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72 24
February 2011 ***************************************************** 'Truth:
lies open to all' ***************************************************** Every
fortnight during term-time. All
editorial correspondence to: subtext-editors [at] lancaster.ac.uk. Please
delete as soon as possible after receipt. Back issues and subscription
details can be found at http://www.lancs.ac.uk/subtext. The
editors welcome letters, comments, suggestions and opinions from readers. subtext reserves the right to edit submissions. subtext does not publish material that is submitted
anonymously, but is willing to consider without obligation requests for
publication with the name withheld. For
tips to prevent subtext from getting swept up into your 'junk email folder',
see http://www.lancs.ac.uk/subtext/dejunk/. ***************************************************** CONTENTS:
editorial, news in brief, pensions, Catering, behind the yellow door,
management-union relations II, Cary Cooper's fashion tips, Live at LICA,
letters (A
report on the meeting of Council on 11 February will be included in the next
issue of subtext) ***************************************************** EDITORIAL We
learned last week that Cambridge University's internal working group on fees
has recommended charging the £9000 maximum tuition fee to undergraduates from
2012, with a waiver of up to £3000 for poorer students. Oxford University also feels it has no
choice but to charge the maximum £9000 fee.
Both universities argue, reasonably, that these increases are
necessary to recover the government funding they will lose in the new funding
regime. The
Cambridge working group adds that not to make the full increase would raise
doubts about the University's 'commitment to excellence', and that Cambridge
should charge the maximum because 'it is expected that most, if not all, of
our peers will charge the maximum fee'.
Part of Oxford's reasoning for the fee increase is also, apparently,
to maintain the University's reputation. It
is astonishing that these ancient universities, both very highly regarded
internationally, feel their reputations might be affected by the tuition fees
they charge their undergraduates. It
is equally surprising that they make reference to the fees that other
universities may or may not decide to charge.
Over the past 20 years successive governments' espousal of market
economics has made price the chief criterion that many people use, rightly or
wrongly, to judge quality; but universities like Oxford and Cambridge might
be expected to see beyond this. After
last Friday's meeting of the Finance Committee it may be that Lancaster
University has already committed itself to set its 2012 fees close to the
maximum, but at the very least it could set out its case for a fee increase
in a more convincing way than either Oxford or Cambridge have done. It would be heartening if Lancaster
University recognised that there is more at stake here than just its own
finances. **************************************************** NEWS
IN BRIEF Ahdaf Soueif Viewers
and listeners who have followed recent events in Cairo may have seen or heard
reports by the novelist, broadcaster and Lancaster graduate Ahdaf Soueif. She was a postgrad
student here in the 1970s, when she occupied a roof-top flat in the then Cartmel College (now part of County South) whilst
studying for a PhD in Linguistics.
Since successfully completing her PhD, she has been married twice (her
first husband died), brought up a family, and written several novels that
have been well reviewed and in one case shortlisted for a Booker Prize. Lancaster University awarded her an
honorary DLitt in 2004. She is active
in support of human rights issues, particularly Palestinian rights. Recently she has been seen addressing
crowds in Tahrir Square - an act that must have
required considerable courage and commitment.
A Lancaster graduate we can all admire. ****** CPU The
Campaign for the Public University will be hosting a day of workshops at
Aston University in Birmingham on Saturday 5 March 2011. This will be a
chance for us all to think through the possibilities for activism, to learn
more about crucial areas of the education crisis, and to debate the idea of
the public university itself. The day is free and open to all. To register,
email publicuniversity [at] live.co.uk. For further
details, see website: http://publicuniversity.org.uk/2011/02/03/re-imagining-the-public-university-a-day-of-workshops/ ****** O tempora, O mores The
Education Guardian 15.2.11 reports that 'A recent survey of lap dancers by
Leeds University showed one in three were working to
fund education'. The article goes on
to report on a student demonstration in Hackney in which women were
protesting against the proposed closure of some of East London's strip clubs,
on the ground that this would reduce their opportunities to work and so to
pay for their post-graduate courses. The
sexual politics surrounding these ideas are so complex, not to say
mindboggling (for anyone who remembers the debates and struggles of the
1970s), as to render us temporarily speechless. (Just imagine walking into
the Student Union Bar in 1973 and suggesting that the women there should be
out protesting against the proposed closure of a strip club. Times have indeed changed.) However, if anyone knows of a better
example in the whole of human history of the Law of Unintended Consequences,
we'd be interested to hear of it. And
we wish the part of the Coalition which used to call itself 'The Party of
Family Values' a good night's sleep. ****** Brass
band competition On
Saturday 19 February, the Great Hall complex witnessed the inaugural national
competition for university brass bands, an event initiated by Lancaster
University's Music Society ULMS.
Twelve bands competed. By all
accounts the day was well-organised; indeed, it was judged so successful that
there is to be a repeat event, again at Lancaster, next year. After that the plan is to hold the
competition annually, rotating the venues among the competing
universities. Brass
United (a team-up of Manchester University with the Royal Northern College of
Music) were the victors. The full
table of marks is available at http://www.unibrass.webs.com/results.htm.
****** Lancaster
Castle The
Radio 4 programme 'Within These Walls', a repeat of the account by
Lancaster's Jeffrey Richards of the interior of Lancaster Castle, was
broadcast at 11.00 pm on Monday 21 February.
The programme was recorded in 2003, long before the decision to close
the prison, so it is now an historic document. It can be accessed until 28 February on BBC
i-player: the link is http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b0076cb2.
(See also Letters for another comment on the future of the Castle.) ***************************************************** PENSIONS:
STRIKE ACTION INEVITABLE? UCU
members are now receiving their ballot papers on whether they wish to
undertake industrial action in protest at proposed revisions to the terms and
conditions of their USS pensions. After long gestation, therefore, it seems
that a crunch point may soon be reached. As
readers will be aware, prospective changes to USS pension provision were the
subject of some 18 months negotiation by the Joint Negotiations Committee
(JNC), comprising representatives of the employers and USS members. At the
end of these negotiations, deadlock was reached, and was resolved only by the
casting vote of the independent chair, Sir Andrew Cubie,
who voted with the employers. The
background to the current proposals, the proposals themselves and their
implications are alike complex. Indeed, they are not only complex but
obscure. So much so, that the V-C of
Cambridge wrote to USS requesting further clarification and for illustrated examples
to be provided so that the implications of the proposals could be
meaningfully conveyed. USS declined, and referred Cambridge to the Employers'
Pension Forum (EPF). An enormous
amount of fog and obscurity persists, partly because of the inherent complexity
of any changes of this kind, and partly because of the very lack of
information that prompted Cambridge's request for more. The
impetus for the changes came from a concern for the long-term sustainability
of the scheme. That changes are needed
was not disputed by either side in the negotiations. What was at dispute was whether the changes
need be as drastic as are being proposed and the claim that the proposals
shift the burden of cost and risk to employees rather than employers. UCU has made its own proposals for revision
which it believes would meet concerns for the future in a proportionate and
fair way. The
headline proposal is well known: the retention of the final salary scheme for
existing members and the introduction of a new CARE (Career Average Related
Earning) scheme for new entrants.
Faced with this simple headline, it would be tempting for current USS
members to imagine that whatever changes are being proposed, they, the
current members, will not be directly affected. This would be a grave mistake, for a number
of reasons. For
one thing, as Andy Humphrey has pointed out, 'There is a school of thought
which suggests that the introduction of CARE for those enrolling after March
2011 is the beginning of a process that will remove the final salary scheme
altogether, and impose the CARE scheme on existing members too' (at http://www.vitae.ac.uk/researchers/111741-309811/The-USS-pensions-consultation---why-it-matters-to-researchers.html). Indeed, this does appear to be the
precedent set by numerous other pension schemes. If these are anything to go by, they do
suggest the real possibility of a two-tier scheme as a transitionary
arrangement preparatory to a universal USS CARE scheme. Humphrey correctly goes on to observe that
'There is no evidence to suggest that this is being considered at
present.' But this falls far short of
a guarantee and the precedents set by other schemes are far from reassuring. But
more seriously and less speculatively, the terms of even the continuing final
salary scheme look set to be far worse than the current arrangements. Quite apart from the shift in the balance
of pension contributions from employer to employee, there is the reduction of
protection from inflationary effects.
Not only is there a move from an RPI (Retail Price Index) to a CPI (Consumer
Price Index) link (the latter is, of course, historically lower than the
former), but the amount of adjustment is going to be capped. This means that in a period of moderate or
high inflation, the value of academic pensions will be considerably eroded. And this erosion would exacerbate the
already decreased value of pensions due to other aspects of the reform. So this looks set to be detrimental and
(depending on inflation levels) potentially seriously detrimental even to
those remaining in final salary schemes. These
are complex issues and a subtext article cannot possibly do justice to
them. We have, however, discovered an
invaluable article written by Susan Cooper, a Physicist at Oxford and Stephen
Cowley, a mathematician at Cambridge. It was originally published in the 'Oxford
Magazine'. Although they are UCU
members, they have not written in a UCU capacity but as 'individuals trying
to evaluate the proposals objectively.'
Their analysis is detailed, thorough, clear and apparently fair. They do not unquestioningly defend the
status quo, and they are even open to the possibility of some form of CARE
arrangement. But they do provide
illustrative calculations of the implications of what is currently being
proposed of the kind not delivered by USS.
Their calculations go to show just how much is potentially at stake,
and some of them are truly alarming. The
article is here: http://damtp.cam.ac.uk/user/sjc1/Pensions/Cooper-Cowley.pdf
A
reply from Peter Thompson, on behalf of the employers is here: http://damtp.cam.ac.uk/user/sjc1/OM/OM-306-Thompson.pdf
And
a further article by Susan Cooper is here: http://www.physics.ox.ac.uk/users/scooper/USS/USS-Sustainability.pdf
Recent
modifications made by the USS Trustee Board in light of the recent USS
'consultation' period went to the Joint Negotiation Committee on 1st
February, but the meeting was adjourned with their deliberations
incomplete. Even if accepted, the
modifications are minor and certainly not sufficient to allay the many and
diverse fears that have been raised. The
deadline for voting in the UCU members' ballot is 2nd March. ******************************************************** GETTING
DOWN WITH THE KIDS IN THE CATERING DEPT The
new(ish) Cafe Twenty ten opposite the Nuffield is,
let's be clear, a good thing. The food is ok, and it's light and airy. True,
it often seems understaffed, it's a shame about the ever-present TV screens
pumping out bland MTV (suggestion to managers; go sit in the place for a
while, see if anyone is actually watching the screens), and, as so often with
catering areas at Lancaster, it seems set up in such a way as to ignore the
basic principles of catering ergonomics. But, on balance, we welcome it. In
particular, we welcome the opportunity for innocent fun afforded by its
triptych marketing slogans, which appear to be designed to help people who
have never visited a cafe before. Patrons of the private dining-room bit are
exhorted to 'Sip. Chat. Read.' This is presumably aimed at us older folk, as
the younger patrons next door are instructed to 'Talk. Laugh. Chill.' (It's a shame that no-one under the age of
30 has used the word 'chill' in this sense for nearly a decade. But, hey.)
Similarly, the salad bar suggests that we might like to 'Browse. Pick.
Taste'. As opposed presumably to 'Laugh. Point. Go elsewhere'. So,
subtext competition time. How might
this type of slogan be adapted for other parts of the University? 'Phone. Shout. Snooze' for the Library?
'Eat. Sit. Slump' for the Learning Zone? 'Obfuscate. Equivocate. Privatise'
for University management? You tell us. ***************************************************** BEHIND
THE YELLOW DOOR Unidentified
student in the Learning Zone, week 5: 'It's bad enough that it's pretty easy
to tell a student house anyhow, but now they are making it even easier by
painting the doors yellow. Why don't
they just put a big sign up too while they're about it, saying 'Students live
here, out all day at lectures, please help yourselves to ipods,
laptops etc.' It's
a fair point (and one also made by visitors to Lancaster who used to live in
other cities with large student populations). ***************************************************** MANAGEMENT-UNION
RELATIONS II We
reported in the last issue on the new found amity between university managers
and LUSU officers and the way in which they recently appeared to be 'singing
from the same hymn sheet', particularly at the Court meeting and in its
aftermath. It has been pointed out to us, however, that this was misleading.
While it is true of the LUSU President and some other LUSU officers, it by no
means true of all of them. The Court meeting revealed that LUSU officers are
themselves divided on the most appropriate strategy and way forward for LUSU.
Indeed, officers actually spoke against each other in the debate on the
motion proposing the setting up of a Working Group to examine the
implications of the new fees regime. Some of the officers appear to have
serious misgivings about the strategy being pursued by the LUSU President,
Robbie Pickles, and they are questioning whether the new strategy of
harmonious co-operation will turn out to be beneficial and in the best
interests of students in the long run. ***************************************************** STYLE
COUNSEL Cary
Cooper, professor of organisational psychology at Lancaster University
Management School and one-man 'impact' factory, is apparently now an
authority in work-wear. In an interview for the BBC on the trend towards more
relaxed dress codes at work, Professor Cooper applauds this development,
arguing that the shift from suits and ties towards smart casual makes the
work environment less stressful and might even aid productivity. He singles out the tie for particular
scorn. 'What is the point of a tie? It's the weirdest thing. If someone from
Mars went into an office the first question they'd ask is 'what's that thing
round your neck?"' (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-12418046). subtext was deeply impressed by Professor Cooper's
apparently endless capacity for brand extension, and decided to see what
further information we could find on the Robertson Cooper Ltd intranet. So,
in collaboration with Wikileaks, we present below
some exclusive extracts from Cary's fashion tips for university employees for
Spring 2011. Male
lecturers 'If
your uni's ever going to win best-in-show in the
league tables we need you to have cred with the
kids, so let's get to it. First, the
shoes: plimsolls at all times, preferably the Chinese slipper type - lace-ups
or elasticated school PE pumps are definitely out.
Try folding the backs down: this will help you achieve the self-consciously
nonchalant sashay which MUST be mastered. Then, low slung camel chinos with
immaculate turn ups revealing bare ankles, especially in the snow. Hair must
defy gravity, cockatoo-style. If you don't sport a quiff that would make
Morrissey proud with a close shave at the sides you may as well be bald. A
single hoop earring adds grunge and shows you've suffered for your look. Finish off with big, BIG glasses - a must
on any facebook-profile-picture-ready face. No need
for visual impairment. Must have thick
NHS frames. Think Jarvis Cocker. Bonus points for tortoiseshell.' Female
lecturers 'Artfully
dishevelled, jumble-sale chic is where it's at (but don't actually go to a
jumble sale - dur! - brand new, spare no
expense). Bad combinations are good -
for example, high-waisted floral mini-culottes over
thick woolly tights teamed with a denim shirt tied all yee-ha
at the waist and the obligatory baggy cardy (think
M&S pre-Per Una). Hair: painstakingly
hedge-backwards-ed, looking like you just rolled
out of bed (should only take an hour or two to achieve). A nude colour palette is the mood of the
moment, so make up should be neutral, except the blusher - trowel it on!
Shoes: brogues or loafers.' Security
staff 'This
is your moment and you've got to step-to, dress-wise. With students getting uppity, remember that
this year 'kettle' doesn't mean a cosy cup of tea with someone missing their
mum, but a chance to strut your stuff.
And when every student's making like a pap with their mobile phone
24/7, and uploading it onto Facey-B on the hoof,
you've got to look hard but cool at all times. The Brit Awards were a game changer for
security-wear, with both Take That and Plan B taking 'students vs. riot
police' chic back off the streets onto the catwalk where it belongs. And in that contest, jump the right way -
favour Take That's shields (brushed aluminium and logos, the biz) over Plan
B's (clear Perspex, yawn) every time.' We've
also searched the website of Robertson Cooper Ltd to find its exobiology
section, to find out how Professor Cooper pronounces on the thoughts of
extraterrestrials with such confidence. So far, no Area 51. ***************************************************** LIVE
AT LICA: MANCHESTER CAMERATA At
their Great Hall concert on 10 February, Manchester Camerata
Ensemble were led by their new and remarkably young leader, Giovanni Guzzo, aged only 24. The
concert began with another example of precocity: Britten's one-movement Phantasy Quartet for oboe and string trio, composed in
1932 for a composition competition during Britten's final year as a student
at the Royal College of Music. Despite
its early date, the composer's authentic voice was already clearly
recognisable. The piece was so
successful at the time that, as well as winning the prize, it was broadcast
by the BBC less than a year later. The
rest of the first half of the concert was filled by two pieces from the
classical era: Schubert's string trio movement D471, and Mozart's oboe
quartet K370. The players captured the
wit of both composers with great skill. After
the interval the ensemble was expanded to six string players for a performance
of Schoenberg's Verklärte Nacht,
or Transfigured Night. A work of
extreme romanticism, this piece was inspired by a poem of the same name by
Richard Dehmel, which tells of a couple walking
through a wood in the moonlight. The
woman confesses that she is carrying the child of another man - but her
partner replies that their love will make the child their own. Schoenberg created a half-hour piece of
programme music, in sections that correspond to the five verses of the poem. His skill in drawing from the limited
forces of two violins, two violas and two cellos an almost orchestral sound
has to be matched by virtuosic capacities in performance -
and the six players of the Ensemble achieved this with complete
commitment. If they can sustain this
standard of performance with their new leader, Manchester Camerata
will be very well worth following. *************************************************** LETTERS Research
lead times Dear
subtext It's
not just Humanities academics who need a long lead time to produce their
results. Here in Physics it can take years, or even decades, to design and
build an experiment, and then several more to collect the data before we
start to produce papers. A far longer time scale than that which the bean
counters' minds are able to comprehend. Alex
Finch, Physics Department ****** Lancaster
Castle Dear
subtext I'd
like to thank subtext for the fascinating description of Lancaster Castle
(subtext 70). However, it sounds, from what you wrote,
that the castle has an uncertain future, and that this will be difficult for
the council to resolve. During
the two to three years during which it seems likely not to be redeveloped,
could the castle be turned into student accommodation for the University?
This might seem an outlandish idea, and obviously this wouldn't be for every
student, but maybe those with a more unconventional sort of character might
absolutely love to say that they had lived at a medieval castle during their
time at the University. The
core reason why this could make sense is the news that the prison may cost
£600/day to heat even if it's empty. If 200 students paid something rather
less than the standard price for student rooms - they would be getting
converted cells, after all - only £20/week of that would cover the heating
bill, so the heating problem for the council is dealt with, and students
might get cheaper rooms right in the middle of the city. The
amount of conversion necessary is unclear apart from changing the locks on
the room doors, new furniture, and repainting the living areas - perhaps
students from the Art Department could be given a lot of paint, and a remit
to make the place stylish and brighter. Some might think the castle too grim
for students, but a few years ago I used to know students who lived in a wide
range of quite unpleasant houses in town; I can't imagine that the castle
could be as bad. As
the rooms face inwards, if the students were a bit noisy, the people outside
the castle wouldn't hear them. However, the planned skeletal staff for the
building (which is a good name for the people looking after a spooky old
castle) could act as porters, and could remind students leaving and entering
that outside is a conservation area. If students had parties in the castle
that were always ticketed, and the main entrance had reliable people on the
door, the parties would be unlikely to have gate- or portcullis-crashers. People
at the University are always talking about making the student experience
excellent, but shouldn't it be remarkable and extraordinary too? Michael
Cowie **************************************************** The
editorial collective of subtext currently consists (in alphabetical order)
of: Rachel Cooper (PPR), George Green, Gavin Hyman, David Smith, Bronislaw
Szerszynski and Martin Widden. |