Not Too Much To Ask, Is It?

A London university is considering establishing alcohol-free zones on its campuses because so many of its students consider drinking to be immoral.

Professor Malcolm Gillies, vice-chancellor of London Metropolitan University, said the selling of alcohol was an issue of "cultural sensitivity" at his institution where a fifth of students are Muslim.

Speaking to a conference of university administrators in Manchester, he said that for many students, drinking alcohol was "an immoral experience".

Hey, it's only a modest compromise. Who could worry about that, eh?

He said he saw little reason for the university to subsidise a student bar on campus when there were "at least half a dozen pubs within 200m".

They can always just 'step outside'.

Alaa Alsamarrai, the vice-president of student affairs for the Federation of Student Islamic Societies, said Muslim students wanted universities to be inclusive so that students "from all walks of life can come and share experiences".

"Alcohol is a barrier to many Muslim students participating in freshers' events and often in society activities, so we are in support of moves to have alcohol-free zones and events," she said. "However, if a student wants to drink, we don't want to ban them from doing that."

Of course not. It's not too much to ask for alcohol free public transport, a few outdoor areas, with the odd employer policy too.

No-one is asking for a ban at the behest of a vocal minority, are they? It would be scaremongery to say otherwise.

It's not like there's a template being followed, or anything.