- It felt as though this was the week the world of front-line politics finally caught up with the stark warnings that have been detailed in these pages for some time 鈥 that the 拢9,000 fee system is unsustainable. Chuka Umunna, the shadow business secretary, urged ministers to 鈥渃ome clean鈥 on the implications of the 鈥渟tudent loan time bomb鈥 after it was revealed last week that, on current estimates, 45 per cent of student loans will not be repaid. That followed a report from London Economics 鈥 featured in 糖心Vlog last week 鈥 that warned that the government was rapidly approaching the 鈥渂reak-even point鈥 at which the new system costs more than the old one of direct grants and lower fees. David Willetts, the universities and science minister, refused to rule out increasing tuition fees beyond 拢9,000 post-2015, but dismissed worries about the rising loan write-off rate, saying the estimates will tend to 鈥渂ounce around鈥 depending on earnings forecasts over the next 35 years. Labour鈥檚 resurgence of interest in the cost of student loans came as leader Ed Miliband hinted on ITV1鈥檚 The Agenda that the party may make a 鈥渞adical offer鈥 at the next general election on fees. Coincidence?
- A scientist has attacked the Daily Mail鈥檚 鈥渦nderlying sexism鈥 after it implied that her appearance on Newsnight was only because of her gender and race. Hiranya Peiris, reader in astronomy at University College London and an expert on the study of the cosmic microwave background, was invited on to the BBC Two show to discuss last week鈥檚 findings about the origins of the universe alongside The Sky at Night presenter Maggie Aderin-Pocock, who is an honorary research associate in UCL鈥檚 department of physics and astronomy. But pseudonymous diary columnist Ephraim Hardcastle suggested that the invitation to the women to talk about work by 鈥渨hite, male鈥 American scientists was because the show鈥檚 鈥Guardian-trained editor, Ian Katz, is keen on diversity鈥. Dr Peiris told The Independent that the comments had caused 鈥渁 lot of emotional suffering鈥 and undermined women鈥檚 efforts, saying Hardcastle had 鈥渞educe[d] my career to my gender and skin colour鈥.
- Meanwhile, academics from UCL have posted a website criticising the BBC for allegedly failing to challenge the scientific claims of genetic ancestry testing companies. The site, under the banner of UCL鈥檚 Molecular and Cultural Evolution Lab, reserves particular ire for Today presenter James Naughtie, whose 2012 interview of his 鈥渙ld friend鈥 Alistair Moffat, who runs one such firm, 鈥渇ailed to make even the most token challenge鈥 and could amount to 鈥渢he most untruths in four minutes of 鈥榝actual鈥 BBC programming ever鈥. Hot on the heels of the BBC鈥檚 apology to the London School of Economics for using students as cover for a Panorama report on North Korea, it鈥檚 not been a great fortnight for Beeb-university relations.
- University leaders are sometimes depicted as a humourless bunch, but one is doing his best to dispel this image. University of Northampton vice-chancellor Nick Petford was pictured crowdsurfing across a room at a sports awards evening, winning him the epithet 鈥淲olfofNorthampton鈥 from one student who tweeted the unlikely scene, a reference to a similar event in The Wolf of Wall Street, the film about 1990s corporate excess, the Northampton Herald & Post reported on 23 March.
- The University of Cambridge is continuing to fete the benefactor wife of a Ukrainian oligarch wanted by the FBI, the Daily Mail reported on 24 March. While Dmytro Firtash awaits possible extradition to the US on bribery charges after his arrest in Austria this month, his wife, Lada, was inducted last week as a 鈥渃ompanion鈥 of Cambridge鈥檚 Guild of Benefactors, a group who have all donated at least 拢1 million. The ceremony follows donations worth 拢5.4 million for a Ukrainian studies programme in 2011 from Firtash鈥檚 foundation, which is chaired by his wife. Protesters called on the university to 鈥渟pring clean鈥 its donations policy but it seems happy to look beyond Firtash鈥檚 current reputational difficulties and court the wife of a man released on a 拢105 million bail bond.
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