Turn of the year

We reflect on continuity and change in 2023

What a difference a year makes—or not. Last December, Susan Lapworth, chief executive of the Office for Students, was urging universities to consider how they would handle possibly conflicting rights to speak and to protest as the Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Bill made its way through parliament. It proved handy advice for universities that are now considering how to deal with responses to the Israel-Hamas war.

Meanwhile, university leaders were complaining of potential financial harm to their institutions and the wider economy from the government’s announcement that it would restrict international students’ ability to bring over dependants—another live issue.