Oxford Vice Chancellor Louise Richardson: 'Let extremist groups preach at UK universities'

The new Vice-Chancellor has argued that students should engage critically with ideas, rather than be protected from them

Louise Richardson, new Vice-Chancellor at Oxford University (Getty)

Oxford University’s Vice Chancellor has argued that extremist groups should be allowed to preach on British campuses in the name of free speech, it has been reported.

Professor Louise Richardson, the incoming university head, has said that university students should learn to engage critically with and reject extremist ideas, rather than being protected from them.

She reportedly made the remarks in an interview with The Daily Telegraph, saying: “We need to expose our students to ideas that make them uncomfortable so that they can think about why it is that they feel uncomfortable and what it is about those ideas that they object to.

“And then to have the practice of framing a response and using reason to counter these objectionable ideas and to try and change the other person’s mind and to be open to having their own minds changed.”

She added: “That’s quite the opposite of the tendency towards safe spaces and I hope that universities will continue to defend the imperative of allowing even objectionable ideas to be spoken.”

When asked if she would extend this approach to groups such as Cage, a controversial group accused of preaching extremism, she said: “Provided that they can be countered, I think we should let them be heard. In that way we model to our students how you counter ideas you find objectionable.”

Six British universities are currently being investigated over allegations that they gave Cage a platform to speak to students unopposed about how they can avoid being deradicalised by government anti-terrorism programmes such as ‘prevent’.

Professor Richardson added that she had concerns that the ‘prevent’ could have the inadvertent effect of unnecessarily targeting Muslim students and making them feel unwelcome on campus.

She said: “I have real concerns about ‘prevent’. I absolutely share the objectives of the Government in introducing [the programme]. [But] I am concerned that whole groups of students may see themselves as being suspect.”

Professor Richardson, who was appointed this week, is Oxford University’s first ever female Vice-Chancellor.