Common room representatives, assembled as the Council of the Student Union, have passed a motion to write to the Vice-Chancellor expressing dissatisfaction with OUSU’s funding.

Currently, OUSU and the Common Rooms jointly receive around £50 per student, which is provided by the University in the form of an annual block grant. Of this, OUSU itself is allocated £17.50. In comparison, the average student union in the Russell Group, with a similarly sized student body, receives around £80 per head.

The motion, which passed unanimously last week, states, “Underfunding of OUSU prevents it from doing the job that its members and constituent common rooms expect of it, especially with respect to the implementation of electoral promises and the communication of its current activities and services to its 22,000-strong membership.”

OUSU Council therefore resolved to “express its complete dissatisfaction with the current level of block grant, relative both to OUSU’s own institutional needs and other Russell Group student unions” and to “express its deep concern over the unsustainability of OUSU’s current activities and services under a budget suffering a real-terms cut.”

In Trinity 2012, OUSU called on the University to remedy the situation and increase funding. Early indications, however, appear to suggest that the OUSU budget will instead face a real-terms cut for 2013-4.

St Hilda’s JCR has passed a motion in support of OUSU, which aimed to  address OUSU’s lack of recognition. 

OUSU President David J. Townsend said, “There is no good reason why OUSU is underfunded compared to other major UK universities. There was genuine concern amongst Common Room Presidents that a cut to OUSU’s budget next year would diminish OUSU’s ability to achieve things in the future. It’s great to see that St Hilda’s JCR has passed a motion in support: anything that can be done to get the message to the level of the individual student is important. What we’re talking about is proper financial resources for OUSU to do what Oxford students legitimately demand of it.”

Alex Bartram, Balliol JCR President, stated, “The University has a responsibility to provide the resources to make its student union viable and at the moment it doesn’t. This is demonstrated in the lacklustre support for OUSU amongst students, despite the hard work done by its officers and frequent lobbying successes.”

Michael Young, a second-year at Brasenose, expressed opposition to the motion: “Using the Russell Group as a comparison is silly, given that because of the student Common Rooms in Oxford, OUSU does not do as much as other Student Unions. Furthermore, rather than ask for more money, OUSU should look at where it spends existing funds and perhaps consider cutting the generous salaries paid to its officers.”

A University spokesperson said, “Given constraints on resources, the size of the grant allocated to OUSU has to be considered in line with funding levels elsewhere in the University. The University continues to look for ways to address these long-standing issues with OUSU.

We welcome the strides OUSU has made since becoming an independent charity and we look forward to continuing our close and productive
working relationship with them in future.”

After five successive sold-out performances at the Keble O’Reilly theatre the team behind A Theory of Justice: The Musical are setting their sights beyond Oxford.

Ramin Sabi, one of the writers and producers of the show, which advertised itself as “an all-singing, all-dancing romp through 2,500 years of political philosophy”, claimed that “this was the fastest selling show in Oxford theatre history.” Sabi is the founder and director of DEM Productions, which produced ATOJTM.

Academic groups have raised concern about plans to make research freely available online.

The government announced plans to make all publically funded research available online free of charge from 2014, following recommendations from the Finch report, released in 2012.

The report, undertaken by Dame Janet Finch, a sociologist, reported that opening up access, “will mean that more people and organisations in the UK have access to more of the published findings of research than ever before. More research will be accessible immediately upon publication, and free at the point of use”.

Research papers will be made available to universities, companies and individuals from anywhere in the world. Previously readers had to pay to access research papers but under the new scheme, the cost would fall on universities, who will have to make a fee every time they wanted to publish work from their researchers. 

Chris Grey, OUSU Graduate Officer, told Cherwell, “There are some strong arguments in support of the principle of Open Access. It does, after all, seem a bit perverse that the taxpayer funds thousands of researchers only to have to pay high journal subscription fees to read the results. However the pace at which the Government is attempting to implement these changes, and the lack of consultation with the academic world, is troubling.

“There are a lot of unintended consequences that need to be considered very carefully, and it looks like the current plans will actually end up costing Universities a lot of money, money that could be spent on teaching and funding for students. Our priority right now though is to make sure that any extra charges incurred by graduate students and young researchers who are trying to publish will be covered by the University.”

A number of academic groups and societies, such as the Royal Historical Society, the Political Studies Association and the Council for the Defence of British Universities, have spoken out about the changes the Government are planning to implement.

Howard Hotson, a fellow of St Anne’s College, Oxford who sits on the steering council for the Council for the Defence of British Universities told Cherwell, “Open access is an attractive goal in principle, but the transition to it needs to be handled with patience and care.  Scholarly communication has been based largely on the printed word for over 500 years, and on printed scholarly journals for over 300.

“Relative to print, open access scholarly publication on the internet only began to look feasible the day before yesterday, so it is unsurprising that, despite its attractions, serious difficulties with its implementation remain for many disciplines. A one-size-fits-all solution, driven forward by the artificial timetable of the Research Excellence Framework, to be imposed nationally virtually overnight after minimal consultation, will have massive undesirable unintended consequences. What is needed is patient, prudent, incremental change, not more ill-considered radicalism.”

Under the scheme, universities may have more control over selecting what research will be published.

A spokesperson for Oxford University said, “Funders in many areas are already working towards open access policies and models, and we will continue to work with them to find the best way forward. We look forward to a wider discussion across the collegiate University about the potential impact different open access models may have in the many and varied research fields supported at Oxford and are keen to ensure that any changes are sustainable and are not at the expense of ensuring that our research outputs are of the highest quality.

“We are committed to ensuring that the fruits of our research are widely accessible, and the University is already very active in disseminating research for the benefit of the international research community and society.”

Some Oxford Students were also concerned about the effect on reviewing research. Rebecca Fynn, a student at Balliol College, told Cherwell, “I think it’s a great idea to try and make academic history more accessible but I would be worried about bias in the system. I think there should still be independent assessment or else it could be really unfair towards minority interests or controversial opinions.”

Queen’s College JCR voted unanimously in favour of a motion supporting marriage equality in light of the second reading of the same-sex marriage bill that was passed with a majority of 225 in the House of Commons on Tuesday.

The motion, proposed by Jane Cahill, Queen’s College JCR President, and
seconded by Ashley Francis-Roy, the college’s LGBTQ rep, mandated Francis-Roy to write to Andrew Smith, Labour MP for Oxford East.

The JCR urged him to vote in favour of the marriage (same-sex couples) bill, which was subject to a free vote by MPs. There were no speeches in  opposition to the motion at the JCR meeting on Sunday and it was thus
passed unanimously.

The motion claimed, “Andrew Smith MP has been ambivalent recently about how he will vote on marriage equality, as he is concerned about religious freedom.” Smith’s constituency encompasses 29 Oxford colleges, including Balliol, Merton and St Catherine’s, which also petitioned Smith to support the
proposals on equal marriage. A letter from Merton gathered 90 signatures and a petition from 150 St Catz students was also sent.

However, in a statement, Smith commented, “My view is that in all but name Britain already has gay marriage through the institution of civil partnerships, which I thought was a very important and civilised step forward, and which confers very largely the same rights and responsibilities. I don’t see any  strong case for denying the opportunity to call this a marriage.”

The same-sex marriage bill passed through the House of Commons on Tuesday and saw MPs including Mr Smith vote in favour of the same-sex marriage bill by 400 votes to 175. The bill was subject to a free vote, although over half of Conservative MPs voted against the government.

Jane Cahill told Cherwell, “I’m very proud that we voted to defend the rights of our LGBTQ community. It’s important we express a view because these members are an important part of our community, and we want Mr Smith to know that his constituents, far from being against the bill, or even ambivalent about it, are strongly supportive of a ‘yes’ vote from our MP.”

OUSU Vice-President for Welfare and Equal Opportunities Katie Colliver commented, “Questions of equality affect everyone, whether or not you are a student. I think it is absolutely right that Queen’s JCR has taken a stand on equal marriage and I hope that other JCRs will follow their lead.”

Elizabeth Sherlock, a second-year classicist at Queen’s, told Cherwell, “Queen’s JCR’s decision to support and stand by its LGBT members made me incredibly proud to be a member of Queen’s! Any statement a college can make in favour of equality is valuable.” However, OUSU’s LGBTQ campaign had concerns about the bill, commenting, “We feel that equal marriage is a significant and necessary step forward, bringing us closer to equality and providing more religious freedom for LGBT and pro-LGBT people of faith.

“We feel that although aspects of the bill are inadequate, for example it forces transgender people to annul civil partnerships in order to transition, the bill must be passed to facilitate further progress.”

Smith resolved to continue considering the implications of the bill, stating, “I shall look to see how [the bill’s] inequalities and inconsistencies can best be
addressed. I will reflect further on all the issues raised in the light of the views constituents are putting to me, and the wider public debate.”

A group of intrepid third-years at Hertford College this term completed what they dubbed the ‘Chicken Challenge’, to establish whether they would be able to eat a chicken a day for a whole week.

The boys were confident in their ability to complete the challenge, with Japanologist Lawson Lancaster stating, “I occasionally eat the ready cooked whole chicken from Tesco after going to the gym some days so I didn’t think it would be that difficult.”

However, third-year medic Patrick Burke noted that only three of the original four participants made it to the end of the challenge, saying, “It was a shame that Jamie Beacom [an original member of the team] lost his head and chickened out. But the rest of us were – unlike our gastronomic exploits –game, and we got to the other side of the metaphorical road.”

Burke fully embraced the spirit of the challenge, telling Cherwell, “When people heard of our ideas to begin with, there was a resounding cry of ‘what the cluck?’. Maybe it wasn’t the breast idea. But with no poultry effort, and with the help of our friends egging us on, the idea really took (barbecue) wings.”

In order to complete the challenge, the boys consumed roast chicken in a variety of ways, incorporating curries, houmous, sandwiches, oranges and barbecue sauce.

Mathematician Dave Cheek noted, “Patrick was one of the more flamboyant challengers, putting a variety of fruit up each chickens’ arse.”

Despite the excess of chicken, Lancaster proclaimed his continued love of the meat. “I love chicken, we have a special romance. The chicken challenge was like going away with your partner on a holiday where you spend every waking moment with them, and you have a few arguments but once you get home you want to see them again the next day.”

Indeed, he ate chicken for dinner the day after the challenge was complete.

However, Burke also sounded a note of caution. Though he dubbed the challenge “memorable” and “entertaining,” he pointed out the negative effects of subsisting on whole chickens for a week: “I think the challenge was a bit of a silly thing to do really. It was quite expensive, time consuming and definitely bad for our health.

“A constant smell of chicken surrounded me and I was quite ill and drained for most of the week. Cooking, preparing and eating chicken takes all day long. You don’t get very much done on a chicken day.”

The challenge also offered the opportunity for philosophical reflection. In his video diary, Burke opines, “I can’t help but think about life. Isn’t life just like the chicken challenge? Some people might say, ‘Isn’t what you’re doing pointless? Why are you doing that?’ And to them I say, that may be true. But I’m going to do it anyway.”

Award-winning architect, Dame Zaha Hadid, was in Oxford last week for a ceremony unveiling her plans for St Antony’s new centre for studies of the Modern Middle East.

Currently dubbed ‘The Softbridge’ because of its unusual design, the new centre will span the two current buildings and will provide a 125-seat lecture theatre, a new library, and a purpose-built archive facility.

On completion, the project will be called ‘The Investcorp Building’, owing to the £11 million donation from Investcorp which made the project possible.

The original Middle East Centre was founded in 1957, and is Oxford University’s  facility for the study and teaching of the Arab world. Since 1978 it has been based in the buildings of 66 and 68 Woodstock Road, but cramped conditions were proving an issue for the growth of the Centre.

Dr Eugene Rogan, a fellow of the Middle East Centre, helped bring the new project to fruition. He expressed his delight for the project, saying, “It’s fantastic that we are able to provide our students with such brilliant facilities.

“There’s been tremendous interest in the Middle East ever since counterterrorism became such an issue, following 9/11. The number of people
wishing to study the Middle East has gone through the roof.”

He went on to express his gratitude to Dame Zaha, explaining, “She’s done so much to really make this a special building. She was the ideal choice for this project as she is one of Britain’s greatest architects with her roots firmly in the Middle East.”

Dame Zaha Hadid was made a Dame in the 2012 Birthday Honours for services to architecture and was the first female to receive the Pritzker Architecture Prize, architecture’s highest honour.

In Britain, she is perhaps most famous for designing the Aquatics Centre for the London 2012 Olympic Games.

OXFORD’S Ashmolean Museumhas acquired a collection of Renaissance silverware that has been described as “the most important gift of its type to a British museum for over a century”, though some questions have arisen surrounding the origins of some of the artefacts.

The collection was the bequest of the late collector Michael Wellby, who was a
friend of Professor Tim Wilson, Keeper of Western Art at the Ashmolean, and is believed to be worth in excess of £10 million.

As with all Ashmolean exhibits, the silverware will be free to view for students.

Professor Wilson said, “A selection of some of the finest pieces from the Wellby collection will be put on display from late February in the West Meets East Gallery, where they can be appreciated in the wider context of artistic and cultural exchange in the modern world.”

Following the refurbishment of one of the museum’s permanent galleries, the collection will be relocated to a space that can house the entirety of the bequest.

The important acquisition has provoked controversy owing to unconfirmed rumours that some of the artefacts that will go on display in the Ashmolean were looted from Jewish collectors during Nazi rule.

Responding to these concerns, Professor Wilson asserted that Michael  Wellby’s father, who collected the art, “Would not have knowingly acquired any object which he had reason to believe had been looted from or sold under duress by a Jewish family in the period of Nazi rule.”

He confirmed that the Ashmolean would be taking steps to “publish information as soon as it can about the objects and, where possible, about
their provenance.”

Despite Professor Wilson’s assurances, some students still seem concerned about the new display. Adam Cobb, Jewish Society Vice-President, commented, “Proper background research should always be essential for any item being displayed in a museum, especially when the pieces of artwork have a suspicious background. In this particular case I personally do not believe the objects should go on display until their origins have been established so that any potential cause for offence can be suitably avoided.”

Despite the controversy, members of the student population have been positive about the new exhibits. 

Laura Martin, a first-year History of Art student at Wadham, opined, “I think that the Ashmolean’s acquisition is a wise one, as the decorative arts are way too marginalised in the art historical world” and noted that, out of the new collection, “the lapis lazuli was the most beautiful, as it’s unusual to see it in any other form than paint.”

Ashmolean enthusiast Tim Keasley, a second-year musician from Pembroke, explained his excitement about the new exhibition, saying, “Seeing the actual objects is an opportunity not to be missed, why would you bore yourself to death reading about them in a library, when you could go and see them, right here in Oxford?”

The timetable for Magdalen’s library renovation project remains uncertain until the college reviews its funding of the development.

In an email to the JCR, Jamie Miles, Magdalen JCR Vice-President, maintained that the college had not yet fully secured funding. He told Cherwell, “The construction starting depends on funding, which has yet to be fully secured. It was decided that there will be a debate at the next Governing body to decide if construction should go ahead before or after securing all of the funding.”

According to Magdalen’s annual development report of 2012, “The New Library is no longer fit for purpose.” David Clary, President of the Development Trust, wrote that “the financial challenges facing the College are considerable.”

The chairman, Mark Loveday, added, “We will need to raise our game in the next few years with the help of our old members, in particular to improve the College’s sub-standard library facilities.” Magdalen is currently putting on fundraising events in order to fill the financial requirements for the project.

The Home Bursar, Mark Blandington-Baker was unavailable for comment.

Magdalen’s New Library was built in 1932 for a capacity of under 200 students. Student numbers have since tripled, and at 13:1, the library has currently the worst student to workspace ratio of any Oxford or Cambridge College.

Christine Ferdinand, Magdalen’s Librarian fellow said, “We regularly have to turn away students during Trinity Term, when they need the library most. Moreover, with its open stairs, narrow aisles, and high shelves, the library is inaccessible to students in wheelchairs.”

In order to improve the facility, Magdalen are planning to almost double the size of their library from 562 square metres to 1081 square metres, and to introduce wifi.

Although work has not commenced on the library itself, a preliminary archaeological investigation on Longwall Quad unearthed six human skeletons.

Since August, 59 skeletons in total have been exhumed on the main site.

300 wig curlers and numerous razors have also been discovered, linked to a barber shop which used to exist on the High Street side of the site.

When works eventually start on the library, students will be unable to use it as a study space. The college has told students it will organise works outside of the Trinity term to avoid disrupting finals.

The library staff said that they have already spoken to the central Bodleian library about organising access to the closed stacks for Magdalen students, so that they can order relevant books to Magdalen for the duration of the renovation.

In the email to the JCR, Miles warned against future disruption, saying, “As it stands, it seems like building work won’t get any worse than what is being done at the moment. However, when actual construction begins it will become noisier and more polluted.”

THE QUEEN is to visit Oxford on 28th March, to take part in an ancient ceremony at Christ Church Cathedral, where she will hand out money to pensioners in recognition of their work for the community and the church.

Usually Maundy money is given to pensioners from one diocese each year, but this year to celebrate her 60 years as monarch, the Queen will hand out money to people from all of of the UK’s 44 Christian dioceses.

87 women and 87 men, one for each of the Queen’s 87 years, will receive uniquely minted Maundy Money.

Held on Maundy Thursday, the day before Good Friday, the ceremony commemorates the Last Supper when Jesus is believed to have washed his disciples’ feet.

The word ‘Maundy’ comes from the command (mandatum) by Christ at the Last Supper, to love one another.

It is the first time that the monarch will come to Oxford for the service.