According to a spokesperson for UCD the fire broke out as construction workers sought to remove the footbridge connecting the Chemistry and Science Hub buildings, when sparks fell on a pile of discarded roofing felt near the site.

Workers continued with the process, but then noticed the smouldering flames and summoned the fire services before attempting to smother the fire with available fire extinguishers. The fire brigade arrived promptly, and ensured that the smouldering was safely extinguished before leaving the scene and permitting construction to resume work as planned for the rest of the night. No one was injured by the fire.

This is the second fire to occur in the complex in recent months in the midst of ongoing construction work. The last fire, which occurred on the afternoon of Wednesday 13^th January, was caused when an overheated boiler exploded. The previous fire was also extinguished without injury.

The entire UCD Science complex is currently undergoing major a restoration and upgrading programme. Plans were put to Dún Laoghaire/Rathdown County Council in 2005 and work began on the reconstruction and expansion of the Chemistry building in September 2008. It is hoped that the construction and refurbishment would place UCD at the forefront of scientific research, and thus attract more funding to the college as well as postgraduate students. The construction work is being pursued in phases, with Chemistry work ongoing for the foreseeable future.

Proposals have been put forward to introduce a health insurance premium, up to a maximum of €100 on all students, which would be paid at the beginning of term. The premium would also cover travel and dental insurance for the year and would see the end to per-visit fees for the Student Health Service. It is understood that, should the referendum be approved and subsequently carried, one of the major insurance companies would be contracted to provide the insurance cover for all students. Medical Card holders would be offered a refund under the scheme.

The proposals will be heard at an emergency convening of SU Council, which will also hear a motion to hold a referendum overturning the boycotts on Coca-Cola and Nestlé products. If Council votes to approve the proposals, the referenda will be held alongside the SU’s sabbatical elections in two weeks time.

Representatives of an SU boycott review committee, class reps Justin Brayden and Maggie O’Connor, will explain their findings on the relevance and effectiveness of the Coca-cola and Nestlé boycotts at the meeting tonight.

Members of council are expected to re-examine the reasons why Coca-Cola and Nestlé were initially boycotted, and will then decide whether these reasons still stand for today’s students. It is expected that they will be referencing a briefing document, seen by The University Observer, which reports on the allegations made against the two companies.

The initial Coca-Cola boycott, which was introduced after two separate referenda, was implemented throughout all SU outlets in 2003. A second referendum, to overturn the boycott, was held shortly after the first following objections over the campaigning of the pro-boycott side in the original referendum. The falling of the subsequent referendum meant that no Coca-Cola products could be bought or sold in SU run outlets. The Nestlé boycott was introduced in 1989.

The document also explains that Nestlé boycotts began in the United States as early as 1977 in response to accusations that the Swiss multinational had pursued unethical methods of promotion for an unsafe powdered baby formula for mothers in third world countries.

UCD Students’ Union was the first institution in the world to introduce a boycott of all Coca-Cola products, following allegations that the company was mistreating workers and union members at their main bottling plant in Colombia. According to the SU briefing document, a 2004 New York City fact-finding delegation found there to have been 179 major human rights violations, including nine murders. Other allegations include child labour violations in El Salvador and alleged use of unhealthy water in India.

If the referendum goes ahead, at least 15 per cent of the SU membership – approximately 2800 students – must vote in the referendum in order for quorum to be reached and its result to be declared valid.

The Council meeting takes place in the Astra Hall in the Student Centre tonight at 6pm, and may also discuss a proposal to hold a referendum on a student health insurance scheme.

Problems had arisen when it emerged that UCD’s Orientation Week clashed with the first round of CAO offers, due to be issued this year on 30^th August. There were concerns that university authorities may have to scrap Orientation Week in its current format due to the fact that students would only receive notice of their place in UCD halfway through the scheduled Orientation Week.

However at a meeting of the University Undergraduate Programme Board last month, it was formally proposed that authorities scrap the original academic schedule, which had intended for orientation to commence on Monday 30^th August.

It was then proposed that orientation begin on Monday 6^th September, with the first week of classes beginning on Monday 13^th September. After twelve weeks’ tuition and one revision week, the final exam period would thus start on Monday 13^th December and end on 23^rd December, one week later than usual.

However for this plan to work, it will require condensing the current eleven-day exam timetable into a ten-day one. If the traditional eleven-day progamme can not be shortened, it would mean that exams would end on Christmas Eve as they cannot be held on Sundays.

Proposals were also put forward to begin the exams a day early on Saturday 11^th December should the timetabling issue fail to be resolved.

According to the written proposal from the meeting, the main concern with the potential overlap of Orientation Week and the CAO offers being released was the inconvenience that the clash would have on incoming students. It was agreed that allowing students only one day to accept an offer and to begin their registration would cause too much stress, as well as adding extra pressure to university staff.

It was also felt that students would be ill prepared for life in UCD without undergoing the complete orientation process.