CAMBRIDGE University tried to shut down a whistleblower who raised concerns about bullying and misogyny, fearing his disclosures could damage its reputation, an employment tribunal has found.

Professor Neil Wyn Evans, an astrophysics professor at the university’s Institute of Astronomy, brought the complaint after warning in a 2021 email that then-director Richard McMahon was “planning to make (a female colleague) unemployed, as part of a personal vendetta.”

He wrote: “There is a bad history of misogyny to female administrators at the top of the IoA. I am terrified of history repeating itself here.”

The tribunal upheld 11 of 14 complaints, finding a “clear pattern of trying to shut down” Prof Wyn Evans’ complaints “and to protect the university from any possible damage.”

It said “pre-determined outcomes appeared to have been rubber-stamped.”

Vice-chancellor Deborah Prentice was also criticised, with the panel rejecting her evidence about how a grievance response was drafted, saying it was “written solely by [the colleague] and then presented to the vice chancellor as a fait accompli.”

The case will proceed to a remedy hearing.

A Cambridge University spokesperson said it “acknowledged” the tribunal’s judgement and would “take time to reflect on the findings in detail.”