China Slams 'fictitious' Report On UK Universities

Beijing on Thursday criticised as "fictitious" a report by British politicians claiming there was "alarming evidence" of Chinese interference on university campuses.

The report, which was released on Tuesday, cited examples where Beijing-linked organisations appeared to suppress freedom of speech at institutions of higher education.

One academic told lawmakers he saw Confucius Institute officials confiscating papers which mentioned Taiwan at an academic conference.

Christopher Hughes, a professor at the London School of Economics, said he had seen Chinese students in the British capital engaged in activities to "undermine Hong Kong protesters".

"China has always adhered to a principle of non-interference in internal affairs," said Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Geng Shuang at a press briefing.

The UK lawmakers should "do more to ... advance China-UK relations, instead of making fictitious remarks and sowing discord", Geng added.

In Australia, public rallies and acts of solidarity with Hong Kong protesters have been staged at several campuses, angering some mainland Chinese students who have physically confronted protestors and torn down message boards.

Beijing does not appear to have tried to quiet the tensions, with consulates in Auckland and Brisbane praising the "spontaneous patriotism" of the students.

In July, Australian education minister Dan Tehan said the government was looking at whether deals between thirteen local universities and the Confucius Institute breached foreign interference laws.

It came after the Sydney Morning Herald published 11 of the 13 contracts between the Confucius Institute and Australian universities.

Four contracts featured clauses giving the organisation final say on "teaching quality" and stated activities must respect "cultural custom".

In return, the universities received minimum funding of A$100,000-A$150,000 and 3,000 Chinese books and other materials. (AFP)