Poach thy neighbour

The vice-chancellors of Sussex and Brighton universities, Alasdair Smith and Julian Crampton, raised laughs with their honesty at the Society for Research into Higher Education conference last week. The vice-chancellor of Sussex told the conference: "We cherry-pick the administrative staff at Brighton because we pay better. There are many couples in which one works at Sussex and the other at Brighton. Both know a lot about the other institution from hearing their loved ones moan after work."