Science (Hansard, 16 March 2004)

§ Lord Haskel
asked Her Majesty's Government: What action they are taking additionally in National Science Week to bring science to the attention of the public.

§ The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Trade and Industry (Lord Sainsbury of Turville)
My Lords, now in its 11th year, the National Science Week is a great success story and has done much to celebrate science and its importance to our lives. As well as providing funding to the British Association for the Advancement of Science to allow it to co-ordinate the week, the Government encourage the research councils to hold events during the week and organise events themselves, such as the meeting with the parliamentary Scientific Committee on Thursday morning, in Westminster Hall, on "The Government's Use of Science".

§ Lord Haskel
My Lords, I thank the Minister for that reply. Does the Minister share my concern about the declining number of people going into science and technology in recent years, together with the increasing concern about science? Does he agree with me that the almost 1,000 events being organised by the British Association and others during National Science Week is a helpful contribution towards reversing this worrying trend?

§ Lord Sainsbury of Turville
My Lords, I would like to join with my noble friend in congratulating the British Association for the Advancement of Science on its organisation of National Science Week. It does an amazingly good job. The fact that there are 1,000 events across the country, organised on a voluntary basis, is extremely impressive. I would, however, encourage him not to be too pessimistic about the number of young people going into science. Between 1994–95 and 2000–01 the numbers have increased. There is unfortunately a shift away from mathematics, physics and chemistry, which is worrying, but the total number has gone up. Equally, as for public opinion, the OST Wellcome Trust study, which was published in 2000, suggested that the great majority of people are very optimistic and enthusiastic about science, but concerned very specifically with particular technologies.

§ Lord Tanlaw
My Lords, can the Minister say how he will encourage young people to go into the space sciences—astronomy, astrophysics, astrobiology—when our subscription to the European Space Agency is very small? Will he commit himself, or commit the 137 Government, to taking part in Aurora I or Aurora 2 and commit this country to 30 years of space science and exploration of our near neighbours in space?

§ Lord Sainsbury of Turville
My Lords, we are very keen to encourage young people to go into space science. Recent events have shown that British space science is in very good health and we are involved in some of the most exciting projects taking place in space exploration. We are enthusiastic members of ESA and we are looking very carefully at the Aurora programme, which will be the next generation of space exploration. Providing that goes along the lines which we hope it will—namely, a heavy emphasis on robotic exploration rather than man in space—we will support it strongly.

§ Baroness Sharples
My Lords, can the noble Lord, Lord Sainsbury, tell us if there is a shortage of teachers in these subjects?

§ Lord Sainsbury of Turville
My Lords, there is concern about the quality and qualifications of teachers in some of these areas which is extremely worrying. It is an issue on which we are taking action. Unless we get the qualifications of the teachers right, we will not get the inspired teaching that we need in these subjects.

§ Baroness Sharp of Guildford
My Lords, is the Minister aware that among those actively participating in National Science Week are the hands-on science discovery centres set up around the country? Is he also aware that many of these centres, set up with lottery funding, are now finding it very difficult to meet costs? Can he tell us what discussions he has had with his colleagues in the Department for Education and Skills and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport about this issue and what the outcome of those discussions has been?

§ Lord Sainsbury of Turville
My Lords, for once I can do even better. We have not only had discussions but have actually taken action. There is a scheme to help some of those millennium centres with hard cash to help them to survive over the next few years, because there are very considerable difficulties. But we are ahead of you: we have taken some action.

§ Lord Jenkin of Roding
My Lords, is the Minister aware that the decision of his department to establish a science in society unit within the OST is very welcome, following as it does the report of the Select Committee of this House on science in society? Can he reassure me that the next version of the research assessment exercise will give proper weight to the importance of scientists conducting a dialogue with the public? Scientists should be trained in that activity, because that is often much the best way of getting the public to feel that they are being consulted and involved in what are sometimes quite frightening scientific advances.

§ Lord Sainsbury of Turville
No, my Lords; I cannot give that assurance because I do not think that that is 138 what we will do. The RAE has very specifically to be about scientific excellence. If we start putting in lots of other criteria, that simply muddies the water. The people who are on these committees are not there to judge scientific communication; they are there to judge scientific excellence. That is not to say that we should not give encouragement to scientists who get involved in science communication exercises with the public. Much more importantly, we take steps to have the proper public forums where these issues can be debated in front of the public, and they can see what is happening about regulation of these new technologies.