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4 March 2011

LSE boss quits over Libya links

Sir Howard Davies resigns and takes responsibility for the university's damaged reputation.

By Duncan Robinson

The director of the London School of Economics has resigned over the university’s links to Muammar Gaddafi’s regime in Libya.

Sir Horward Davies said: “I have concluded that it would be right for me to step down even though I know that this will cause difficulty for the institution I have come to love. The short point is that I am responsible for the school’s reputation, and that has suffered.”

Davies’ resignation came after reports emerged that the university had signed a deal worth £2.2m to train hundreds of young Libyans as the nation’s new elite. The university had previously been criticised for accepting a donation of £300,000 from a foundation run by Gadaffi’s son, who had also studied for an MSc and a PhD at the University.

Colonel Gaddafi spoke to staff and students at the university as recently as last December, as unrest in Egypt was beginning to flare up. The LSE audience are seen applauding the Libyan leader and laughing at his jokes in the video below.

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