How well did government evidence for Covid-19 policies serve society?
During the Covid-19 pandemic, unprecedented numbers of people engaged with evidence behind government policy. Many had to interpret and implement government decisions while making trade-offs with other priorities, like protecting children, cancer care provision or running businesses. \n\nBased on testimony from expert witnesses and the experiences of people from a broad range of sectors across the UK, Sense About Science\u2019s What Counts? inquiry is a major new study looking at what society needed to know and how well the UK government was able to respond. \n\nThe report\u2019s findings, including a NatCen survey of how the public engaged with government evidence, was presented Tracey Brown, Director of Sense about Science, followed by remarks from Greg Clark MP, Chair of the Science and Technology Committee, and a panel discussion with Paul Wilson, Policy Director at the Federation of Small Businesses.\n\nThe event was chaired by Tom Sasse, Associate Director at the Institute for Government. \n\nThe report What Counts? A scoping inquiry into how well the government\u2019s evidence for Covid-19 decisions served society is available for download on the Sense About Science website.\n\n#WhatCounts