Oxford U-turns in chancellor ‘wokeism’ row

Uh oh. The dreaming spires are once again caught up in controversy. Ministers have accused Oxford University of attempting to ‘stitch up’ its chancellor selection process to stop another white, male politician from taking the top job. Now, after a number of senior politicians urged the uni to rethink its plans, Oxford has finally thrown in the towel and U-turned. Talk about a row back…

The publication of chancellor election rules in March was met with a heated backlash after critics accused the university of attempting to ‘vet’ candidates it did not like. The guidance stated that senior staff would, as part of the chancellor’s election committee, consider all applications, before stating:

And, having due regard to the principles of equality and diversity and the approved role specification, determine which candidates are eligible to progress to the next stage of the election process.

The equality, diversity and inclusion police really do manage to infiltrate every part of public life, don’t they? Critics fumed that the rather peculiar wording of the rules was a move by the institution to install a more ‘modern’ candidate to a ceremonial role that has existed since the 13th century and been held by former male politicians since 1715.