A TERROR REPORT published this month condemns York University for harbouring BNP extremists, but a Nouse investigation has revealed that the evidence these claims are based on is questionable.

The report published by Professor Anthony Glees of Brunel University, When Students Turn to Terror, casts doubt over the university environment claiming that campuses across the UK are little more than a “breeding ground” for extremism.

Glees names York as a ‘hit’ for the British National Party, but when pressured by Nouse to support this with evidence absent from the report, he revealed he only had two sources to substantiate this claim.

One source was a Young BNP leaflet which was distributed at an anti-fees rally and named York as a target for the YBNP, amongst a substantial number of other universities. The other, a report from a “reliable source” that extreme anti-Jew material had been found on York University campus, and that it might be from “before your time”.

Glees said in defence of his claims of extremism at York: “Remember that I am the director of a centre for the study of intelligence and security issues. In this area of investigation, any ‘hit’ needs to be checked out.”

However, when questioned about how critically he treated the YBNP flyer, and whether he did not simply assume what they said was true, and not propaganda to bolster the middle class associations of the BNP, he declined to comment.

Remarking on the clear lack of substantiating evidence he said: “absence of evidence in this field is not necessarily evidence of absence.”

The report has sparked a national controversy for its anecdotal nature and patronising tone. It claims that: “Training young minds to be receptive to ideas is what universities do. Recruiting and exploiting young minds who have been opened to ideas is what extremists do”

Amidst fears that the sensational report could prompt a witch-hunt for extremists, the University have announced that there will be no investigation into BNP activity at York. A spokesperson for the University said: “With regard to the report, we are completely mystified and we can see no justification for the comments that were made.”

Refusing to fold on this issue, Glees said: “I sort of understand that particular universities, and particular students in those universities, may feel they are being disloyal to their prospective ‘alma mater’ [nourishing mother?] by saying: we have a problem which must be looked into.

“However, I think people who say that could not be more wrong.”

BY Simon Davis - NEWS EDITOR

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