The BA (British Association for the Advancement of Science) welcomes the Conservative Party's 'STEM and Society' Consultation Paper which was published today, as a stimulus to further discussion. In particular we support the emphasis the paper gives to the promotion of a positive and inspiring vision of what science can do for our society, to the importance of effective public engagement with science and to the support and recognition for scientists to carry out public engagement activities.
Roland Jackson, Chief Executive of the BA says: ‘Questions of the public perception of risk and of public trust are significant matters addressed in the report, although we are dubious of the validity of the concept of reducing the comparison of risks to a 'Richter Scale for Risk'. Questions of risk and trust can be tackled through public engagement, provided that any government, of whatever political persuasion, recognises that the process is two-way: policy advisors and government need to listen and respond openly to public interests and concerns as well as championing science, technology, engineering and mathematics.’
Any proposed institutional arrangements, such as a 'Science, Engineering and Society Agency', should have this two-way process at its core, and we believe that any such 'champion' of STEM would be more trusted if seen as independent of government rather than as a government agency.