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As the Guardian reports today, the Conservative MP Chris Heaton-Harris has been accused of “McCarthyite” behaviour after writing to all universities asking them to declare what they are teaching their students about Brexit and to provide a list of teachers’ names.

Universities deplore ‘McCarthyism’ as MP demands list of tutors lecturing on Brexit Read more

The Universities and Colleges Union is now pushing for the higher education minister Jo Johnson to strongly condemn his Tory colleague’s letter. Sally Hunt, UCU’s general secretary, said:



Our society will suffer if politicians seek to police what universities can and cannot teach. This attempt by Chris Heaton-Harris to compile a hit list of professors has the acrid whiff of McCarthyism about it and Jo Johnson must disown it in the strongest terms. Our universities and colleges must lead the way in defending academic freedom, where received wisdom can be challenged and controversial ideas debated.

Few if any universities are likely to respond positively to the MP’s request for details of their teaching on Brexit, with many publicly saying they have no intention of complying.