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UK universities¡¯ campuses in China may have breached equality and free speech laws?because of?¡°pervasive¡± Chinese Communist Party (CCP) control, according to a new report.

Thinktank the China Strategic Risks Institute (CSRI) said it had uncovered evidence of ¡°large-scale¡± interference at 45 joint education institutes (JEIs) operated by UK universities across China.

Its ?said such practices could breach the UK¡¯s Equality Act and the Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Act, parts of which recently came into force.

Based on Chinese-language website records and Freedom of Information responses from UK universities, the report finds that the?Chinese Communist Party exerts ¡°pervasive propaganda, surveillance and censorship¡±?within these campuses.

According to the report, compulsory CCP ideology courses are integrated into degree programmes at several institutions.

At Queen Mary University of London¡¯s Engineering School in Xi¡¯an, a syllabus showed that ideology courses contribute 16 of 167.5 credits towards UK-awarded degrees.

At Ulster University¡¯s joint college in Shaanxi, courses such as ¡°Introduction to Xi Jinping¡¯s Socialist Thought¡± are mandatory.

CSRI also found that students were required to participate in CCP-led campaigns ¡°presented as extracurricular activities¡±.

Evidence suggested that?students were compelled to pledge allegiance to the CCP?and, in some cases, mobilised to support military research for the People¡¯s Liberation Army.

Surveillance was described as ¡°widespread¡± including incidents where senior management teams held meetings to discuss student and staff monitoring.

Student ¡°informants¡± and ¡°guidance officers¡± were reportedly tasked with ensuring political compliance.

CSRI said such surveillance extended to UK campuses, including ¡°overseas CCP branches¡± at UK universities hosting JEI students.

Instances of staff harassment were also detailed. At the University of Nottingham¡¯s Ningbo campus, a British academic was reportedly removed from a management post for criticising CCP policies, while another alleged discrimination and the cancellation of events?owing to political pressure.

The report warns that CCP officials ¡°review all course materials¡± at UK-China JEIs to ensure political compliance, and that unapproved content could carry criminal penalties in China.

It said UK universities were ¡°largely unaware¡± of the extent of CCP operations in their partnerships, and that Chinese-language materials were often translated in ways that concealed political content.

Tau Yang, CSRI research analyst and author of the report, said: ¡°It is time for universities to move beyond soundbites of equality and diversity and instead demonstrate genuine commitments to those principles within their international partnerships.

¡°Deferring to hostile interference by actors such as the Chinese Communist Party on grounds of business expediency directly undermines them.

¡°International students, in particular Chinese students, should not be treated merely as a revenue stream, but recognised as integral members of the UK higher education community whose rights must be equally and robustly protected.¡±

CSRI said?the findings raised ¡°serious legal implications¡±?under UK law, warning that universities¡¯ failure to protect academic freedom and equality in their overseas campuses could breach statutory duties and put students and staff at risk.

The Office for Students¡¯ director of free speech and academic freedom, Arif Ahmed, recently warned of the dangers of foreign states interfering in UK universities, and said he expected institutions to take such threats seriously.

CSRI¡¯s report urges the OfS to commission an independent review of the governance and quality standards of existing UK-China JEIs, establish clearer rules for transnational education in China, and expand its planned freedom of speech complaints scheme to include transnational education students and staff.

UK universities were also advised to increase transparency about CCP committees in their joint institutions, ensure consistency across English and Chinese communications, and replace CCP-authored ideological courses with ¡°rigorous, balanced academic modules¡±.

All the universities named in the report were contacted for comment.

tash.mosheim@timeshighereducation.com