The ‘Yes’ campaign have won an overwhelming victory in the SRC’s divestment referendum.
The referendum asked students: “Should the University of Glasgow stop investing in companies that earn more than 10% of their revenue from the arms and defence industry?”, with 89.3% of those polled saying ‘Yes’, against a ‘No’ vote of 10.7%.
A total of 8,668 votes were cast for ‘Yes’ with 1,038 for ‘No.’
The turnout for the referendum was higher than usual for an SRC vote, with just over 19% of students submitting a ballot.
This is a significant development in what has been a live issue on campus for some time. This semester alone has seen the JMS sprayed with paint, buildings occupied, and now an encampment on library hill, all from students trying to put pressure on the University to divest from arms.
The situation has also escalated to the point where some students claim to be on hunger strike until the University “immediately divests from arms.”
Nontheless, the SRC was clear that the referendum was only indicative and the University remains adamant that they will not be revisiting the issue any time soon. At a meeting in November of last year, the University Court voted 14-7 to maintain investments in arms, a decision which provoked “outrage” from the SRC.
After the meeting, the University released a statement saying: “Court accepted the advice of senior managers that the University should not require fund managers to disinvest, firstly because this could be interpreted as a signal that the University was opposed to the existence of the UK defence sector and secondly in recognition of the University’s ongoing research relationships with a range of firms active in this area.
“The University is scheduled to re-tender one part of its fund management arrangements during 2025. Court will receive regular updates on this and related matters via the University’s Finance Committee.”
The University told Hillhead Review: “The University notes the result of the indicative student referendum. We will continue to engage with students and the SRC on divestment and will share the referendum result with Court.”
Leave a Reply