Academic Freedom: Subversion
The question
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to her Department’s press release entitled New powers to protect vital free speech at universities, published on 20 April 2026, what information her Department holds on the countries most frequently reported to interfere with free speech in UK universities since 2020.
Answered by Josh MacAlister
Any attempt by any foreign power to intimidate, harass or harm individuals or communities in the UK or to coerce universities to limit free speech and academic freedoms, will not be tolerated.
Foreign interference concerns have been raised in relation to a range of countries. The National Security Strategy sets out concerns regarding Russian, Iranian and Chinese interference impacting a range of institutions, journalists and universities. However, it is the longstanding policy of successive UK governments that we do not comment on specific operational, intelligence or security matters.
This government brought the Foreign Influence Registration Scheme into force on 1 July 2025, which applies to organisations and individuals including UK universities and students. Any person conducting political influence activity at the direction of any foreign country or being directed by the Russian or Iranian states to conduct activity in the UK, must register. We have also announced a new Academic Interference Reporting Route and issued guidance to help students and staff identify and escalate issues.
Lastly, our Prevent Coordinators help universities follow the correct policies and procedures on concerns relating to students’ union activity and student conduct.
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