When I was at university, a student ran for election promising to “abolish the menstrual cycle and do various other things beyond my power”. This taught me two things about Oxford politics: don’t take it seriously, and don’t get involved.
But now I have Fomo, because everyone else has applied to be chancellor of Oxford. Lord Chris Patten’s decision to retire aged 80 has created the deluge of submissions usually associated with last orders in the college bar.
Maybe you don’t need to offer leaders top salaries. Here’s a role they will do for free. Who wouldn’t like to give self-deprecating speeches, shortly after conferring an honorary degree on Pedro Almodóvar?