Question to the Department for Education:

To ask His Majesty's Government, in regard to the King's College London report The China question: managing risks and maximising benefits from partnership in higher education and research, published in March 2021, what action they have taken to reduce risks to intellectual property, academic freedom and financial stability; and what plans they have to improve management of those risks.

We must distinguish between allegations of foreign interference and the positive impact that partnership and students from China bring to our higher education (HE) sector, economy and society as a whole.

HE providers are autonomous bodies, independent of government, and we expect the sector to be alert to security risks when collaborating with international partners, ensuring their compliance with relevant legislation and regulations.

Providers must also continue to make the appropriate financial decisions to ensure their long term sustainability, with the Office for Students (OfS) monitoring the risk of over reliance on overseas income at a sector level.

The department commenced strengthened duties on providers and on the OfS in relation to free speech and academic freedom. These duties have been in effect since 1 August 2025, and the Office for Students has also issued extensive guidance to HE providers on what they should do to ensure they effectively protect and promote free speech and academic freedom as per these duties.

The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology provides robust support to the UK's research sector on managing the risks of collaboration, including tailored advice from the Research Collaboration Advice Team, and the National Protective Security Authority and National Cyber Security Centre’s ‘Trusted Research’ guidance.