Andy Burnham urges reflection after death of Cambridge professor Jason Arday

London, United Kingdom. British Prime Minister Andy Burnham called for reflection following the death of Jason Arday, a Black sociology professor who had resigned from the University of Cambridge after being accused of plagiarism.

Arday, 41, was found dead on Friday. Police said the death was unexpected but was not being treated as suspicious.

Call for reflection

“It’s a tragedy on so many levels, but particularly … for everybody who knew Jason, his family obviously, his friends,” Burnham told broadcasters.

“It’s not a moment for any rushing to judgement. It’s a moment for reflection, I would say, reflecting on how things came to this.”

Plagiarism allegation and resignation

Arday resigned on August 5 after a former Cambridge researcher accused him of plagiarism in his PhD thesis. He denied the allegation but acknowledged making mistakes.

Arday, who frequently appeared in British media, had also faced challenges to accounts of his childhood struggles with autism and to his sporting achievements, including a claim that he ran 30 marathons in 35 days.

His family said on Friday that he had been the victim of misinformation and harassment.

University investigation and debate

The University of Cambridge said this week, before Arday’s death, that it would investigate the circumstances of his appointment and his academic work.

The case prompted debate over the university’s handling of the allegations. Some critics argued that the university had been so keen to hire a Black academic that it did not sufficiently check Arday’s credentials and did not respond appropriately when the plagiarism claims emerged.

Paul Gilroy, a sociology professor at the University of London, was quoted by the Guardian on August 8 as saying that “the unthinking culture warriors” who supported Arday unconditionally shared responsibility with his racist critics for making life harder for Black academics and deepening problems in UK higher education.