UK universities’ closeness to China poses risks, says Jo Johnson

Study led by former minister concludes dangers of closer collaboration are poorly understood

The former universities minister Jo Johnson has warned of the poorly understood" risks of increasingly close collaboration between UK universities and China.

A study led by Johnson identified a significant increase in funding from China and collaboration with Chinese researchers over the past two decades, including in sensitive areas for national security and economic competition - such as automation, telecommunications and materials science - or in disciplines where collaboration may threaten freedom of speech.