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Universities betray public trust by joining MoD ‘Battlefield Advantage’ alliance

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  • Post last modified:18 July 2026
Universities betray public trust by joining MoD ‘Battlefield Advantage’ alliance

A coalition of campaign groups has accused UK universities of quietly integrating themselves into the UK’s defence infrastructure after 35 institutions signed up to the Ministry of Defence’s Defence Universities Alliance (DUA). The Ministry of Defence says the alliance aims to: reorientate academia towards Defence and National Security. It wants to strengthen links between universities and the defence sector, and translate research into “battlefield advantage”. Campaigners say the move represents a significant shift in the role of higher education and has taken place without meaningful public debate. Among the founding members are: University of Oxford. University College London. King’s College London.…

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North of Ireland’s First Minister on the emerging ‘Celtic alliance’

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  • Post last modified:9 June 2026
North of Ireland’s First Minister on the emerging ‘Celtic alliance’

Michelle O’Neill doesn’t mince words: the first nationalist First Minister for the North of Ireland’s six counties sat down with Scottish paper the National. She had plenty to say about culture, reunification, Scottish independence, and the arrogance of Westminster. Politics trickles through culture Something huge is shifting in the North of Ireland. You can feel it in the music, with establishment-baiting Belfast hip-hop trio Kneecap packing out venues across the world. You can see it on TV as Derry Girls made the six counties a cultural export. And you can measure it in the polling: 63% of people in the North…

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Defence Universities Alliance condemned as a threat to academic freedom

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  • Post last modified:8 June 2026
Defence Universities Alliance condemned as a threat to academic freedom

A growing group of academics, students, trade unionists, education advocates, and civil society organisations across the UK has condemned the Ministry of Defence’s newly launched Defence Universities Alliance. They’re warning that the initiative represents a dangerous escalation in the militarisation of higher education. Demilitarise Education has released an official public statement opposing the Defence Universities Alliance. Ten organisations and groups across the UK have endorsed the statement, including: World Beyond War. Action on Armed Violence. Loughborough Action for Palestine. Stop the War. Boycott, Divest, Sanction Group – UCL. CND. People & Planet. University & College Workers for Palestine. Quakers in Britain.…

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