Oxford's biggest student newspaper, produced by and for members of the University of Oxford, since 1991.
Image Description: A picture of the Houses of Parliament in the evening. A Parliamentary Committee has asked students to submit evidence of their experiences during lockdown, as it looks into breaches of human rights as a result of the COVID-19 restrictions. The Parliamentary Joint Committee on Human Rights has asked students to submit written evidence […]
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Image description: an old car with “Tories Out” painted on the bonnet. Whenever I see someone wearing a “Never kissed a Tory” badge/T-shirt, or carrying a bag with that slogan emblazoned on one side, I think: “meh, join the queue”. There are a lot (some might even say the vast majority) of people who wouldn’t […]
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The University Congregation has voted to abolish the Graduate Application Fee by 419-380 votes. The £75 application fee, which had been criticised as undermining access and diversity efforts by discriminating against those from low-income backgrounds, will be phased out by 2024-25. The vote was on the resolution: ‘To commit the University to the abolition of […]
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On 12 December over 46 million British citizens will be eligible to have their say on the last turbulent three and a half years of bruising, insufferable dither and delay at Westminster. I’m mainly talking Brexit terms here, but the domestic agenda, especially the zeitgeist climate issue, will play heavily on the minds of the […]
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Image Description – Young person at rally holding a sign Whilst an amendment to lower the voting age to 16 was rejected in Parliament, it has revived the long-standing debate amongst media over the desirability of lowering the voting age. Three questions need to be answered before: 1) whether it is worthwhile to make such […]
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As we move into the next General Election, more and more female Members of Parliament (MP) have announced their resignation. Despite claims made by conservative commentator Tom Harwood that only 19 out of 59 MPs are standing down, proportionate to 32% female representation in the UK Parliament; the Liberal Democrat MP Sarah Wollaston has argued […]
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In the psychodrama that is British politics, shock is a valuable commodity. We’ve been bombarded with so many dramatic resignations, scandals and eleventh-hour resolutions to impending doom that it seemed impossible to surprise us anymore. But on Wednesday this week, Boris Johnson shocked the mummified corpse of our political discourse back to life with the […]
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Recently the UK government offered Nissan up to £80m to remain in the UK and continue to produce vehicles in their Sunderland plant, where it currently employs roughly 7,000 people. Government subsidies aren’t in themselves unusual – they ensure that significant amounts of innovation and production can take place in a number of sectors, or […]
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Harriet Harman is one of the most prominent political figures in recent history. A pioneer of women’s rights and representation, Harman entered Parliament as a pregnant thirty-two-year-old at a time when 97% of MPs in the House of Commons were men. After serving in various shadow and cabinet positions, including as the first-ever Minister for […]
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It isn’t often I agree with Laura Pidcock, the outspoken Labour MP for North West Durham, but in the midst of the Westminster sex scandal(s) I am inclined to review the words of her maiden speech. In this rather blunt polemic she noted of Parliament: “This building is intimidating, it reeks of the establishment, and […]
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When I saw that Jared O’Mara had been suspended from the Labour party I felt a rush of relief. My only wish was that it had happened even sooner. If we have learnt anything in the last few weeks, it is that women do not feel always safe; we do not feel safe in the workplace, we do not […]
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This year marks two decades since the people of both Scotland and Wales voted ‘yes’ to devolution in referendums promised by Labour’s victorious 1997 manifesto. Blair was confident that devolved governments in Scotland and Wales would mean “the Union will be strengthened and the threat of separatism removed”. Since then, major policy areas such as education, health and housing have been dictated in […]
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Have you ever wanted to be a celebrity? Be honest, I’m sure you have thought about it. I’ll admit a small part of me feels a self-indulgent attraction to having my own Wikipedia article, or being the author of a hilarious new meme, but if you need reminding that fame is a poisoned chalice then […]
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The use of makeup throughout history has had its ups and downs. It often symbolised prostitution or social class, and even underwent serious legal regulation in England from the 1500s. The makeup we see on the streets today has come a long way from the earliest use by our ancestors. Egypt Our story begins with […]
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The Commons Education Committee held its first evidence session on the impact of exiting the EU at Pembroke College today. MPs heard that freedom of movement, research collaboration, and EU funding were vital to the success of UK universities, and that their continuation or replacement was crucial. They were also told that a “hard Brexit” […]
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Somerville JCR has voted to condemn the actions of its alumnus, Conservative MP Sam Gyimah, after his filibuster helped bring down a Private Member’s Bill to pardon those convicted of same-sex offences. The East-Surrey MP, who is a junior Justice Minister, spoke for 25 minutes during the debate, which took proceedings to the allotted time […]
Continue ReadingYes – Claire Simms: Ever since the launch of Donald Trump’s presidential campaign in June 2015, he has dominated the headlines in both the USA and the world at large. For a man whose commercial empire has been built upon publicity, Trump must be thrilled – exposure, both good and bad, can only aid his […]
Continue ReadingThe announcement that Boris Johnson will stand as an MP for the 2015 election can have come as no surprise. It is what Londoners now expect of the erstwhile mayor who has managed to cover up large amounts of incompetence by choosing to be seen as ‘bumbling’. Boris has captured the hearts of large swathes […]
Continue ReadingAfter the resignation of Maria Miller a few weeks ago, there are now only three women in the British Cabinet – and no mothers at all. This is the lowest figure since before Blair’s all-women shortlists in 1997, despite Cameron’s promise in 2005 that he would “change the scandalous under-representation of women in the Conservative […]
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