The Cabinet Secretary is pleased to announce the appointment of
Professor Dame DBE FRS as the new
Government Chief Scientific Adviser (GCSA). Dame Angela,
who is currently Chief Scientific Adviser for the Ministry of
Defence, was selected by the Prime Minister following an open
competition. Dame Angela will be the first woman to hold the role
of GCSAand will take up
the post on 1 April.
The role of the GCSA is to provide
independent scientific advice to the Prime Minister and members
of cabinet, advise the government on aspects of policy on science
and technology and ensure and improve the quality and use of
scientific evidence and advice in government.
The GCSA
is also Head of the Government Science and Engineering Profession
and is part of the executive team of the newly formed Department
for Science, Innovation and Technology.
The Prime Minister welcomed the appointment and
said:
Delivering improved public services, creating new jobs and
growing our economy through cutting-edge industries can only be
made possible by advances in science, technology and innovation.
I’m delighted that Dame Angela is taking on this role to advise
the government on how we make this happen – building on Sir
Patrick’s instrumental work over the past five years, which
included helping the country through some of our greatest
challenges from the pandemic to climate change.
Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, said:
The UK is starting a hugely exciting new chapter in our future in
scientific innovation and I congratulate Dame on her appointment as the
new Government Chief Scientific Adviser.
Dame Angela is well respected across the science community and I
hope this appointment will inspire more women and young girls to
see STEM subjects as an exciting career choice.
I look forward to working with her to build on the immense work
of Sir to ensure that the UK
remains at the forefront of the science and technology
revolution.
The Cabinet Secretary, said:
This is an excellent appointment for the Civil Service, to a
vital position for the government and the country. I congratulate
Angela on her role and look forward to the contribution she will
make in leading the science community across government.
I would also like to take this opportunity to thank Patrick for
his outstanding contribution and commitment to public service,
evident not only in the leading role he played during the
Covid-19 Pandemic but also in the great strides he has made in
improving scientific capability across government.
Commenting on her new role, Dame Angela said:
I am delighted to take on this role at such an important time in
our country for Science Innovation and Technology. All of us in
government are going to greatly miss Sir Patrick, and I look
forward to working with colleagues to build on the work he has
led during his time as GCSA.
My long-term mentor, the late Lord Robert May, held the post of
GCSAbetween 1995 and
2000 and that personal connection adds a particular depth to my
sense of honour in being asked to take on this role.
Biography - Professor Dame DBE FRS
Professor Dame DBE FRS has been the Chief
Scientific Adviser for the Ministry of Defence since September
2019.
She is a Professor of Mathematical Biology in the Department of
Zoology at Oxford University, and a Fellow of All Souls College.
Her research interests lie in the use of mathematical models to
aid our understanding of the evolution and spread of infectious
agents.
She is also interested in the use of natural science evidence in
formulating public policy and has co-developed the Oxford Martin
School Restatements: an activity which restructures and presents
the evidence underlying an issue of policy concern or controversy
in a short, uncharged, intelligible form for non-technical
audiences.
During the Covid-19 pandemic she regularly attended SAGE and
co-chaired SPI-M-O, the sub-group of SAGE that prepared advice
for government using epidemiology, data analysis and mathematical
modelling. In those roles she played a substantial part in
generating scientific advice for government on the management of
the pandemic.
She established Mathematical Biology at the Biotechnology and
Biological Science Research Council’s Institute for Animal Health
in 1994. Before this, Angela was a Royal Society Research Fellow
at Oxford University and a Research Fellow at the Institut
Pasteur in Paris.
As the Chief Scientific Adviser (CSA) to MOD, Dame Angela is its
principal adviser on science and technology, with responsibility
for directing research through the MOD’s core S&T research
portfolio.
In 2009 Angela was elected as a Fellow of the Royal Society. She
has been awarded the Gabor Medal in 2011 and the Weldon Memorial
Prize in 2018. She received her damehood in the 2018 Queen’s
Birthday Honours List.
