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Professor-editor quits over tobacco gift 

"The company wants something -- and thinks that giving money to Nottingham University is a good bargain for getting it," he said. "That something is, I suggest, respectability -- or the hope of a place in heaven after a lifetime of evil."

By taking funds from the tobacco industry, the university "debases itself. It offers the industry -- at a cheap price -- a respectability it doesn't deserve," he said.

The university decided to keep the money anyway, despite 84 percent of nays from 1,075 readers who voted May 4 to 10. Some 54 voted that Dr. Smith should step down in such a case. . .

In his resignation letter, Dr. Smith said Campbell's comments "give the impression ... that it was all right for the university to accept the (BAT) money so long as it was spent in a part of the university that received no funding from the (Cancer Research) Campaign."

"In fact," he said, "the campaign makes clear that it does not approve of the acceptance of the money and that it thinks that you have breached the protocol that it agreed with the Universities U.K."

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UK Journal Editor Quits Teaching After Web Vote 

In what is thought to be the first online vote of its kind, BMJ readers from countries around the globe voiced their opinions on whether Nottingham University should return the money to BAT and whether Smith should resign if it did not.

``Clearly this is not a 'clean' source of funding for the university,'' said Dr. Mary Black, of UNICEFin Sarajevo, who voted for the university to return the money.

``Tobacco, like drugs and ammunition, is responsible for killing and maiming millions of people. No matter how humanitarian your project is or how ambitious your plans are, no ambitions are lawful that live on cruelty to mankind,'' said Dr. Syed Fayyaz Hussain, of University Hospital in London.

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Professor quits over tobacco firm's £3.8m gift to university 

Mr Smith had previously accused the university of offering the industry "at a cheap price a respectability it doesn't deserve", while Sir Colin defended the institution's right to obtain diverse sources of funding.

Clive Bates, director of the anti-smoking campaign ASH, said Mr Smith had "done the right thing". The university authorities seemed immune to argument. "There is no point in staying and fighting." . .

Philip Dalling, spokesman for the university, said it was sorry to lose Mr Smith's expertise. "The university decided to accept the money five months ago, and since then it has been ratified by the governing council and the senate. In all, around 400 people have been involved in that decision, and there were only about two critical comments."

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• Don quits university in protest at tobacco money 

University authorities last night expressed "regret" at Mr Smith's decision to step down but said there would be no going back on the decision to accept the money. Philip Dalling, head of public affairs at the university, said: "We are naturally sorry to lose his expertise. But we have decided to accept the money and it has been ratified by the 400 members of the governing council. It won't be reconsidered."

Cancer charities and medical bodies backed Mr Smith's resignation. The Cancer Research Campaign, which earlier this year ruled out raising funds for a £9m research laboratory at the university because of the donation, suggested more staff could follow.

Nottingham is regarded as a centre of excellence in the cancer field and has recently developed a drug for treating brain tumours. Its team is also testing drugs for ovarian, breast and bowel cancers.

Professor Gordon McVie, director general of the charity, said: "Accepting the tainted tobacco cash has backfired on the university and they are facing a huge exodus of good staff and sponsorship. How many more people need to resign before it gets the message that allowing the tobacco industry to buy respectability is unacceptable?"

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Professor resigns in tobacco protest 

The resignation is the latest in a series of protests against the university's decision to take the "tobacco money".

In December, a business student about to graduate from the university refused to accept a student of the year cash award, in protest against the acceptance of the funding from BAT.

Instead the student, Jon Rouse, gave the prize to the Cancer Research Campaign.

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University tobacco cash row leads to resignation 

In his letter of resignation to Vice Chancellor Sir Colin Campbell, Dr Smith, said: "This is a mistake and has damaged the university. If the university were to decide to return the money then I would be delighted to retract my resignation."

Dr Smith added that the reason the vote in favour of his resignation was so close was because "people were divided over whether I should dissociate myself from the university, or stay and argue my case."

University spokesman Philip Dalling said: "We are sorry to lose his expertise, but the university decided to accept the money five months ago. It has been ratified by the governing council and the senate."

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Editor resigns from post after tobacco gift 

In his letter of resignation to Sir Colin Campbell, the university’s vice chancellor, Dr Smith said: "The vote on whether or not I should resign was much closer [than the vote on returning the money] because people were divided over whether I should dissociate myself from the university or stay in position and argue my case.

"I am resigning both because I said that I would do what the BMJ’s readers said I should do and because I’ve argued so strongly that the university shouldn’t have taken this money."

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Data Supplement - Read Richard Smith's letter of resignation 

I’m writing with regret to resign my position as professor of medical journalism in the University of Nottingham. I’m doing this because the University has taken money from British American Tobacco to fund an International Centre for Corporate Social Responsibility. This is a serious mistake and has damaged the University. . .

You may be most interested in the two responses [1, 2] from the Cancer Research Campaign. You give the impression in your article that the Campaign said that it was all right for the University to accept the money so long as it was spent in a part of the University that received no funding from the Campaign. In fact, the Campaign makes clear that it does not approve of the acceptance of the money and that it thinks that you have breached the protocol that it agreed with Universities UK. Perhaps this will make you want to reconsider taking the money. . .

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• BMJ Editor dumps Nottingham University in reader uprising against British American Tobacco sponsorship 

ASH applauded the decision of Richard Smith – editor of the British Medical Journal - to resign from his post as professor of medical journalism at Nottingham University in protest at the University’s decision to accept £3.8 million sponsorship from British American Tobacco.. .

The condemnation of BAT and the university is unambiguous and richly deserved, and backed up by testimony of BMJ readers.  But ASH believes that though there are arguments both ways on resignation, the readers were right to support his resignation.  ASH Director Clive Bates said:

“We think he has done the right thing by pulling out.   The University establishment is not interested in the arguments or in defending its decision, and they made a feeble case for taking BAT’s money. The Vice-Chancellor simply repeats that it’s all a difference of opinion.” . .

“You couldn’t really make it up” said Bates, “BAT is one of the most irresponsible and anti-social companies in the world.  A university that is prepared to let them fund a centre in corporate social responsibility must be so blinded by greed that they are unable to recognise the absurdity and emptiness of their arguments. 

“Obviously it is hard to regard Nottingham as a seat of learning or centre of academic excellence when the people in running the place are aggressively impervious to the facts, analysis and argument that destroy the credibility of the decision to take money from BAT.”

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Don quits in protest at tobacco firm's gift 

THE editor of the British Medical Journal has resigned his post as a part-time professor at Nottingham University in protest at its decision to accept a £3.8 million donation from British American Tobacco.

The unpaid post was as a special professor of medical journalism. Richard Smith decided to quit after seeking the views of the journal’s readers.

A total of 1,075 votes were cast, with 84 per cent saying that the university should return the money; 54 per cent said that if it refused Dr Smith should resign.

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ASH/ Nottingham University 

Nottingham University shocked people when they took £3.8m from the tobacco firm, BAT, for an International Centre for Corporate Responsibility. The following documents developments in the campaign against the decision and the dissent and disbelief that the decision caused.

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• LETTERS: Rapid Responses for Data Supplement: Survey: should the editor resign? 

• Survey: should the editor resign? 

Final results, with 1075 people responding:

Tobacco donation provokes offer to resign 

The editor of the British Medical Journal has offered to quit his second job as a university professor if Internet voters tell him to do so.

He is prepared to leave his post as professor of medical journalism because the University of Nottingham accepted £3.8 million sterling from British American Tobacco.

The university "is besmirched" by accepting the money, according to Dr Richard Smith, who has asked people logging on to the BMJ website to vote on the issue. They are asked whether the university should give back the money, and whether Dr Smith should resign if it doesn't.

He will hand in his notice next week if the vote so dictates, he told The Irish Times. . . A result of the web vote should be available by the end of the week.

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BMJ readers to decide editor's fate over tobacco funding 

Tobacco is set to kill one billion people in the 21st century, yet Nottingham University has taken £3.8m from British American Tobacco (BAT) to fund an international centre for the study of corporate social responsibility. A debate in this week's BMJ discusses whether the university should return the money and whether the editor, Richard Smith, should resign as professor of medical journalism at the university if it doesn't. Readers will be asked to decide in a unique vote on bmj.com . .

By taking money from the tobacco industry, the University of Nottingham debases itself, argues Richard Smith, editor of the BMJ. He believes that the university has crossed a dangerous line, putting its reputation as a moral institution and highly respected research centre at risk.

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