Speakers:
Sir Patrick Vallance, former Government Chief Scientific Adviser
Professor Steven Cowley, Director, Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory
Dr Karen Hanghøj, Director, British Geological Survey
Dr Julian Braybrook, Director, National Laboratories at LGC, and UK Government Chemist
Chaired by: Rt Hon the Lord (David) Willetts FRS, Chair, Foundation for Science and Technology
The UK has a range of national laboratories, which have a number of different roles within the national science and technology ecosystem. These include the provision of large scale research facilities and related scientific expertise, supporting regulation and standards, curation of key scientific assets, protection of national infrastructure and the natural environment, and the provision of advice to government and regulators.
These different national research laboratories have different governance models, often driven by history rather than design, and are funded from a mixture of public and private funding, with public funding from both within and outside of the science budget. Recent reviews by both Sir Paul Nurse and Sir Patrick Vallance have considered the role of these facilities, and whether the UK is making the best use of them.
In this event, we will explore the breadth of national laboratories within the UK, and how any incoming government can make the best uses of them in the years ahead.
