Proof that bashing Essex University and sociology is not the exclusive preserve of the Cro-Magnon right. During last week's Commons debate on London University medical school mergers, Labour MP Brian Sedgemore claimed that health secretary Virginia Bottomley "obtained her degrees in sociology at Essex University at a time when that was roughly equivalent to obtaining a certificate for attendance at a borstal institution". Any comment from the 30 or so professors who began their academic careers in the borstal-equivalent department would be superfluous.