Left-wing students shut down ‘critical’ newspaper

FOR more than 70 years, it has been a crucial training ground for some of Britain’s best journalists, including BBC broadcasters Jeremy Vine, George Alagiah and legendary newspaper editor Sir Harold Evans.

But now the plug has been pulled on the student newspaper at Durham University amid an astonishing freedom of speech row.

The students’ union claims it is shutting down the presses on the Palatinate newspaper to save money – £4,000 a term. But many at the prestigious university believe the decision is politically motivated because the publication challenges the Left-wing and politically correct views of a radical cabal that runs the union.

The new president of the union, Seun Twins, called for Tories to be dealt with by ‘roadmen’ – a statement suggesting they should be beaten up by street youths. She came to her post in controversial elections in which more than half the students who voted demanded that nominations be reopened – effectively a vote of no confidence in all those standing.

Despite the protest vote, Miss Twins was appointed president and took up her role last month. Student Christopher Page, 21, said the decision to shut down the print edition of Palatinate followed a series of damaging articles over the votes fiasco.

He added: ‘The union has been acting more like a dictatorship than a student democracy.’

However, Gareth Hughes, chief executive of the students’ union, said there were ‘no political influences’ on the decision.