Professor David Miller has been dismissed from the University of Bristol

By Roya Shahidi, Co-Deputy News Editor

Following a full investigation, the University has announced in a statement that the termination of his position will take immediate effect from today (1 October 2021).

Professor David Miller, former Sociology professor and a member of the School for Policy Studies, has been dismissed today by the University of Bristol.

This concludes the investigation following a backlash against comments he made regarding Israel and Jewish students at the University.

In the statement, the University of Bristol announced: ‘We have a duty of care to all students and the wider University community, in addition to a need to apply our own codes of conduct consistently and with integrity.’

‘Balancing those important considerations, and after careful deliberation, a disciplinary hearing found Professor Miller did not meet the standards of behaviour we expect from our staff and the University has concluded that Professor Miller’s employment should be terminated with immediate effect.’

The University added: ‘We recognise that these matters have caused deep concern for people on all sides of the debate, and that members of our community hold very different views from one another.’

‘Given the degree of public interest in this matter we hope our community will appreciate the care and attention with which the University must approach it. We cannot provide any further update on this process; in line with ACAS guidance, such internal processes should remain confidential.’

‘Professor Miller has a right of internal appeal which he may choose to exercise and nothing in this statement should be taken to prejudge that prospective process. On that basis, the University does not intend to make any further public comment at this time.’

Releasing a statement shortly after the University's publication of the news, the Union of Jewish Students and Bristol JSoc said that they were ‘delighted to see that a decision has finally been made’ by the University of Bristol.

In their joint statement, they said that it had been over two years since ‘the Jewish community raised their heads and their voices in protest at the harrassment, targeting, and vicious diatribe shared by Professor Miller with his students.’

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The All Party Parliamentary Group Against Antisemitism has said in a statement that ‘Bristol University's decision to sack David Miller should be welcomed by all decent people’.

The APPG stated that it ‘looks forward to discussing with Bristol how it will now make amends for its overly long and secretive process.’

Bristol West MP, Thangam Debbonaire, also tweeted on the ‘good news’, to thank all those ‘who have supported Jewish students’ and  ‘campaigned against anti-semitism’.

Featured image: Epigram

The full statement from the University of Bristol can be found HERE