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- Oct 21, 2019
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INTELLIGENCE chiefs have warned British universities about their reliance on Chinese students and funding, as fears grow over state theft of research and intellectual property from campuses.
At the same time they have urged chancellors to ensure that research and funding projects with Beijing do not compromise academic freedom. The warnings from MI5 and GCHQ come as universities have seen an unprecedented rise in the number of Chinese students attending their courses. Over the past decade their numbers have doubled and currently stand at 106,000, with Manchester, Liverpool and University College London each boasting 5,000 Chinese intakes.
In that time it is estimated that 500 Chinese military scientists have attended lectures and study programmes at UK universities.
They include some who have have worked on sensitive technologies inked to jet aircraft, supercomputers, missiles and even microscopically thin film that could be used to disguise tanks and ships.
Addressing universities the intelligence agencies said: “Hostile state actors are targeting UK universities to steal personal data, research data and intellectual property, and this could be used for their own military, commercial and authoritarian interests.
“Individual researchers may be targeted by a hostile state actor, but equally you may also be targeted by an academic institution to undertake research which is of strategic benefit to that country.”
With postgraduates paying up to £50,000 a year in fees, the Chinese market is a very profitable one for UK higher learning institutions, desperate to secure funding for their research and courses.
Critics argue that this leaves university chancellors open to influence and interference from Beijing.
In particular critics claim that universities reliant on Chinese funding have been pressured to censor debate on subjects such as democracy in Hong Kong and the status of Tibet and Taiwan by Chinese state officials.
Lord Patten, the former Tory MP and the last governor of Hong Kong, told the foreign affairs committee in Parliament how China’s ambassador tried to get Oxford University to cancel a talk by the Dalai Lama, when he was the Vice Chancellor of Oxford.
The Dalai Lama is Tibet’s foremost spiritual leader, but is not recognised by China as such and lives in exile.
He said: “The Buddhist Society in Oxford invited the Dalai Lama to come and speak.
“Within 48 hours I had the then Chinese ambassador on the phone saying, ‘This is a disgraceful insult to the People’s Republic of China,’ and so on.
“I said, ‘But this is a university, they are students. They invite whoever they want.’
“She said, ‘Well, what do we do about it?’ I said, ‘Well, I am sure your Chinese students will do what any students will do if they do not like the Dalai Lama’.”
His fears come at a time when increasing numbers of Hong Kong students at UK universities have complained of being intimidated by mainland Chinese students.
Hong Kong students at Birmingham said they were recently photographed playing tennis by Chinese students, and fear these images may have been shared on social media so as to reveal their identities.
A third-year student, 21, said: “We don’t know what they’re doing with the photos or what they will do to us.
“It’s really unnerving. We now try to be accompanied wherever possible.”
At the same time they have urged chancellors to ensure that research and funding projects with Beijing do not compromise academic freedom. The warnings from MI5 and GCHQ come as universities have seen an unprecedented rise in the number of Chinese students attending their courses. Over the past decade their numbers have doubled and currently stand at 106,000, with Manchester, Liverpool and University College London each boasting 5,000 Chinese intakes.
In that time it is estimated that 500 Chinese military scientists have attended lectures and study programmes at UK universities.
They include some who have have worked on sensitive technologies inked to jet aircraft, supercomputers, missiles and even microscopically thin film that could be used to disguise tanks and ships.
Addressing universities the intelligence agencies said: “Hostile state actors are targeting UK universities to steal personal data, research data and intellectual property, and this could be used for their own military, commercial and authoritarian interests.
“Individual researchers may be targeted by a hostile state actor, but equally you may also be targeted by an academic institution to undertake research which is of strategic benefit to that country.”
With postgraduates paying up to £50,000 a year in fees, the Chinese market is a very profitable one for UK higher learning institutions, desperate to secure funding for their research and courses.
Critics argue that this leaves university chancellors open to influence and interference from Beijing.
In particular critics claim that universities reliant on Chinese funding have been pressured to censor debate on subjects such as democracy in Hong Kong and the status of Tibet and Taiwan by Chinese state officials.
Lord Patten, the former Tory MP and the last governor of Hong Kong, told the foreign affairs committee in Parliament how China’s ambassador tried to get Oxford University to cancel a talk by the Dalai Lama, when he was the Vice Chancellor of Oxford.
The Dalai Lama is Tibet’s foremost spiritual leader, but is not recognised by China as such and lives in exile.
He said: “The Buddhist Society in Oxford invited the Dalai Lama to come and speak.
“Within 48 hours I had the then Chinese ambassador on the phone saying, ‘This is a disgraceful insult to the People’s Republic of China,’ and so on.
“I said, ‘But this is a university, they are students. They invite whoever they want.’
“She said, ‘Well, what do we do about it?’ I said, ‘Well, I am sure your Chinese students will do what any students will do if they do not like the Dalai Lama’.”
His fears come at a time when increasing numbers of Hong Kong students at UK universities have complained of being intimidated by mainland Chinese students.
Hong Kong students at Birmingham said they were recently photographed playing tennis by Chinese students, and fear these images may have been shared on social media so as to reveal their identities.
A third-year student, 21, said: “We don’t know what they’re doing with the photos or what they will do to us.
“It’s really unnerving. We now try to be accompanied wherever possible.”
