A significant coalition of Cambridge University academics is intensifying pressure on the institution to immediately withdraw all investments from defense and arms manufacturing companies. This development precedes a critical University Council meeting scheduled for Monday to review a commissioned report on defense sector investments.
The controversy stems from mounting accusations against the university administration regarding what professors characterize as ‘maximal obfuscation’ concerning its £4.2 billion endowment fund. Senior faculty members report being unable to properly scrutinize these investments due to the university’s refusal to disclose specific company involvements.
Middle East Eye has obtained statements from 29 Cambridge academics demanding both transparency and complete divestment from arms manufacturers. The movement gained momentum following prolonged pro-Palestine student encampments in 2024, where protesters specifically demanded severed financial ties with Israel and defense contractors.
Professor Jason Scott-Warren, an English faculty member and University Council representative, criticized the administration’s investment strategy: ‘The university’s investment managers are employing the same obstruction tactics they used during fossil fuel divestment campaigns. They claim their ‘fund of funds’ model prevents disclosure of specific investments or basic ethical screening.’
Professor Christopher Burlinson of the English faculty expressed stronger condemnation: ‘I maintain the firm conviction that Cambridge University must eliminate all arms industry investments. These financial engagements directly fund and enable repression, genocide, and ethnic cleansing.’
The university’s endowment is managed by University of Cambridge Investment Management Limited (UCIM), which utilizes a complex ‘fund of funds’ structure that distributes investments across multiple sectors under external management. This opacity has become increasingly controversial since King’s College Cambridge became the first Oxbridge institution to divest from companies complicit in ‘the occupation of Ukraine and Palestinian territories’ last year.
The upcoming Council meeting, attended by Vice-Chancellor Deborah Prentice, college heads, and elected representatives, represents a pivotal moment for the divestment movement. Student protesters previously agreed to dismantle their encampment contingent on the university’s commitment to review defense industry linkages.