Lords question Government’s Chief Scientific Adviser
8 November 2011
Professor Sir John Beddington, the Government's Chief Scientific Adviser (GCSA), is to appear before the Lords Science and Technology Committee on Tuesday 8 November, to give evidence to the Committee's short inquiry into the role of Chief Scientific Advisers (CSAs).
- Parliament TV: The Role of Chief Scientific Advisers
- Inquiry: Chief Scientific Advisers
- Lords Science and Technology Committee
Background
Sir John was appointed as GCSA on 1 January 2008. Since being in post, he has led on providing scientific advice to Government during the 2009 swine flu outbreak and the 2010 volcanic ash incident. The GCSA has also been responsible for increasing the scientific capacity across Whitehall by encouraging all major government departments to recruit a CSA.
Issues
The committee is expected to explore issues such as:
- how the performance of CSAs should be measured
- what role the GCSA plays in ensuring that departmental CSAs perform effectively
- how CSAs provide independent challenge and ensure that policies are evidence-based.
The evidence session will take place at 11.35 am in Committee Room 4 of the House of Lords.