Sheffield Hallam University halted Professor Laura Murphy's research into forced labour in China following direct threats from Chinese state security, according to lawyers representing the academic. The university has since apologized to Murphy and committed to supporting her work, while the UK government has made clear to Beijing that any attempt to intimidate individuals in the UK will not be tolerated.
Leigh Day Solicitors claim internal documents suggest the university banned Murphy's research in response to pressure from Chinese authorities. Murphy told BBC Radio 4's Today programme that in early April last year, her team began hearing about Chinese officials «intimidating and harassing and interrogating the staff that the university has in Beijing». She said state security «approached the staff who was doing student recruitment in Beijing and interrogated them, aggressively threatened them and demanded that the university stop my research and take it down from the website».
Government response
The Prime Minister's official spokesperson told reporters that foreign state intimidation is «absolutely unacceptable» and confirmed ministers raised the case with Beijing. A government spokesperson stated: «Any attempt by a foreign state to intimidate, harass or harm individuals in the UK will not be tolerated, and the Government has made this clear to Beijing after learning of this case. The Government has robust measures in place to prevent this activity, including updated powers and offences through the National Security Act.»
Sheffield Hallam University said its initial decision not to continue Murphy's research was «based on our understanding of a complex set of circumstances at the time, including being unable to secure the necessary professional indemnity insurance». The university emphasized the decision «was not based on commercial interest in China». In a statement, a spokesperson said: «Following a review, we have since approved Professor Murphy's latest research and are committed to supporting her to undertake and disseminate this important work.»
Murphy expressed concern about the vulnerability of UK universities to external pressure. Speaking to BBC Radio 4, she said: «The fact that the UK higher ed sector is so underfunded makes them vulnerable to the necessity, or the perceived necessity, at least, of recruiting international students. And so as long as we are underfunding our universities in this way, we're going to find that they're going to be prey to these kinds of attacks.» The Department for Education approached the university in October 2024 to offer support.
Note: This article was created with Artificial Intelligence (AI).
