The independent student newspaper of the University of Glasgow
Divestment consultation: 70 percent of those surveyed favour divestment from arms
Hillhead Review breaks down the responses to the University's student and staff divestment consultation earlier this academic year.
Over 70% of students and staff who submitted responses as part of the University’s investment consultation said that they would always exclude investments in defence firms.
The consultation on the University’s draft Socially Responsible Investment Policy (SRI) was held last semester following an agreement reached between the University and the activist group Glasgow Against Arms and Fossil Fuels (GAAF).
Roughly 1,900 students engaged with the consultation, representing 5% of the total student population.
Initially, only limited results of the survey of students and staff were published. Full disclosure was refused under "public interest" grounds only for the full results to later be published online following Freedom of Information requests submitted by Hillhead Review.
More broadly, 93% of signatories supported excluding investments in industries such as tobacco production, fossil fuels (which the University has already divested from), ‘controversial’ weapons manufacturing, and companies in serious breach of international treaties. Even when informed that divestment could impact financial returns for scholarships and bursaries, 89% still backed ethical investment exclusions.
As of 2023, the University held over £6.8 million in defence industry investments, including stocks in RTX Corporation (formerly Raytheon Technologies), Lockheed Martin, and BAE Systems.
GAAF have pledged to continue direct action in face of the University Court's decision
A student-led petition by GAAF calling for divestment from defence firms also received overwhelming backing in the consultation, with 85% of signatories in favour. Some staff members also supported the call, yet the University made no mention of the petition when justifying its decision.
Despite these results, last semester the University court voted for a new Socially Responsible Investment Policy which did not include divestment from arms companies. This decision was criticised by some groups on campus, including the SRC.
In a statement last November following the court meeting, the University acknowledged that most students and staff supported divestment from arms companies earning more than 10% of their revenue from defence contracts. However, the official communication omitted that the full results show that 1,658 actually supported complete divestment.
The Court justified its decision by citing advice from senior managers, who argued that divestment could be interpreted as “a signal that the University was opposed to the existence of the UK Defence sector” and could affect “ongoing research relationships with firms active in this area.”
In a statement to Hillhead Review, GAAF criticised the University’s decision, saying that the survey results “demonstrate the contempt that university management has for its students” and accusing them of an “undying commitment to the arms industry.”
The statement also condemned the University's ties with companies like Thales and BAE Systems, describing them as “deeply complicit in the genocide in Gaza.” GAAF called for “bolder action from students,” asserting that management “mistakenly believe they are unaccountable to staff and students.”
The SRC has been approached for comment.
Published 17 February 2025