New Co-Chair of the Prime Minister’s Council for Science and Technology

The Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, appointed Lord Browne of Madingley, FRS, FREng to the Council for Science and Technology (CST) as its new independent Co-Chair today.

The CST is the government’s highest-level advisory body on science and technology, advising on issues that cut across the full range of the government’s responsibilities.

Members of the council are leading figures in the science and technology community, including representation from academia and key high-tech businesses. Presidents from the national academies and the Chief Executive of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) participate as ex-officio members. Lord Browne will co-chair the council alongside the Government Chief Scientific Adviser, Sir Patrick Vallance.

The Government Chief Scientific Adviser, Sir Patrick Vallance, said:

Lord Browne brings with him a wealth of experience which will enable the council to continue to deliver high calibre advice on science and technology issues to the government. I look forward to working with him across a range of important issues.

I would also like to take this opportunity to thank Dame Nancy Rothwell who has provided exemplary leadership and invaluable contributions over her 10 years as independent Co-Chair of CST.

Lord Browne said:

The importance of science and engineering to human progress has never been more apparent. I am delighted to take on the co-chairmanship of the council, and look forward to working with its distinguished members to provide independent advice to the Prime Minister for the benefit of society.

Lord Browne was CEO of BP plc from 1995 to 2007. He is presently a Senior Adviser to General Atlantic on Climate and Net Zero, as well as Chairman of the Francis Crick Institute and Chairman of the Queen Elizabeth Prize for Engineering. He sits on the boards of IHS Markit, Pattern Energy and Spark Cognition. Lord Browne is Chairman of the Courtauld Institute of Art, a former Chairman of the Tate Galleries and a past President of the Royal Academy of Engineering.

The council was established in 1993 and has provided independent advice on a wide range of issues, from how to achieve net zero emissions by 2050 to how science and technology can support levelling up. The CST’s advice has contributed to high-profile government initiatives including the establishment of the Alan Turing Institute and the 100,000 Genomes Project.

The period of Lord Browne’s appointment is 3 years from 29 April 2021. It is not remunerated.

Notes to editors

1. The appointment was made via an open process run in accordance with the Office of the Commissioner for Public Appointments’ Code of Practice for Ministerial Appointments to Public Bodies.

2. Please see published CST advice to the Prime Minister.

3. The council’s current work programme includes:

• the contribution of science and technology to inform the government’s levelling up agenda
• science and technology for a sustainable health and social care system
• principles to strengthen the UK’s position as a science and technology superpower
• advice to inform the government’s innovation strategy

4. CST reports directly to the Prime Minister. Its terms of reference are to advise the Prime Minister and government on the implications of science and research, engineering and technology. CST works across the remits of individual departments.

Areas of advice include:

• the opportunities and risks that science, technology and disruptive innovation present
• using horizon scanning to highlight issues about:
  • research and science capability
  • innovation and the economy
  • health and quality of life within the UK
  • sustainable development and resilience
  • how science, engineering, technology and mathematics (STEM) can be developed and sustained in the UK; this can be through education and skills, and the promotion of international co-operation
  • what the government’s high-level priorities for science and technology should be

Membership

5. Members of the Council for Science and Technology are:

Chairs:

• Sir Patrick Vallance FRS, FMedSci, FRCP - Government Chief Scientific Adviser
• Lord Browne of Madingley, FRS, FREng, FGS – Senior Advisor on Climate and Net Zero, General Atlantic, Chairman of the Francis Crick Institute, Fellow and former President of the Royal Academy of Engineering Members

Members:

• Dr Christopher Bishop FREng, FRSE, FRS - Director of the Microsoft Research Lab
• Professor Julia Black CBE, FBA - Strategic Director of Innovation and Professor of Law, London School of Economics and Political Science
• Professor Philip Bond BSc, DEA, FIMA, FInstP - Professor of Creativity and Innovation at the University of Manchester, Visiting Fellow at the Oxford Centre for Industrial and Applied Mathematics and Visiting Professor in Engineering Mathematics and Computer Science at the University of Bristol
• Professor Muffy Calder OBE, FREng, FRSE - Vice-Principal and Head of College of Science and Engineering, University of Glasgow
• Professor Sir David Cannadine FBA, FRSL, FSA, FRHistS - President of the British Academy (ex-officio member)
• Suranga Chandratillake FREng - General Partner at Balderton Capital
• Professor Jim Hall FREng, FICE - Professor of Climate and Environmental Risks, University of Oxford
• Professor Anne Johnson FMedSci - President of the Academy of Medical Sciences (ex-officio member)
• Saul Klein - Entrepreneur, Investor and Executive Fellow of Management Science and Operations and Strategy and Entrepreneurship, London Business School
• Professor Dame Ottoline Leyser DBE, FRS - Chief Executive, UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) (ex-officio member); Director of the Sainsbury Laboratory, University of Cambridge
• Professor Max Lu FAA, FTSE, FIChemE, FRSC - President and Vice-Chancellor of the University of Surrey
• Professor Jim McDonald FREng, FRSE - President of the Royal Academy of Engineering (ex-officio member) and Principal and Vice Chancellor of the University of Strathclyde
• Dervilla Mitchell CBE, FIEI, FREng - Director of Arup
• Professor Fiona Murray CBE - Associate Dean for Innovation and Professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Management
• Professor Paul Newman FREng, FIEEE, FIET - Director of the Oxford Robotics Institute and BP Professor of Information Engineering, University of Oxford
• Professor Adrian Smith FRS - President of the Royal Society (ex-officio member)
• Professor Brooke Rogers OBE, FRSA, FHEA - Professor of Behavioural Science and Security and Deputy Head of Department in the Department of War Studies at King’s College London
• Paul Stein FREng, FRAS, FIET - Chief Technology Officer, Rolls-Royce plc
• Lord Stern of Brentford - Chair of the Grantham Research Institute at the London School of Economics

‘Ex-officio members’ are people who become members automatically because they hold a particular office.

Observers:

• Jo Shanmugalingam - Director General, Industrial Strategy, Science and Innovation at the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS)
• Charles Roxburgh - Second Permanent Secretary at HM Treasury