gotchanewsdaily.com 
She described the chancellor role as essentially the “diplomat” or “foreign minister” for Oxford — someone who can both promote international engagement and lobby the U.K. government for what it wants.
“The reason we’re having the debates is these two candidates [Mandelson and Hague], plus the previous chancellor, are taking diametrically opposed views on China,” she added.
Some see the chancellorship as mere window-dressing, regardless of the battles being fought over Beijing ties.
Anthony Seldon, a political historian who also attended Worcester College, Oxford, said the contest, regardless of who won, may not add much to the standing of the university, and dismissed it as little more than a vanity project for aging has-beens.
“Chancellors rarely make much difference, and the stronger the university, the less a chancellor can do,” he said. “It’s nice for parents on graduation day to see someone they recognize, but we’re not talking about something that’s going to propel Oxford into the second half of the 21st century.
“To Oxford it won’t make very much difference if it’s William Hague or it’s Peter Mandelson, or another.”
“Obviously, it matters to them,” Seldon added. “It is one of the most delightful imaginable post-career jobs.”
