The President of an Oxford college whose graduates voted to remove a portrait of the Queen from their common room has defended the students' right to 'free speech and political debate'. Boris Johnson yesterday joined the backlash against members of Magdalen College Middle Common Room (MCR), who voted overwhelmingly to remove the photographic print of the monarch. The decision was made after she was described as a 'symbol of recent colonial history' who could make some people feel unwelcome - a verdict described as 'absurd' by Education Secretary Gavin Williamson, which was then echoed by the Prime Minister. Magdalen head, Dinah Rose QC, emphasised that the students were not representative of the college, but offered them her support.