Conspicuously not making a spectacle of himself at Labour's Brighton conference this week was National Union of Students president Doug Trainer, forced to deliver a fringe meeting speech from an unaccustomed sitting position. He explained to the audience: "I haven't got my glasses with me, so if I stand up I can't see my notes and if I can't see my notes I'll deliver the standard rant on funding.'' Thus handicapped, he proffered a thoughtful contribution on access and quality. On this form an epidemic of enforced short-sightedness is exactly what the post-Dearing debate needs.