Flying the Red Flag or Singing the Blues? Billy Bragg talks to varsity.co.uk The Independent Cambridge Student Newspaper since 1947 | varsity.co.uk | Friday October 20 2006 | Issue 643 Threat of Architectural delight: The new faces of urban planning watch on Muslim students »Leaked report warns of extremism on campus affiliated, said they were “very disap- JO TRIGG pointed that the Government thinks News Editor this is the way forward”, explaining that the proposals would “achieve Cambridge staff and students have nothing”. A spokesperson claimed reacted angrily to suggestions from the there was “no substantial evidence Department for Education and Skills that such recruiting takes place”. (DfES) that university staff should spy FOSIS, he continued, “encourages on Muslim students. On Monday the Islamic societies to develop stronger Guardian newspaper exposed a docu- relations with students’ unions”. ment, sent to official bodies over the Arif Ahmed, Lecturer in Philosophy, last month, containing proposals expressed similar outrage. “I am not intended to stamp out extremism. going to spy on my students. There is a The leaked document warns that good deal of religious lunacy in universities and colleges “provide a Cambridge already and I see it as part fertile recruiting ground for students” of my job to disseminate rationality and expressing fears that individuals will tolerance in particular”. He contended be “‘sucked in’ to an Islamist extremist that these values “are of course incom- ideology”. The article revealed that the patible with the cretinous superstitions DfES expressed concern over the of Islam, Christianity and Judaism”. increasing politicisation of university Yet the article has been condemned Islamic societies, positing that campus- by the Department for Education and es provided “an opportunity for indi- Skills (DfES) as “inaccurate”. A viduals who are already radicalised to spokesperson told Varsity that the form new networks, and extend exist- guidelines “are not about spying”. ing ones”. It proposes that campus Instead they would be about “working staff should monitor the distribution of with universities, students and local leaflets and the speakers being invited communities to stamp out extremism by Islamic societies and volunteer on campus”. information to Special branch. Professor Drummond Bone, Umar Ahmad of the University of President of Universities UK (UUK), Cambridge Islamic Society (ISOC) said “While this is clearly a draft doc- argued that the proposals were ument, there are dangers in targeting “unnecessary”, and would result in the one particular group… Not only is “reduced likelihood of co-operation”. this unreasonable but, crucially, it He assured Varsity that they had “not could be counterproductive”. He con- had any problems with extremism for cluded that it was “not constructive Second-year architects Benj Ohad Seidler and Lettice Drake (top) knit together their submission as long as anyone can remember”, for the Government to suggest uni- adding that ISOC “publicly condemns versities are complacent or passive for Unit 1 of the course, entitled “Performing Space; Live”. One hundred balls of wool, donated by the killing of all innocent people”. about extremism”. This position is Patons were strung across buildings in Portugal Place last Saturday. Ayaka Suzuki and Mike The Federation of Student Islamic being fully supported by the Taylor used balloons to explore the possibilities of “adapting the climate and the public audience Societies (FOSIS), to which ISOC is University of Cambridge. into a ‘flexible surface’” (bottom). Photos by Alexandra Constantinides and Ayaka Suzuki FEATURES MUSIC INTERVIEWS ARTS & Digital Culture: Hot Chip on Griff Rhys FEATURES WebCameron being the Jones after to Skype hot ticket Architecture »PAGE 14 »PAGE 28 »PAGE 19 2 varsity.co.uk/news | 20.10.06 Write for Varsity News: Newsdesk Meet 5.30pm Sundays in the Downing College Bar In Brief »Extensive University reading resources remain off-limits to local residents Cambridge Town library drugs bust Police in riot gear raided four homes in the village of Cambourne near closure leaves Cambridge, on Wednesday 18, as part of a large drugs bust. More than 50 police officers and dogs were involved readers unpaged in the raid, leaving Cambridge in a convoy of 15 vehicles at 6.45am. It is not known what quantities of drugs were seized, but police did remove a Road libraries and the availability of samurai sword from one of the proper- KANIKA BHATIA free internet facilities.” ties. A neighbour said: “This is quite a Central Library’s collections are nice area but some of the people who The announcement this week of the being transferred to other libraries live around here have a bad name with forthcoming closure of the Central within a few miles radius of the town the police”. John Walker Library in the Lion Yard has left local centre, such as Milton Road Library residents without direct access to any and Bar Hill Library. It is hoped that library in the city centre. While for the famous Cambridgeshire Botham walks Cambridge is home to 60 departmen- Collection, an archive of memorabilia tal libraries, 30 college libraries and from the county of Cambridgeshire for charity the University Library, these institu- and Isle of Ely, is to move to a new Cricketing legend Ian Botham took tions are highly restrictive in their part in a charity walk around entry policies. Cambridge for the charities The library will be closing in The UL ... does Leukaemia Research and Teenage January 2007 for a year to 18 months, “ Cancer Trust on Monday 15. The for an estimated £7.5 million refur- not currently sports star, known to many as bishment programme. The refurbish- Cambridge Central Library in the Lion Yard EMILY WRIGHT “Beefy”, walked over 10 miles on a cir- ment proposes to improve stock, serv- allow the public cular route around the city. He was ices and IT provisions, as well as mak- The University Library on West Services at the University Library, joined by fellow cricketer and former ing it a more attractive and comfort- to access its Road, one of only six copyright told Varsity, “There will be no change England Test Captain Nasser able environment in which to work. In libraries in the British Isles, does not to the general public not being able to Hussain, as well as Jeffrey Archer and the meantime, other Cambridge resources” currently allow the public to access its borrow books”. He added, “We will do Alistair Campbell. Botham’s event County Council libraries are extend- resources unless they are accompa- our best to accommodate referrals was part of a series of walks in 17 ing their hours to late evenings and nied by a university member. Only vis- from Central Library of those with cities over nine days. William Percy weekends in order to accommodate iting scholars, with a letter of intro- serious research needs. However, our the users of the Central Library. duction from an academic or profes- need to serve the university comes A Council spokesperson said, sional, are exempt. Other people may first, and we are currently in discus- Darwin digital “Milton Road Library will be doubling Historical Resource and Cultural only enter the library as visitors to sion with Central Library about how their hours including opening on Centre being built near the railway any exhibitions that may be running. to take care of the community during evolution Sundays during this time. There will station. It is uncertain, however, The same rule applies to college this period”. The complete works of Charles also be a 50 per cent increase in the whether this work will be complete by libraries. Darwin, totalling 50,000 pages, were opening of Rock Road and Milton the time the library reopens. Mr Tony Harper, Head of Reader www.lib.cam.ac.uk made available online yesterday. The Cambridge-financed project, the first of its kind, also incorporates mp3 files. Users can download audio ver- Rolf Harris: Filming at Pembroke House prices on the rise sions of works such as The Origin Of Species to listen to on CD or mp3. Dr Estate agents say that while there John van Whye, the project’s direc- CAT MOSS are few houses available for private tor, said: “The idea is to make these rent, the number of students who works as accessible as possible. Some House prices in Cambridge have approach them remains constant. The people can only get at Darwin that soared by 13 per cent in the last year, University Accommodation Service way”. He added, “There’s no reason creating problems for students and can help, whilst Homerton is current- why, if you can search and read the University staff seeking accommoda- ly providing students with more text, you shouldn’t be able to down- tion in the area. Fionnaula Earley, an rooms. Yet the need for a long term load and listen to it as well”. economist who compiled a nationwide solution remains. CUSU President Douglas Bailey report on the issue, explained that Mark Ferguson commented, “As more “the reputation and success of colleges tie in their room rents to the Cambridge University has led to a big market level, the rising cost of Hawking’s increase in business opportunities in Cambridge accommodation is some- the region, particularly in biotechnol- thing of which we should all be aware". showbiz debut ogy”. Cambridge is now one of the A scheme of development that Professor Stephen Hawking is to star most sought-after cities in the UK, would create 2000 homes for students in “Beyond the Horizon”, a film that but it also has the smallest housing and a similar number for University will address some of his most daunting stock in the country. High demand has staff has been proposed for the theories, including the cause of the Big led to a boom in house prices.