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UK universities have been told by the government to step up their protection against threats and censorship from China and other states, as security services launched an advisory scheme for researchers at risk.
The Cabinet Office will this week set up a centralized route to report attempts at academic interference as it warned that the higher education sector was a “prime target for foreign states”.
Sir Ken McCallum, director general of Britain’s domestic intelligence agency MI5, told a meeting of more than 70 vice-chancellors last week that China and other states were attempting to influence university research and teaching.
He advised on countering methods – such as approaches through professional networking sites and financial inducements – commonly used by hostile powers.
The move to curb bullying and censorship follows outrage over Chinese efforts last year to block research at Sheffield Hallam University over alleged human rights abuses in Xinjiang.
University staff raised concerns about publishing research on forced labor after Beijing blocked access to university websites and the institute’s office in China was visited by “threatening” security officials.
Laura Murphy, professor of human rights and contemporary slavery, launched legal proceedings against the university, insisting that its decision was not based on a commercial interest in attracting attractive Chinese students.
Beijing has strongly denied reports by human rights groups, researchers and UN investigators of widespread use of forced labor in Xinjiang, calling such allegations falsehoods intended to undermine China’s reputation.
This week the UK government will set up an “academic interference reporting route” that universities can use to flag concerns about bullying and censorship attempts from foreign states directly to security services.
An advisory service providing training and support to academics and university administrators is also being developed by the Department of Education to deal with such efforts.
MI5 has already formalized a system of advising universities on collaborating with researchers in China through the National Security Intelligence Authority’s Trusted Research Initiative.
Skills and Universities Minister Jackie Smith said: “The world-class reputation of our universities makes them a prime target for foreign states and hostile actors who seek to destroy that reputation by shaping or censoring research and teaching.”
Political parties have also been warned by McCallum to be vigilant against interference in the wake of the alleged Chinese spying scandal at Westminster.
In November, MI5 warned that China’s Ministry of State Security was using websites such as LinkedIn to contact and make connections with parliamentary staff, MPs and peers to “collect sensitive information on the UK”.
Sir Keir Starmer, who last month became the first British prime minister in eight years to visit China, has said London could seek to build economic ties with Beijing while acknowledging its threat to British institutions.
Security Minister Dan Jarvis said he wanted to “help universities get support from security experts” and ensure “the people at the heart of our democracy know how to report foreign interference”.
Tim Bradshaw, chief executive of the Russell Group of research-intensive universities, said the new centralized route would “empower institutions to report and take action more quickly and confidently, knowing the support is there”.
“This will help us maintain our learning environment as a place where all students and staff can freely inquire, study and discuss ideas,” he said.
