“if!” -
l l
‘Nick Brown, ranked 591 in the world, Britain‘s Number2. . .’ 7 Wimbledon commentator Dan Maskell reveals why British tennis . scores a double fault.
or mourn;
‘The problem doesn't start with the pin-ups, it starts with the men.‘ Page Three girl Tracey E lvik gets gripes about the E C's proposals to ban pin-ups off her chest.
‘That’s funny. I've got a brother-in-law who used to be a queenf
An unnamed American film director’s reply to Her Majesty's observation that she had a brother-in-law who was a photographer.
‘When you’ve been worried for your own safety at athletics events, as I was in Britain on one or two occasions, whether you win or lose, it’s pretty irrelevent.’
Zola Budd describes the loneliness of the South African-born long distance runner.
I even sometimes go on stage in moccasins and stuffand feel a kind of affinity. And one or two people have I even said I look a bit Indian.‘
: Yes guitarist Steve Howe (sic) outdoes Jim Morrison in Red Indian pretension.
‘I’ve persuaded him that we want some sunshine during July and he‘s agreed to change his routine.‘
Peter H adden, manager of
Pleasure world Hills American Theme Park in Suffolk persuades star ; attraction Indian (’hief Winitoo to postpone his rain dances.
L__,. ._. - _-._-__ 4TheList12—251ulyl99l
V _
The opening of the Scottish AIDS
July pointed to more that just the
j expansion of the charity’s work.
; Situated amongst the lawyers' offices , and advertising agencies of Woodside - Terrace, it symbolises the
3 establishment's acceptance that AIDS ; is hereto stay.
Students lose benefit status
As students face up to the financial burden of one year under the Student Loans Scheme, many face further hardship now that their entitlement to sign on has also been withdrawn. Alan Morrison reports on the plight of students struggling to get through the summer.
DAVE KEEN
laire is a 21-year-old business studies student in Glasgow. With one year still to go in her course, she was hoping to find a part-time summer job which would allow her to pay off part of her overdraft while still leaving time to prepare for her final year’s studies. But the latest stage of the Government’s reform of student funding — removing their elegibility for income support or unemployment benefit over the summer vacation — has come into effect just when the recession means there are precious few jobs to be found. An advert in the Glasgow Herald last Monday offering eight-week summer placements led to over 100 applications in less than three
hours.
Unable to find work and deprived of the right to sign on, it looks likely that Claire will have to return to her parents’ home in Aberdeen until term begins again. But to avoid being homeless next term, throughout the summer months she will also have to find the money to cover the rent of a flat in Glasgow. Many other students will be caught in a similar situation, but in Claire‘s case it
studies.’
is made more difficult by the fact that her father has just been made redundant.
‘There is no doubt that the removal ofstudents from the benefit system, coupled with the freezing of the grant and its replacement with g loans will cause hardship,’ says Derek Munn, i newly elected President of NUS (Scotland). i
l
‘Society believes in education for all.’ says Derek Munn, ‘regardless of class and financial background. But society has also got to be willing to put the resources there. and that doesn‘t just mean the resources of textbooks — it also means the resources for students to pay the rent.‘
If you have been affected by the withdrawal of benefit, write to The List, 14 High Street, Edinburgh, EH1 ITE, as thetopic will be fol/o wed up in a later issue.
j
‘People have found that with a part-time job or with the student loan they can just about make it through term time, but ofcourse you can’t get another loan for the summer months.’
Over the past five years, the financial independence ofstudents has been eroded by accumulating changes including the withdrawal of housing benefit from students in Halls of Residence in 1986, the loss of other benefits during the short vacations since 1987, and the introduction of a loans scheme in 1990.
The Government’s aims were outlined by Baroness Blatch in a House of Commons debate last year, when she said that ‘the decision to undertake full-time study is a decision to opt out of the labour market: it is not the function ofthe benefit system to subsidise able-bodied people without family responsibilities in that way.’ This would be all very well if the education system picked up the tab and provided grants that were sufficient to live on, but on current levels this is simply impossible. Students have to find extra money from somewhere and ifthere are no jobs available, those whose parents can’t or won’t give assistance could soon be forced to give up their
New office for I
Monitor’s new Glasgow branch on 5
Leading a full-time staff of six, and i with sixty volunteers at his disposal, ! Steve Retson is the project co-ordinator. ‘We want to keep
: informing people of the lacts,‘ he states confidently, ‘that AIDS is very
easily passed from person to person and needle to person, and also that people can and do live happy lives with the virus. We cannot be satisfied until
3 every person in Scotland knows the full
facts about AIDS and how to avoid
being infected by lt.’
Having secured annual funding from
5 the Scottish Office, the charity is
pursuing a mission of mediation, as
‘ SAM Iiases effectively with the Scottish : Health Department on an ongoing
basis. Whereas the faceless
; beaurocrats would find it difficult to gain an understanding of the problems
of AIDS at a community level, SAM has already earned the trust of AIDS sufferers and organisers of community drug projects. The organisation can
; also train counsellors to help anyone 3 with AIDS. In addition, by bringing , videos, information leaflets and
comics to venues ranging from discos
: to schools, it is hoped that the SAM
1 roadshow can reach those who don’t
I always feel the need to be Informed
! and can consequently offset some of I i the media's distortions about the virus. I
In opening the office, TV personality
5 Sheena McDonald suggested the way 3 Iorward,saylng, ‘Most ofthe peoplefor
whom this building exists aren't here. They don’t know about it yet, but it would be difficult to over-estimate the amount of good SAM can do.’ (Michael Paterson)
Scottish AIDS Monitor can be contacted at PO Box 48, Edinburgh EH138A or PO Box 111 , Glasgow 63 7X8.