What is the Welsh Government doing to ensure the right to protest and freedom of association is respected by universities, given the increased levels of protest in universities in Wales?
Higher education institutions have a duty to ensure freedom of speech and academic freedom, but they must carry out their functions in full recognition of their obligations under their Public Sector Equality Duty. While universities are autonomous, the Welsh Government expects them to have robust policies and procedures in place to ensure students and staff are safeguarded. We expect them to act swiftly to address any instances of hate crime, including racism.
Our Anti-racist Wales Action Plan includes an action for all Wales’ HE institutions to develop and adhere to a race equality charter. The goals and actions we have set out reflect our commitment to tackling racism and building race equality in the sector, building on the progress that institutions have made already. For example, HEFCW published Race Equality Monitoring Guidance with the key aim of supporting senior leaders to adopt a whole system approach to anti-racism and to ultimately improve ethnicity representation at senior levels across the sector.