Mick Hartley

From the Times:

Universities are undermining work by academics on puberty blockers and are failing to tackle harassment against those who hold gender-critical views, according to a new report.

A review led by Alice Sullivan, a professor of sociology at University College London, found that free speech and academic freedom have come “under attack” at UK universities.

It claims there is systemic suppression of free speech and academic research in universities, with academics bullied by co-ordinated campaigns. This is exacerbated by university red tape and management in thrall to activist groups, the review said.

Staff said they had had promotions blocked, been forced to work in a hostile culture and had self-censored because of treatment by colleagues….

Examples include well-known figures including Kathleen Stock and Jo Phoenix, but also James Caspian, whose research on detransitioning was blocked by Bath Spa University, which suggested he “rethink his thesis”. The university cited reputational concerns about its conclusions.

Another researcher was criticised for using the term “opposite sex” in their work, saying this is sexist, homophobic, transphobic and biologically incorrect.

The report heard evidence that abuse included comparing those who believe sex is binary to eugenicists, racists, colonialists or fascists.

It said: “Toxicity is generated by behaviours rather than by conflicting viewpoints as such. The staff involved in such behaviours constitute a small minority of university staff, yet the effects of tolerating and encouraging these behaviours are serious.”

The pathetic university authorities just didn't have the courage to confront the trans activists. Ideology won, while science and common sense lost out.

Another academic, Sallie Baxendale, experienced repeated rejection of her work on the impact of suppressing puberty on neuropsychological function, saying: “I have never encountered the kinds of concerns that some of the reviewers expressed in response to my review of puberty blockers. It wasn’t the methods they objected to, it was the actual findings.”

The report is here. Note, this is the second part of the Sullivan Review.

And here's commentary from Sullivan herself:

In the past decade, British academics have been attacked, vilified and ostracised simply for asserting that sex is real, binary and important. They include Kathleen Stock, compelled to resign from the University of Sussex after a sustained campaign of intimidation, and Michele Moore, abandoned by London South Bank University and forced to use a kitchen annexe for an office after shining a light on abuses at the Tavistock Clinic.

In a climate where people are frightened to express their views or even to ask questions, universities have a responsibility to act as bastions of critical analysis, where reasoned debate and the pursuit of knowledge thrive. This is not only about protecting individuals but also the integrity of scientific research and scholarship.

Instead, universities have, perhaps unwittingly, institutionalised behaviours which undermine free speech and inquiry. Equality, diversity and inclusion policies and networks have been turned against groups they are supposed to protect, including women and particularly lesbians….

Sex is a fundamental category in all research concerning humans, from biology to sociology. When certain facts become unspeakable, it doesn’t just hurt individuals, it compromises the integrity of scholarship. This weakens public trust in universities, science and scholarship, and ultimately undermines our democracy. At a time when higher education faces grave financial difficulties, my recommendations provide an opportunity for vice-chancellors to cut bureaucratic bloat and promote research integrity — a win-win for the sector.

Added:

Part II of the Sullivan report is out today. It contains details of what I and many others were put through in UK Universities to make pedestrian points about human biology and its medical and social impacts on well-being and interests. The point is not the harms to us,… https://t.co/Xgaq592Nyp

— Kathleen Stock (@Docstockk) July 2, 2025

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Full text:

The point is not the harms to us, personally – I for one am very glad I ended up on the right side of history, when the wrong side was sterilising minors and chopping sexual organs out, putting sex-offending men in women's prisons, and pushing women athletes out of competition. The point is the effect of this intensely hostile environment – the research dropped, the talks not given, the lips bitten and the things not said. With Office for Student's new guidance in place, let's hope these poisonous tactics get rooted out of our research institutions, along with (eventually) the senior academics who instigated and facilitated them.