UUK responds to Chinese government sanctions on UK academic

​The Chinese Foreign Ministry has announced sanctions on UK individuals and organisations. Dr Jo Smith Finley, an academic at Newcastle University, was among the individuals sanctioned.

A Universities UK spokesperson said: "UK universities have both a legal duty and a moral imperative to promote and support academic freedom, which is a fundamental feature of research and a shared value that underpins international cooperation. We, and all of our member institutions, fully support and reaffirm the rights of our academic community to pursue their work free from the threat of sanction by any government."

Notes

1. The announcement from the Chinese Foreign Ministry can be found on the Chinese Embassy website: http://www.chinese-embassy.org.uk/eng/zywl/t1864369.htm  
   

2. Universities UK (UUK) is the collective voice of 140 universities in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Its mission is to create the conditions for UK universities to be the best in the world; maximising their positive impact locally, nationally and globally. Universities UK acts on behalf of universities, represented by their heads of institution. Visit: www.universitiesuk.ac.uk.