people maximum took part in protest, while the Stop theWar Coalition estimated that at the most 100,000 people partici­pated. In Glasgow a concurrent protest was held in George Square for a "Bin the Bomb Anti-Trident Rally". IBE repprt:councilhousing causesclassdivide,extre1TI1Sm The author is an election candidate A n independent review commissioned by the government and per­formed by an LSE professor is calling for major reforms of council estates and serious debate on the character of social housing in the UK. The report, called Ends and Means: The Future Roles of Social Housing in England is by Professor John Hills of the Centre for Analysis of Social Exclusion (CASE) at the LSE. The CASE report looked at how social housing, which is provided by councils and not­for-profi t housing associations, performs against its key objec­tives. Hill argues that while such housing performs a "crucial role" in the lives of almost four million households, its full potential is not realized. Concerns have also been raised by the Government that the deficiencies of social hous­ing are increasing crime and leading to political radicalism. More than one-fifth of ten­ants on traditional council estates are aware of drug users or drug dealers near and around their residences, and 18 percent of these tenants do not feel safe at home when alone, or outside, even in daylight hours. In the report, Hills calls for an end to a system where"rich people live on one side of the tracks and poor people on the otherside of the tracks." As a result, the poor quali­ty of life amongst tenants in social housing, and a. distinct lack of housing places has enabled political parties such as theBritishNationalPartyto capitaliseon what theIndustry I ,,,_ ' . .. ' .:· J:. I -• """--<,.; ' Minister Margaret Hodge has called the abandonment of the white working class by main­stream parties. Hills' report encouraged mixed communities in social housing which would prevent "social polarisation between areas". Hill also saidthathous­ing and support problems needed to be dealt with togeth­erand not as separateissues. Other recommendations included: tenants should be giveh a greater voice in how social housing is run, better housing support and support for finding jobs should be pro­vided, and social housing ten­ants should be able to move locations lo be closer to their place of work. Many fear that the effect of living in such estates is more damaging than is understood. Labour MP John Cruddas desribed the scarcity of afford­able housing to the Press Association as "becoming racialised because of a lack of supply. It's feeding extremist political forms." Communities and Local Government Secretary Ruth Kelly, who launched the LSE report at an event in the Old Theatre, said that progress has been made in improving social housing over last ten years but there was more to be done. Kelly said, "The Hills review confronts us with other challenges: how can social housing be even better at achieving the twin goals of providing support to thosewho most need it while also equip­pingpeople to progress and get on with their lives?This report marks thestartofthatdebate." While some say that the report proves that the last decade of Labour's housingpolicy has failed, social hous­ingrentshaveremainedafford­ablewhilehousingpricesinthe UK have doubled. Privatisationprovokesreputationconcerns The author is an election candidate C ontinued concerns over university privatisation have been expressed by UK academics who have argued that increased privati­sation of universities could harm the international reputa­tion of Britain. The University and College Union (UCU) polled more than 2300 people through YouGov, where it was discovered that over two thirds of people thought that Britain's educa~ tion reputation would be dam­aged because of privatisation, or the increase in involvement of private firms in UK. Around one in three 'wanted a decrease · in involvement. The UCU said that the poll was a reaction .to a complaint against a private job advertise­ment for a centre director at the University of Exeter in the Times Higher Education Supplement in January that had been described as a 'uni­versity-led' initiative (which was considered to be mislead­ing), The UCU is concerned over the fact that universities are becoming less of a publicgood and more of an "earning environmentfor privateers". Sally Hunt, UCU joint General Secretary stated that "Private companies that view our universities as cash cows should think again.The public is opposed to them being milked for profit and we· are concerned that misleading information may dupestudents into paying for a service that is simply not up to scratch." This comes on top of wor­ries that university standards may fall in the future. Around halfofthepublicthinkthatthe standard will fall, while three-fifths think thatBritain's high­er education reputation will be harmed abroad. The public are generally against any further involvement of privatefirms in UK universities. There are also concerns that there are fewer and fewer students going into further education -there is a fear that there could be as much as 500,000 fewer school-leavers Private companiesthat view our universities as cash cows should think . again SallyHunt UCU Joi t by 2017. University sector experts are considering concentrating more on non-traditional and older learners in order to keep Britain competitive, and hope that British universities may ultimately have the size and clout to compete with bigger US Ivy League institutions. However, universities are currently enjoying soaringnumbers of overseas students, which many argue is cause for optimism and reflects .an important way for British uni­versities to continue to attract students. --t t 06I