Autumn 2004 SCIENCE IN PARLIAMENT Land Use and Management Obesity Exciting Science Industrial Biotechnology Minerals and Materials Underpinning Industry SCIENCE IN Science in Parliament has two main objectives: a) to inform the scientific and industrial communities PARLIAMENT of activities within Parliament of a scientific nature The Journal of the Parliamentary and Scientific Committee. and of the progress of relevant legislation; The Committee is an Associate Parliamentary Group b) to keep Members of Parliament abreast of members of both Houses of Parliament and British members of the European Parliament, representatives of scientific affairs. of scientific and technical institutions, industrial organisations and universities. Contents Autumn 2004 Volume 61 Number 4 Science and Innovation network – at work 2 Opinion by Bill Rammell MP Farewell to Chips? 3 Opinion by Dr Douglas Naysmith MP Biology IS the Future 4 Opinion by Catherine Joynson and Alan Malcolm Bolton Technical Innovation Centre Ltd 5 Dr Brian Iddon MP Sir Trevor Skeet 6 Obituary by Sir Ian Lloyd In this issue Bill Rammell’s Science and British Metrication 7 Innovation network spans the globe in search of Robin Paice partners for UK Ltd. We learn how obesity is the Land Use and Management 8 most important preventable cause of cancer, and Addresses to the P&SC by Lord Haskins and Tim Bennett the food industry is given three years to introduce Obesity and the Role of Government in Diet 12 voluntary controls or face regulation. Biology is Addresses to the P&SC by Derek Wanless, Professor Robert Pickard the Future for Catherine Joynson and Alan and Gaynor Bussell Malcolm who record a predominance of female students and Brian Iddon’s Bolton Technical Materials and Minerals 18 Innovation Centre brings young people closer to Dr Nuna Staniaszek, The Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining industry. Science Beyond Words 20 Novartis and The Daily Telegraph Visions of Science Photographic Awards The late Sir Trevor Skeet, 1918-2004, our Chairman from 1985-1988, promoted Third biotech generation targets industrial growth and sustainability scientifically informed government and Dr Martin Anthony 22 established the Parliamentary Office of Science The ECSITE-UK Science Centre Network 24 and Technology. John Durant Robin Paice insists the very British mess of partial Einstein Year is coming! 26 metrication cannot continue and must be resolved Dianne Stilwell, Institute of Physics by 2009. Lord Haskins and Tim Bennett Postcard from Malawi 27 respond, top-down and bottom-up, to the EU’s Dr Desmond Turner MP radical review of the Common Agricultural Policy. Science and the 10 Year Strategy 28 Derek Wanless, Robert Pickard and Gaynor The State of the Nation 2004 30 Bussell react to a tide of obesity before it swamps Robert Freer the NHS. Book Reviews 31 Nuna Staniaszek introduces Materials and Letters to the Editor 34 Minerals for our future prosperity while Novartis presents winning images in Science Beyond House of Commons Library 35 Words and Martin Anthony locates Industrial House of Lords Science and Technology Select Committee 36 Biotechnology at the core of the UK economy. House of Commons Select Committee on Science and Technology 37 John Durant’s Science Centre Network helps Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology 38 schools to upgrade the UK science base and inform the public on SET issues. Dianne Stilwell Debates and Selected Parliamentary Questions and Answers 40 reminds us that Einstein Year is coming in 2005. Digest of Parliamentary Debates, Questions and Answers 44 Des Turner posts us his views from Malawi and Euro-News 51 there is more, much more. European Union Digest 52 Dr Douglas Naysmith MP 2004 Volume Index 54 Chairman, Editorial Board, Science Directory 55 Science in Parliament Science Diary 64 ISSN 0263-6271 OPINION 6FLHQFHDQG,QQRYDWLRQ QHWZRUN²DWZRUN Bill Rammell MP Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office cience is crucial to addressing the The UK Government has made science The S&I network provides insights into human challenges of the future, and innovation one of its top priorities. science activity in host countries and Sparticularly global warming and Our 10-year investment plan for an assessment of opportunities and sustainable development. It plays an science – the Science and innovation risks for the UK. Our science officers ever more important part in the policy investment framework announced by work closely with their commercial and of governments, and especially in the Chancellor in July – will enable us public diplomacy colleagues and other international relations, as we work for to develop our ambitions for scientific stakeholders to project UK science, solutions to problems which affect all excellence, further create world class technology and enterprise, and to of us. research, increase business support for identify opportunities for future R&D, improve the skills base and Science and innovation are about our investment and collaboration. Three develop collaboration with partner world of the future. Science, by its major campaigns last year – DNA50, funders. nature, is a global endeavour, with Innovation UK in Japan and Think UK international collaboration helping to The international dimension is an in China – and “UK Science and extend our understanding of the world important component of that plan. Technology for a New World” in North around us. But more than that, science Focusing on the international America this year have helped to raise shapes our world, driving our dimension of science and technology is the UK’s profile, significantly boosting economic prosperity and social vital to enable the UK to position itself local awareness of our science development and providing some of as a leading knowledge economy. We strengths. A Year of Science in China the tools and solutions to tackle the want to promote the UK as the partner in 2005 will keep up the momentum global challenges of our common of choice for international there: and another campaign next year, future. collaboration, to build international UK-Singapore: Partners in Science, will research networks, to help improve our seek to encourage greater Singaporean Issues at the top of government priority setting through international engagement with the UK science base agendas around the world include benchmarking, to attract foreign and high-tech companies. global warming and climate change, investment through the strength of our the security of our energy supplies, We welcome the opportunity to engage science base, and to access high-tech poverty and food safety, bio-ethics, constructively with Parliament on overseas markets. sustainable development, ageing international science issues through the populations and rising healthcare costs, The Foreign and Commonwealth Office Parliamentary and Scientific Committee the management of disease, particularly (FCO) Science and Innovation (S&I) and the work of the Select Committees HIV/AIDS, and our safety and security. network has an important role to play in both Houses and through direct In all of these science can help find a in delivering that vision. This includes contacts between parliamentarians and common understanding of the informing the development of the UK’s members of the S&I network. With problems we face and the action which science policy within the international the appointment of two new officers in we must take to deal with them. context and promoting the UK as the Guangzhou next year the network will Science also provides a way to help partner of choice. It also includes have nearly tripled since 2001, greatly developing countries to increase their ensuring that science is fully integrated enhancing our ability to achieve our scientific capacity in order to find as a tool of foreign policy, helping to strategic priorities. I certainly want the solutions to their own problems and inform our decisions, build new FCO to develop a fruitful collaboration make the most of new partnerships and shape our world of with Parliament on the increasingly wide technologies. the 21st century. range of science issues in foreign policy. More information on the network is at www.fco.gov.uk/science. 2 Science in Parliament Vol 61 No 4 Autumn 2004 OPINION )DUHZHOOWR&KLSV" Dr Douglas Naysmith MP Dr Doug Naysmith is MP for Bristol North West. He is also Deputy Chairman of the Parliamentary and Scientific Committee and Chairman of the Editorial Board of Science in Parliament he recent Health Select salt. Today’s school lunch box will thing as unhealthy food – only Committee Report on Obesity often contain a bag of crisps, a large unhealthy diets – something most Tprovoked an almost chocolate bar and a can of fizzy drink people know can be justified in theory unprecedented press reaction. or orangeade – too much sugar, too but is a long way from how people’s Headlines like “Nanny can’t wait to much fat, too much salt and too many lives are lived. slap our chubby wrists”, “Big fat lies on energy-dense calories. The evidence Of course, diet is only part of the obesity [that] we swallow whole” and suggesting a role in this for advertising problem and only part of the answer. “Choking on the facts” may, is somewhat flaky on both sides, but it The other part is exercise. The state of inadvertently, have done the committee seems obvious to me that firms would Colorado in the US has an excellent a favour. While aiming to discredit the not spend huge sums on advertising if Public Health programme called report, these headlines and the articles it didn’t work. “Colorado on the Move” which even beneath them drew attention to it and On average, we eat 9.5 grams of salt manages to get Americans out of their helped to highlight the serious health per day, but there is expert evidence to cars and walking some of the time. problem facing the country.