Universities told to drop social justice rules for staff
Universities have been told to scrap rules that push 'social justice' politics.
New guidance has been issued by the Office for Students, a higher education regulator, to ensure free speech is protected on campus.
The guidance instructs universities to scrap policies controversially used to enforce what critics have branded 'ideological conformity'.
This is to ensure they do not breach the Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Act, which is set to come into law in August after being proposed under the Tories.
Guidance states that to avoid falling foul of the Act, people should not be compelled to sign up to university codes of conduct that insist on promoting 'social justice' or other political values.
The University of Newcastle code of conduct states that it will maintain a 'longstanding commitment… to social justice' and a belief that universities should 'play a fundamental role in creating and fostering societies that are more equitable'.
Conduct commitments stifle free speech
New guidance warns that commitments such as these could stifle free speech as dissenting from what is defined as 'social justice' could be prohibited.
The Office for Students guide, overseen by free speech advocate Arif Ahmed, also advises scrapping other ways of compelling conformity that have proven controversial in the past.
It states that academics should not be required to prove their 'commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion'.
Many job applications in academia contain an inclusion statement, which incites applicants to state how they could support diversity and inclusion on campus.
Earlier this year, the campaign group Alumni for Free Speech claimed that universities including Oxford routinely demanded that job applicants support diversity measures.
New guidance states that academics being urged to profess a commitment to certain 'values, beliefs or ideas', in order to secure a job, could stifle any expression of dissent from these ideas.
Discourage reporting microaggressions
Universities have also been told to stop allowing students to anonymously report staff for expressing lawful views, and the reporting of 'microaggressions' has been discouraged.
Microaggressions are perceived slights, often related to race, that are claimed to be a form of subtle discrimination.
In 2022, the Telegraph revealed that the drama school Lamda had set up an anonymous system students could use to accuse their teachers.
New guidance states that a system for reporting perceived offence 'could discourage open and lawful discussion of controversial topics'.
Stop guest speakers being barred
The Office for Students' advice for keeping within future free speech added that invited guest speakers should not be barred from campuses 'on the grounds of their ideas or opinions'.
The act of de-platforming – refusing to allow speakers a platform to be heard – has previously been used by activists to stifle free speech.
In 2023, efforts were made to stop a gender critical academic Prof Kathleen Stock from speaking at the Oxford Union.
Mr Ahmed said of the guidance, and the coming legal changes: 'The core mission of universities and colleges is the pursuit of knowledge.
'Free speech and academic freedom are fundamental to this purpose.
'Students need to know that they can freely share lawful views and opinions, and be prepared to hear a range of views as part of their studies. This includes things that they may find uncomfortable or shocking.
'It's essential that universities keep in mind that there is a very high bar for restricting lawful speech.'
The moves to address specific mechanisms used to stifle dissenting views have been welcomed by some as 'one of the most progressive pieces of guidance ever'.
'End to highly politicised appointment processes'
Ian Pace, professor of music, culture and society at the University of London and Secretary of the London Universities' Council for Academic Freedom, said: 'This will bring about a sea-change in academia if followed.
'An end to highly politicised appointment processes and promotions, by which political adherence supersedes scholarly considerations, and which have contributed to the current malaise.
'Compulsory EDI statements for promotion, commitments to uphold 'social justice', prohibitions of 'misgendering' are all out.
He added: 'This is one of the most progressive pieces of guidance of its type ever.'
He also welcomed measures to stamp out the interference of foreign governments in universities, with guidance stating that scholarship programs paid for by states such as China which demand conformity from students, should be banned.
Should apply to student unions
While the guidance makes clear what will be expected of universities in order to adhere to the law, there are concerns that some censorship will be un-policed.
Politics professor Eric Kaufman, who resigned from Birkbeck over political 'hostility' from those on campus, has said that there is limited power 'to compel reluctant universities and administrators to give up their cherished political projects'.
Lord Toby Young, founder of the Free Speech Union, said: 'The OfS's new guidance is reassuringly robust, but it's a great shame that the new free speech duties won't apply to student unions.
'We know from the Free Speech Union's case files that student unions are among the worst offenders when it comes to silencing dissenting voices on campus.'
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