TORY students at a London university have been accused of glorifying genocide after holding a debate to discuss the restoration of the British empire. 

Despite protests from several student groups, the debate by the King’s College London (KCL) Conservative Association, the largest Tory university society in the UK, went ahead last week. 

A poster of the event to discuss the motion: “That this house would reinstate the British empire” was still on show on the society’s Instagram page today. 

The subject was so extreme that even Tory students from other universities walked out of the event. 

Liberate KCL, a left-wing student movement calling for the decolonisation of higher education, said it was absolutely appalled that KCLSU, the college’s student union, had allowed the debate to take place. 

The group said it had written to union staff urging the event to be cancelled but that their concerns had been rejected on the grounds of free speech. 

Liberate KCL had argued that the motion was inherently racist and would cause harm to many students. 

“The atrocities committed under the empire are well documented,” Liberate KCL said in a statement. “This is not a topic that is up for debate. It glorifies genocide, ownership of people as property, exploitation and societal oppression.”

Liberate KCL member Lydia Bruce told the Morning Star: “We are absolutely appalled that the student union allowed this debate to go ahead. There is no attempt to foster an inclusive culture at King’s.”

A student union spokesperson said: “KCLSU holds, together with the university, a strong commitment to the values of freedom of expression. 

“As a diverse students’ union which values critical thinking and dialogue among our members, we are proud to facilitate a wide range of events, allowing open and uncensored debate from all sides, without fear of intimidation and within the framework of the law.” 

The KCL Conservative Association refused to comment. 

The event was initially due to take place at KCL, but was moved to University College London (UCL) in a last-minute venue change to avoid protests. 

The UCL Tory society, which co-hosted the event, said in a statement on Thursday evening that it did not support the motion and had pressed for it to be dropped.  But the motion was reinstated by KCL Tories, it said, prompting members from UCL, LSE and UOW’s Tory societies to stage a joint walkout.

Ms Bruce added: “The fact that even the UCL Conservative society walked out of that event … really signals that [KCL Conservative Association] has moved beyond even your standard right-wing political society. We consider them a far-right group on our campus and that has occurred because of the complicity of our student union.”

The KCL Conservative Association regularly invites high-profile Tory MPs and ministers to speak at the university. In November, Tory MP Jacob Rees-Mogg, known for his hard-line views including opposing gay marriage and abortion, was hosted by the society.