Contrary to popular belief (see here, here, here, here and here), Oxford city council has *not* cancelled Christmas, even if shoddy Oxford Mail reporting (swiftly copied by the rest of the media) implies that it has.

We have *not* changed our usual celebration events for the festive season. We will be having the usual Christmas trees in the Town Hall and Broad Street. The Lord Mayor’s Christmas Carol Concert (at which the City Rector gives the Blessing) will go ahead as a civic event - Susanna, as this year’s Lord Mayor, will keep the tradition of the Lord Mayor singing a solo of the opening verse of one of the carols. The Christmas reception for community workers is going ahead. The council will send out Christmas cards.

The confusion has come about because Oxford Inspires - who are separate to the council - are using the title ‘Winter Lights’ for a set of cultural events this autumn. The events organised by Oxford Inspires for November 28th will include the switch on of the city centre Christmas lights and the re-opening of Bonn Square. There will also be lots of other dance, music and other cultural events around the city’s museums and galleries as part of the wider season.

I must admit, I feel like banging my head on my desk. When you combine what is, frankly, a lack of nous on the part of Oxford Inspires (how did they not see this coming?) and the determination of the mass media to get at least one “loony left council bans Christmas” story this year, plus the irresponsible spin of the Sun in making it out to be about not offending Muslims, you were always going to get a perfect Christmas storm. Given that there is clearly a dastardly PC plot to deprive the mass of Brits who tick CofE on the census forms of their right to celebrate Christmas, will anyone believe me when I say that the first this councillor heard of it was when the Oxford Mail got hold of it? Of course not. And my protestations, my declarations of passion for turkey and cranberry sauce, the way my heart rises as the organ crashes and the descant soars in the final verse of Hark the Herald Angels Sing, the love I feel for my family, so rarely all in one place these days, opening presents and telling jokes on Christmas morning - that all counts for nothing, as I am a PC Christmas-cancelling Christian-hating leftist loony Labour Scrooge. Obviously.

UPDATE, 3.45pm: the letter that will appear in tomorrow’s Oxford Mail, hopefully:

Dear Sir
Your front page story about the Winter Light event was both dishonest and irresponsible.It can only have been designed to smear the City Council and will be the subject of an immediate complaint to the Press Complaints Commission.
Your readers ought to be able to trust their local paper to present facts not fabrications, and not to sow dissension and disharmony where none exists.
The facts are as follows;
1. The City Council has not ‘banned Christmas’ and has not banned the use of the word ‘Christmas’. The Council has not even considered doing either of these. On the contrary, the Council will be celebrating Christmas 2008 in the same way as it has celebrated all previous Christmases: we will have Christmas trees in the Town Hall and in Broad Street, the Lord Mayor will host a Christmas reception for community workers and will hold the annual Christmas Carols event, and we will be sending out Christmas cards.
2. Oxford Inspires designed the Winter Light event for 2008 , building on the very successful event of December 2007, which had the same name.This involved the late night opening of many museums and galleries, with musical events, food and drink, and things for children to do - together with the illuminated Pyramids in Broad Street.
3. For Christmas 2008, Oxford Inspires agreed with the City Council to time the Winter Light event for November and to have it on the same evening as the switch-on of the city centre Christmas Lights and the re -opening of Bonn Square.
Oxford Inspires is jointly funded by the two Universities, the City and County Councils and the Arts Council to sponsor cultural and arts events across the county. Their Winter Light event builds on similar events in many cities across the world where the arrival of darker evenings and colder weather creates the opportunity for some magical and exciting events in public buildings and public squares. It is a cultural event without any specific reference to the religious festivals that also occur in this period.
All these facts were explained to your reporter, so it is evident that the Oxford Mail has chosen to misrepresent them to an unsuspecting public for murky and dishonourable political motives.It a disgraceful display of gutter journalism.The clear intention of the newspaper was to suggest that the Council was seeking to deny the Christian character of Christmas. That is a slur without foundation.
Your sincerely
Cllr Bob Price, Leader, Oxford City Council
Cllr Ed Turner, Deputy Leader, Oxford City Council
Peter Sloman, Chief Executive, Oxford City Council