UK-China Transparency today publishes a memorandum on academic freedom re China in universities, the Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Act, and potential legal issues emerging from typical UK-China joint programmes in higher education.
The memorandum should be read in conjunction with our summary of the academic freedom and free speech issues presented by the Chinese Communist Party’s interference on UK campuses.
The memorandum, which will be of use to policy-makers, journalists, university administrators, concerned university members, and legislators, explains in detail how:
- As part of the Office for Students’ consultations about the Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Act, UK-China Transparency (UKCT) submitted evidence that programmes at UK universities which are co-governed by the Chinese government and Chinese Communist Party involve discrimination, restrictions on free speech, obligations on Chinese university members to inform on their peers whilst in the UK, and other elements inimical to academic freedom and the protection of free expression.
- UKCT’s evidence was based on translations of the Mandarin-language official documentation published by the Chinese government and Chinese Communist Party.
- Draft guidance advising universities on compliance with the Act and produced by the Office for Students appeared to reflect the evidence submitted by UKCT, indicating that this evidence was robust and relevant to the proper implementation of the Act.
- The guidance recommended demanding universities take certain steps with respect to UK-China programmes, including the termination of two flagship programmes highly valued by the Chinese government, namely the Confucius Institutes and China Scholarship Council programmes. The guidance also suggested that universities should take a stronger public stance against CCP interference in academia. These measures would have constituted a sea-change for the higher education sector.
- Industry bodies such as the Russell Group lobbied against these measures, specifically arguing against termination of the Confucius Institutes and China Scholarship Council programmes on the basis that this “would likely have a negative impact on UK/foreign relations”. This echoes claims made by former Foreign Secretary James Cleverly that termination of the Confucius Institutes programme would be detrimental due to potential retaliation (against the British Council) by the Chinese government.
- A UK government letter sent in response to a legal challenge against the ‘pausing’ of the Act’s implementation indicates that part of the recorded rationale for the pause was concern about the Act’s impact on relationships with China.
- UKCT is investigating whether decisions about the Act and about UK-China programmes in universities have been made based on concern about retaliation by the Chinese government, instead of concern for academic freedom, free speech, the integrity of UK academia and good governance of universities.
- UKCT has also asked the Office for Students to clarify whether it will produce guidance on the relevance to UK-China programmes of the provisions of the Education (No 2) Act 1986, which the government has stated it supports, and which remains in force. The OfS could not provide an answer.
READ THE MEMORANDUM IN FULL BELOW OR BY CLICKING HERE