Thursday 29 November 2012, from 18:15 to 21:00 (refreshments served from 18:15 for a 19:00 start) – Society of Biology, Charles Darwin House, 12 Roger Street, London WC1N 2JU

The UK Parliament’s 2010 intake contained just one MP who had worked as a research scientist before entering the House of Commons – Dr Julian Huppert. With science and technology playing increasingly prominent roles in society, it’s easy to see why some people are concerned by the lack of scientists in Parliament.

In this panel debate, we ask if the lack of scientists in Parliament really is a problem – or are scientists better off getting their message to Parliament through other channels?

A panel of key stakeholders from science and Parliament will discuss the issues surrounding scientific expertise in Parliament, before taking questions from the audience.

A wine reception will be held afterwards, where delegates will have the opportunity to discuss the issues informally. Following the event, a podcast of the debate will be made available.

This will be the first debate to take place as part of a Society of Biology #policylates series and is being organised in collaboration with Haralambos Dayantis of Imperial College.

Panel:

  • Dr Evan Harris – former Liberal Democrat MP for Oxford West and Abingdon, writer on science policy
  • Dr Phillip Lee MP – Conservative MP for Bracknell, member of Energy and Climate Change Select Committee and Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Environment Group
  • Dr Jennifer Rohn – Cell biologist, novellist and founder and Chair of Science is Vital
  • Dr Jack Stilgoe – Lecturer in Social Studies of Science, science and technology policy expert and blogger

Additional panellists and the Chair will be announced shortly.

Registration:

This event is free and open to all, but delegates must pre–register to guarantee admittance. Please register through the Society of Biology website.