Policy debate - Do we need more scientists in Parliament?
Start/Finish date: 29th November 2012 18:15 - 21:00 (refreshments served from 18:15 for a 19:00 start)
Location: Charles Darwin House, 12 Roger Street, London, WC1N 2JU
Member Price: £0.00
Non-Member Price: £0.00
Event type: Open to all
Event Summary
A free public debate held at the Society of Biology on 'Do we need more scientists in Parliament?'.
Event description
***The event is full but you can still follow it on twitter using the hashtag #policylates and tweet in your own questions from 7pm***
The panel debate will look what scientists can bring to Parliament and will question 'Do we need more scientists in Parliament?'
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 debate, a podcast of the event 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.
This event is free and open to all to attend, but delegates must pre–register to guarantee admittance.
The panellists are:
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)
The debate will be chaired by Chi Onwurah MP, Shadow Minister for Innovation & Science.
REGISTRATION:
**THIS EVENT IS NOW FULL BUT A WAITING LIST IS IN OPERATION** If you would like to be added to the waiting list then please email zoemartin@societyofbiology.org
VOTE NOW
We are collecting votes on the question prior to the event. Please cast your vote by using the poll on the right hand side of this page.
Listen to a podcast about the debate, read our blog, join in the discussion on LinkedIn and tweet with the #policylates hashtag.
Contact
Zoe Martin
Email: zoemartin@societyofbiology.org
Telephone: 0207 685 2564
Membership
Be part of an organisation that includes some of the world's leading bioscientists.
Newsletter
