A shocking new survey has revealed that more than a third of students believe Reform UK politicians should be banned from speaking at British universities.
Fresh data from the Higher Education Policy Institute (Hepi) has found that while 69 per cent of students said universities must never restrict free speech, swathes also backed bans on representatives from particular political parties.
According to the survey, 35 per cent of students would prevent Reform politicians from speaking on campus – a figure that remarkably included 41 per cent of those who had cast their ballot for the party in the last election.
Labour faced similar opposition, with 16 per cent of all respondents favouring a ban on the party’s representatives, rising to 23 per cent among those who voted Labour last year.
A mere 18 per cent of those surveyed believed all political parties should be allowed to address students at universities.
The survey also found that 38 per cent believed academics using “offensive material” in teaching should be sacked, whilst 64 per cent felt protecting minorities from discrimination could outweigh unlimited expression.
Reform UK Deputy Leader Richard Tice blasted the survey’s findings as “appalling” and called for financial penalties to be slapped on higher education institutions.
Mr Tice said: “British universities abandoned being centres of genuine learning, rigorous debate and intellectual challenge long ago, instead opting to become echo chambers of far-left indoctrination run by activist academics.”
Over one in three students believe Reform UK politicians should be banned from speaking at British universities
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He placed blame squarely on university higher-ups “for allowing this culture to fester in our institutions”.
“The Government must pull grant funding unless this is changed urgently,” the Reform UK deputy chief added.
Nick Hillman, Hepi’s director, said he was “shocked” at the level of opposition to Reform speakers, but also acknowledged the findings showed backing for efforts to safeguard free speech at universities.
Mr Hillman said: “I am shocked that more than one-in-three students support banning Reform UK from university campuses.
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Richard Tice blasted the survey’s findings as “appalling”
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GETTYJust 18 per cent of those surveyed believed all political parties should be allowed to address students
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“The best way to take down democratic political parties that you disagree with is surely through free, fair and fierce debate whether that is on campus or beyond.”
The think tank itself said: “The results show students’ views on free issues tend to be nuanced and they sometimes seem contradictory.
“In particular, while the principle of free speech has stronger support from students than in the past, so do specific bans.”
The survey comes after the Office for Students (OfS) was handed more powers to examine complaints from speakers, students and staff regarding free speech infringements.
The University of Sussex was forced to pay a £585,000 fine over a failure to uphold free speech
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In August 2025, the Government unveiled new rules which bound universities to actively support academic freedom and ensure students on campus can freely engage in discussions without fears over censorship.
The move also saw non-disclosure agreements intended to silence campus misconduct victims scrapped.
If a higher education institution is accused of suppressing free speech, the OfS has the authority to investigate and take action if necessary.
The University of Sussex was forced to pay a £585,000 fine over a failure to uphold free speech in March 2025.