A new proposed Bill before parliament to protect free speech will make UK universities reveal details of overseas funding from countries like China.
Under amendments to the Higher Education [Freedom of Speech] Bill, universities could face fines if they fail to show financial arrangements they secure with so-called foreign actors or overseas organisations deemed a threat to democracy.
“It is right that we are taking new action to protect our universities from undue foreign influences that work against British values,” universities minister, Michelle Donelan told Parliament on Monday evening.
She added: “The UK is a bastion of free speech. More than two thirds of the world’s population live in places where academic freedom is severely limited. For decades students have travelled thousands of miles across the globe to study here because of our values of free speech and academic freedom.”
But she said foreign nations were seeking to influence the academic space, and combined with the “no platform agenda” by some students, were undermining freedom and creativity.
As a result, this “chilling effect” has seen the UK “significantly” slip down the global rankings of academic freedom, Donelan said.
“It is right that we are taking new action to protect our universities from undue foreign influences that work against British values—this is a Bill that the rest of the world will take note of.”
She added that she looked forward to working with the new director “to tackle these important issues and ensure we remain one of the most academically free countries in the world.”
The amendment is one of a raft of proposed legislation that demands universities actively promote and protect freedom of speech.
China has been singled out in recent years, accused of buying influence, shaping debate, and silencing criticism of and promoting policies for the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) on UK campuses.
Exempt from the amendment are countries such as Japan and Australia which are listed in the Academic Technology Approval Scheme. Funding from countries in the European Union and NATO.
Under the proposed changes to the Bill—which is in the process of becoming law—student societies will also have to share details of overseas funding from specified countries.
And they too would also face financial penalties and other sanctions over perceived risks to freedom of speech or academic freedom because of their funding routes.
The government is currently recruiting a new director to oversee the new policy at the Office for Students, which regulates universities.
The director will have new powers to investigate if freedoms are under threat from so called cancel culture or from insidious foreign influence, and will be able to levy sanctions, accordingly, said Donelan.
Some universities have already introduced their own processes or guidance to cover concerns that foreign influences could hamper freedom of speech.
Following criticism over links between senior managers and Chinese telecom giant Huawei, Cambridge university said last year it would assess all international agreements to ensure principles of academic freedom.
Last week Tory MP Alicia Kearns warned that the Chinese regime held too much sway over UK universities, adding that “education is being weaponised by those against us.”
She said that Confucius Institutes—public language and cultural education programmes funded by an organisation linked to the Chinese regime—were “undermining the integrity of the Mandarin education in our country.”
Donelan refused to say if the UK was considering banning the institutes, saying UK universities must offer alternative learning opportunities, which the new bill will empower them to do so.
The Higher Education Bill is to reach the final parliamentary stage in September.
