Students at Middlesex University have been occupying the administration office on Trent Park campus since Tuesday in protest against the closure of the whole philosophy department, which comes after a series of university cuts in humanities across the country.

The university management last week announced that the university will close its entire philosophy department from September 2011. The decision means the end of both Middlesex's best performing research department and one of the largest and most important centres for continental and radical philosophy in the UK. Philosophy at Middlesex has consistently performed highly in research and teaching assessments, with 65% of its research activity judged as “world leading” or “internationally excellent” by the RAE in 2008. The department also run the largest MA programme in the UK and has an outstanding reputation, renowned worldwide as a hub for original, progressive thought.

Despite this, the dean of Arts and Humanities at Middlesex told philosophy staff that the department made "no measurable contribution" to the university. Furthermore, the decision was described as "purely financial" and part of a strategic transfer of resources to departments that will be able to attract higher revenues, such as business and management. The move represents a significant blow to the academic community in the UK and comes as part of a wave of cuts that has hit Sussex, King's and Hull.

For more details, see http://savemdxphil.wordpress.com and http://stormbreaking.blogspot.com.