THE SMITH INSTITUTE
SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY AND THE ECONOMY  

What is given below is a very brief summary of the points made by the speakers at these events: in every case the speeches were much richer and more extensive than we have space for in this newsletter. There were also many significant points raised by members of the audience in the subsequent discussion, which we have not picked up here. For a full report of the seminars, please see the publication when it goes up on the website.

Seminar 1: Wealth Creation

Rt. Hon Gordon Brown MP (Chancellor of the Exchequer, HM Treasury) opened this seminar by outlining the crucial role that science and technological skills must play if Britain is to maintain its position in an increasingly competitive global marketplace. He outlined the Government’s ten year plan for investment in science and linked it to a need to nurture greater excitement in the population at large through education and information. Lord David Sainsbury (Parliamentary Under-Secretary, DTI) outlined the areas in which government has a role to play in advancing science and technology in Britain’s economy. These include funding basic R&D research, providing incentives to universities and colleges to engage in knowledge transfer activities and supporting pre-competitive applied research. Whereas private companies may well fund early research sub-optimally because of a fear that they cannot capture the full benefits of that research, an organisation such as the DTI’s strategy board can better coordinate such research. Professor Sir Christopher Evans CBE (Chairman, Merlin Biosciences Ltd) discussed the problems that surround the financing of Scientific Research in the UK. While Britain’s science base is on a par with the USA, we are losing the commercial opportunities that flow from British research to American product developers because of systemic and cultural problems in the capital markets. British investors do not seem as prepared to invest in research and development at the early stages. Sir Christopher argued for greater incentivisation of high risk investment in scientific research coupled with wider education in both the sciences and in enterprise as a means by which to address the disconnect between the City and the Scientific communities.

Seminar 2: The Environment

Dieter Helm ( New College, Oxford) opened this seminar by discussing the measures that will be necessary if the Government is to achieve its aims of reducing CO² emissions by 60% by 2050. Dr Helm argued for a single ‘energy agency’, rather than a department, that would coordinate resources and provide regular public reports on progress in each of the key areas of security of supply and CO² reduction. He argued for a close-knit alliance between political, economic and scientific communities in order that expertise can be focussed upon the long term aims. Baroness Susan Greenfield (Department of Pharmacology, University of Oxford) looked at the role that science and particularly the scientific community has to play in developing a wider understanding of the gravity of environmental issues. She argued that there is a divergence between the aims of politicians, scientists and the media that must be reconciled if the environmental agenda is to become central to policy. It is essential that scientists - the only ones with the knowledge and enthusiasm for their specific areas of enquiry – become better communicators, looking not only to their peers, but also to the public in general for support and criticism.

Seminar 3: Civil Society

Professor Sir David King (Chief Scientific Advisor, Office for Science and Technology, DTI) opened this seminar on the public perceptions of science and technology by discussing the crucial issue of how risk is represented to the public by Government. Alongside analysis of the level of risk that a scientific advance holds, there needs to be a rigorous understanding of how individuals balance the benefits and risks that they perceive in certain areas, for example risk aversion is much greater in relation to issues such as GM crops and vaccinations than it is in relation to technologies such as mobile telecommunications. Sir David discussed the importance of fair representation of risk and benefit in order to encourage individuals to balance and asses risk for themselves. Professor Vincent Lawton (Managing Director, MSD) drew upon Sir David’s remarks in order to illustrate the problem in relation to the R&D-based pharmaceuticals industry. The problems of transferring information to the public through trusted sources results in the dictation of public opinion by the prejudices of small groups and sections of the media. He highlighted the lack of training in clinical pharmacology within the medical profession as a barrier to the transfer of balanced risk information to the public at large and argued for greater cooperation between research, business, the medical profession and the public in the management and assessment of risk.

Seminar 4: Third World Development

Rt. Hon. Hilary Benn MP (Secretary of State, DfID) opened this seminar with a number of examples of the different ways in which science and technology has a major role in tackling the problems faced by many ‘third world’ countries. From the development of antibiotics and anti retro-viral drugs in the battle against HIV/Aids, through the development of new crop types, to the importance of communicating best clinical and social practice through the creation of antenatal groups to reduce infant mortalities, the findings and application of science and technology are essential tools in the fight against world poverty. Lord Robert May (President, Royal Society) welcomed the dual focus, on Africa and climate change, of Britain’s presidency of the G8. He then proceeded to outline the threats to sustainability posed by demographic trends across the world, pointing out that increased life expectancy and reduced child mortality means that science and technology will be crucial in tempering the effects of such population pressure, especially in the developing world, which is where the expansion is most apparent and the effects will be most keenly felt. Lord May argued that if science, technology and engineering are to achieve their potential impacts, the developing world must have the autonomous ability to set their own agenda as to how science and technology will be used, rather than simply accepting the dictates of the developed world’s companies and governments. He also stressed the importance of a holistic approach to education, investing not only in primary and secondary education in the Third World, but also in tertiary education, in order to improve the capacity of the countries to innovate and to grow new teachers and researchers.

Smith Institute July 2005