Universities warn expulsion may await student revellers amid reports of Covid rule flouting in the Holylands

Queen’s University Belfast and the University of Ulster issued statements in the wake of reports of house parties and street gatherings in the Holylands district of Belfast.

Stephen Nolan himself said today that he had spent the previous evening walking around the student district, which is based between Queen’s and lower Ormeau.

Images show clusters of young people on the streets, outside an off-licence, and PSNI officers entering homes to speak to the occupants.

Meanwhile one student landlord, former SDLP city councillor Declan Boyle (who himself have Covid-19 earlier in the year) said that some young people just seemed oblivious to the danger of passing the illness to others.

For both universities, students begin their first semester on September 21.

Last week, the Executive set out new rules which it wants people to obey in the following areas: All of Belfast City Council area; all of Ballymena town; and the postcodes BT28, BT29 and BT43.

The guidelines (which are expected to be given legal force later today) say there should be no mixing of households in private dwellings – with some exceptions like for childcare or medical visit.

There should also be no more than six people to gather in a private garden, from no more than two households.

Queen’s said that all students must sign up to a ‘Campus Community Pledge’ which “requires them to follow public health guidance to protect themselves and others from the spread of infection”.

It added: “Any students found to be in breach of these regulations and the Campus Community Pledge will be dealt with via the relevant disciplinary procedures, which include a number of penalties including fines and up to suspension and expulsion for serious and repeat offenders.”

And the University of Ulster said it “has a clear expectation that every member of our community must actively follow PHA guidance at all times, both on and off campus”.

It added: “Living and socialising with friends is a big part of University life, but there can be no place for anti-social behaviour of any kind, including any breach of Covid guidelines and regulations...

“Students will be subject to the University’s disciplinary process which could lead to suspension or expulsion from their degree.”

Mr Boyle said: “Students look at it as if they’re totally immune and it washes over them – and statistics will tell you that. The other thing they maybe haven’t grasped yet is that they are the vehicle to transport the virus.

“Some don’t even know they have it. Therein lies the problem. It doesn’t make any odds to them – ‘We are young, we are free, we can walk on water and all that goes with it.’

“If you’ve grandparents, parents [with] underlying issues, therein lies the problem – the virus is transmitted from them onwards to home.”