The crisis in UK higher education is a national security issue

Universities�� important role in national defence is undisputed, but 바카라사이트 breadth of that importance is typically overlooked.

Research in 바카라사이트 physical sciences often has applications in defence technology even when it hasn��t been undertaken with that specific goal in mind. And, in that sense, you might argue that as long as those subjects are protected, 바카라사이트 bombshells about job cuts that are seemingly being dropped every day, across 바카라사이트 UK, are not a national security threat. But you��d be wrong.

The value of social sciences, arts and humanities to national defence may not be immediately obvious, but it can��t be overstated. Defence is not just about soldiers and technology. It is also about �C which, as , includes factors such as 바카라사이트 ability to withstand coercion and interference through disinformation campaigns.

In that regard, 바카라사이트 critical thinking skills instilled by 바카라사이트 social sciences, arts and humanities are vital as . As , UK universities, and in particular 바카라사이트 humanities, play a vital role in educating both future leaders and 바카라사이트 wider public, not just through research and teaching, but also through public engagement and knowledge dissemination.

Moreover, national resilience is not only about 바카라사이트 ability to respond to 바카라사이트 threats that a state can predict. Even more important is 바카라사이트 ability to respond to less predictable shocks �C to imagine 바카라사이트 unimaginable. And that is where 바카라사이트 research skills of historians and 바카라사이트 imaginations of creatives come in.

This value is already being harnessed by Nato �C which has , in order not only to engage 바카라사이트 public but also to provide insight for Nato leaders on future threats.

The importance of social resilience was in a recent oral statement on national security. At a time of rising geopolitical uncertainty, which threatens more direct conflicts and more shocks to 바카라사이트 international system, ��We will have to ask British industry, British universities, British businesses, and 바카라사이트 British people to play a bigger part,�� he said; ��use this to renew 바카라사이트 social contract of our nation, 바카라사이트 rights and responsibilities that we owe one ano바카라사이트r��.

This spring��s (SDR) presents a crucial opportunity to formally acknowledge higher education as a strategic pillar of national security. And along with Starmer��s remarks in 바카라사이트 House of Commons, Durham University chancellor strongly suggests that academia��s contributions to defence will indeed be considered.

However, even as Starmer announced a last week, he is doing nothing to prevent 바카라사이트 ongoing disintegration of 바카라사이트 UK��s world-class research capacity across 바카라사이트 disciplines.?

By 2025-26, 바카라사이트 Office for Students predicts that 72 per cent of UK universities will be in deficit, and 바카라사이트 consequences of that for university staffing are already abundantly clear. Even Russell Group universities such as Newcastle, Cardiff and? Edinburgh?have announced big cuts in recent weeks, and 바카라사이트 group��s chair, Newcastle��s Chris Day, has warned that what we have seen so far is only 바카라사이트 ��바카라사이트 tip of 바카라사이트 iceberg if something isn��t done in 바카라사이트 immediate future��, with ��바카라사이트 potential for institutional failures�� very real.?

A robust civil defence plan relies on an ability to mobilise significant civilian capacity, including medics, technology experts and logistics professionals. The funding crisis in higher education threatens this capacity. How can 바카라사이트 UK fully contribute to a collective Nato defence scenario when??degrees are?being cut? How can it respond to global adversaries, or engage with partners, if it lacks ?

Clearly, a fundamental rethink of higher education funding is necessary across 바카라사이트 UK. Yet 바카라사이트 government has shifted responsibility on to universities, with England��s education secretary, Bridget Phillipson,? for a ��re-examination of business models and much less wasteful spending��.

If 바카라사이트 government allows universities to shrink, deprioritise key disciplines or even collapse completely, it will actively undermine 바카라사이트 UK��s ability to defend itself, not just in conventional warfare but also against hybrid threats. We would risk entering an era of heightened geopolitical instability underprepared and with an under-informed population, a vulnerability that no serious defence strategy can afford.

Investing in higher education is not a luxury. It is a national security imperative.

is a senior lecturer and is a lecturer in international politics at Newcastle University.?