As reported in the October edition of the School newsletter, Dr Liberty Vittert has been accepted on to the Royal Society Pairing Scheme. She has been paired with Patrick Grady, MP for Glasgow North. Information about the scheme is detailed below in the following press release.

“Scientists will trade lab coats for legislation when they meet with parliamentarians and civil servants in Westminster, from Monday 28th November until Thursday 1st December 2016, as part of a unique pairing scheme run by the Royal Society - the UK’s national academy of science, with support from the Government Office for Science.

The scheme pairs scientists with parliamentarians and civil servants so that they can learn about each other’s worlds and explore how research findings can inform policy making.

The scientists taking part in the scheme will shadow a civil servant or parliamentarian between Monday 28th November and Thursday 1st December 2016. They will also attend seminars and panel discussions about how evidence is used in policy making and take part in a mock Select Committee.

The visit will provide scientists with a behind the scenes insight into how policy is formed and how they can share their expertise with policy makers. It will offer parliamentarians and civil servants the opportunity to investigate the science behind their decisions and enhance their access to scientific evidence.

Parliamentarians participating this year include three government ministers: Nicola Blackwood MP, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Public Health and Innovation; Sir Alan Duncan MP, Minister of State for Europe and the Americas at the Foreign & Commonwealth Office; and Rory Stewart MP, Minister of State for International Development. Six Shadow Ministers are also taking part in the scheme including Rachael Maskell MP, Shadow Secretary of State for the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and Clive Lewis MP, Shadow Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy.

Scientists taking part are drawn from universities across the UK and institutions such as the Francis Crick Institute, the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Natural History Museum and Rothamstead Research."

Further information about the Royal Society pairing scheme, as well as case studies, can be found at the following link: http://royalsociety.org/training/pairing-scheme.

First published: 30 November 2016

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