Oxford News
Tommy Robinson ‘equated with Nelson Mandela’ at Oxford Union
Reports state that Oxford Union president, Arwa Elrayess, allowed one of her senior committee members to link the controversial figure with the former president of South Africa.
Miss Elrayess is facing calls to resign and is being met with condemnation from her own committee over the invitations of Carl Benjamin, Tommy Robinson, Karim Khan, and Laurence Fox.
In a letter calling for resignation, Shermar Pryce, former chief adviser, said: “I am appalled by the absolutely idiotic and frankly insane comparison made between Tommy Robinson and Nelson Mandela by the director of finance: to, in any way, equate a violent, race-baiting criminal thug with an icon of liberation is a grotesque insult to history and a testament to the moral rot within the senior committee.
“I am beyond convinced that the current form of the TermCard is the direct result of such people being enabled and empowered.”
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Miss Elrayess has previously defended her choice to invite the controversial figure in an article published in The Telegraph
She said: “For more than 200 years, the Oxford Union has existed to host debates – not to platform views uncritically, but to subject them to the most rigorous scrutiny. You do not invite a speaker to endorse them: you invite them so that their ideas can be examined, and their claims tested.
“Today, the Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Act – passed under the last Conservative Government – exists precisely because we have recognised, as a nation, that the strategy of silence was not merely failing, but becoming a crisis.
“Universities are where ideas are meant to be tested, not protected from scrutiny.”
In late 2025, Robinson’s followers used the anti-apartheid anthem ‘Something Inside So Strong’ at a UK rally, the song’s writer, Labi Siffre, issued a cease-and-desist letter.
Bicester Play & Activity Day will take place at Spider Park on Keble Road from 11am to 3pm on Wednesday, July 29.
It is suitable for children and young people of all ages.
Activities will include Go Kart Party, Body Zorbing, Giant Bubbles, Ride on Time Toddler Vehicles, and Junk Modelling with Art Avalanche, alongside Bright Sparks Science.
Entry and all activities are free.
Attendees are welcome to bring a picnic, but no childcare will be provided.
Councillor David Edwards-Hughes said numerous people have contacted him about The Leys Splash Park in Witney being opened earlier.
It is open daily from noon to 6pm.
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The Conservative politician said: “The facility is a brilliant asset to Witney, made possible because councillors a decade ago had the foresight to set aside dedicated funding year-on-year for these major upgrades.
“However, I have been contacted by numerous residents—particularly parents of toddlers and very young children—who want to see the splash park open earlier.
“They want to enjoy the water before the midday heat becomes too intense for little ones.
“As a toddler dad myself, I completely understand and share those concerns.”
This comes as Oxfordshire experiences record temperatures with 32.9°C recorded at nearby Brize Norton on Monday, May 25.
Considering this, a spokesperson for Witney Town Council – which runs the facility – did not rule out extending the hours.
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They said: “Last year the town council made adjustments as the season went on based on water usage and demand and this kind of flexibility is likely to be the case again this year, subject to council approval.”
Mr Edwards-Hughes added: “We have this incredible, modern facility, and we need to ensure it works for everyone in our community.
“I have asked council officers to look into what can be done to expand the hours so that the splash park is safer, more accessible, and more convenient for a wider range of ages.”
Julia Atkinson of Summertown bakers Happy Cakes met actor Kiefer Sutherland outside the O2 Academy Oxford, where he was performing.
Born in London, the British and Canadian 59-year-old is well known for playing Jack Bauer in the TV series 24 (2001-2014) and films such as Stand by Me (1986), A Few Good Men (1992) and Melancholia (2011).
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More recently, the actor has started a career as a musician and is now at the end of the UK leg of his ‘Love Will Bring You Home’ tour.
The Oxford concert on Tuesday, May 26, was the penultimate event in his programme which ends this evening (Wednesday, May 27) in Leeds.
The music is described as ‘Ol’ fashioned denim-and-dusty-boots country rock’ and is supporting Mr Sutherland’s fourth studio album Grey which has recently been released.
When in Oxford on Tuesday, he was greeted by Ms Atkinson who had previously met him in the city in March 2020.
She said: “Having accidentally met Hollywood legend Kiefer Sutherland in Cowley Road in March 2020 whilst delivering cakes, I was excited to hear he was returning to the O2 Academy to promote his new album.
“I baked him some bespoke cupcakes and headed to the venue in the heat.
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“My timing was perfect and he had just arrived, and was leaving the venue to walk in the city and make a short tour diary about being in Oxford.
“He was very friendly and charming and stopped to chat and take photos with the waiting fans.
“He remembered the cupcakes I’d given him on the previous occasion and said he was very happy to be back in a city as beautiful as Oxford on a stunning day.”
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