Email reveals CUCA Chair invites speaker with ‘a documented history of racism and far-right ideology’, Tom Rowsell, unbeknownst to his committee.

The recent controversy surrounding the Cambridge University Conservative Association (CUCA) has once again put the spotlight on how fragile the spirit of open debate can be on university campuses, particularly when controversial figures are involved. 

On the 18th of January 2026, CUCA released their Term Card (a list of all events planned for Lent term) with Tom Rowsell listed as a speaker. CU Labour Club, responded immediately contextualising Rowsell’s views as far-right and their concerns over the topics of genealogical history and genetics that Rowsell speaks and writes on. After CULC’s post, the Term Card was deleted, Rowsell’s event cancelled alongside an apology from the Chairman.

A source close to CUCA, who wishes to remain unnamed, approached Per Capita Media to shed light on the internal tensions present in CUCA and make it clear that the decision to invite Rowsell was unilaterally taken by current CUCA Chairman Oscar Lingwood. This has been further substantiated by an email provided to Per Capita Media by a source in CUCA, which shows Lingwood contacted Rowsell asking him to speak on ‘culture, genetics and keeping in touch [with] one’s ancestry’, which appears to undermine his later explanatory public statement that accompanied the withdrawal of Rowsell’s invitation where he states ‘he has nothing in common with my values or our values as a society’.

The issue stems from CUCA Chairman Oscar Lingwood’s unilateral decision to invite self-touted Historian and Youtuber Tom Rowsell, whose work has previously been criticised for promoting far-right and discriminatory ideals, to the University of Cambridge for a speakers event. A source close to CUCA, who has requested to remain anonymous, provided this on-the-record account: ​​’Oscar made the decision to invite Tom Rowsell alone. He sent the invite personally. No other member of the committee even knew who Tom Rowsell was, much less that he was on the term card.’

The backlash was immediate and intense upon the term card’s circulation. The event faced swift retraction and cancellation amid widespread outrage not only amongst CUCA ranks but the entire student body. Cambridge University Labour Club released a statement almost immediately after CUCA’s original termcard was released (which later was removed), stating they were ‘disgusted’ that CUCA had ‘invited figures with a documented history of racism and far-right ideology’ to the University. Lingwood has since taken full responsibility publicly, putting out a statement on CUCA’s social media pages, and is noted by our source to be apologising individually to every committee member and expressing embarrassment over the implications, including the links to racial hatred and prejudice. He reportedly acknowledges it as a grievous error, despite there being evidence of familiarity with Rowsell’s publicly stated views and interests in ‘pagan heritage of Europe’, ‘english genealogy’ as well as culture and genetics, per Lingwood’s email.

An anonymous source close to CUCA provided the email sent to Rowsell from Lingwood on behalf of CUCA, despite the committee’s lack of awareness on the speaker or the invite.

The email highlights that Lingwood emphasised Rowsell’s views on ‘culture, genetics and the importance of keeping in touch [with] one’s ancestry’ in his invite, and used the collective ‘we’ without consultation with his committee, a fact highlighted by all parties close to CUCA who contacted Per Capita Media for comment. This contradicts the chairman’s public statement that Lingwood invited Rowsell purely for his ‘insight into religion and history’, when cancelling the event. Additionally, the invitation sent in August of 2025, was withdrawn the same evening the term card was released, in January of 2026, indicating that Lingwood’s decision to withdraw the invitation was associated with public outrage rather than concerns on the reception of Rowsell’s views at the time of invitation which he noted were of ‘particular interest’ in his invitation.

Since the publication of the term card and rescinded invitation, internal fissures within CUCA have proliferated, with Lingwood under significant scrutiny for his actions, not reflective of the CUCA’s public facing sentiment of moving on. While a sympathetic faction indubitably exists, the invitation itself reportedly drew near-universal condemnation from committee members. Resignation calls have surfaced, not only for Lingwood but extending to the entirety of the committee who have been implicated by Lingwood’s unilateral actions. Rowsell’s condemnation by CU Labour Club (CULC) came in the form of an almost immediate statement against the invite, who they condemned. This was coupled with a statement against the invitation of Jack Anderton, reported to insist he ‘is not a fascist’ and that ‘Reform represents a renewal of our country’. His invitation remains, and is due to speak later this month. Off the back of these developments, the committee’s fractures are understood and described to be deep and genuine, yet removal through internal pressure alone seems unlikely. 

Lingwood has withdrawn the invitation and publicly apologised for extending the invite; yet, this episode prompts reflection on student safety and inclusivity. Even a retracted invitation tied to fringe elements associated with radical determinism or eugenic thinking leaves campus members feeling disgruntled and unsafe, particularly amid emerging concerns of reform movements on campus and clearer swathes of extremism within broader national political sentiment, it challenges the notion of campuses as secure spaces for all. 

More broadly, the incident reflects broader concerns about extremism’s appeal among Generation Z, and its proliferation through social media. Concerns over the radicalisation of young men, such as through the content of Andrew Tate and Nick Fuentes, with the most recent UK government statistics on referrals to the Prevent scheme, that targets those with heightened risk of being susceptible to radicalisation, showing that 8,778 referrals were made between 2024-2025 with the highest number of referrals being of individuals from 11 to 15. Lingwood reached out to Rowsell through an email that can be found primarily on his YouTube page, which has over 250,000 subscribers, with some of the most successful videos being on ‘the origin and purpose of blue eyes’, historically associated with Aryan racial theory, and on genealogical history. While CUCA’s response to withdraw the invitation shows institutional rejection of such outreach, the fact that it occurred at all and that the Chairman still retains his seat despite internal pressure, underscores the need for greater vigilance to preserve genuine debate without inadvertently platforming harmful ideologies, even in a system ostensibly designed to allow dissonance without disrespect.

Both Oscar Lingwood and the CUCA committee were contacted for comment but did not respond.

Edited by Charlie Windle and Rares Cocilnau