Oilseed rape
For many people, the most important moment in understanding the frailty of the role of science in policy was in 1996 when the link between BSE in cattle and CJD in humans was established. However research at the University of Lancaster showed that this was not a complete change in attitudes but more a watershed moment, as previous failures of prediction and risk assessment such as thalidomide, DDT and asbestos had already pre-conditioned public opinion. The political dimensions of public scepticism were then brought forcefully to bear when GM food was rejected at the supermarket shelves in 1999.
Recognition of the problem by official bodies began in 1998 with the publication of the Royal Commission on Environmental Pollution's 21st report Setting Environmental Standards which observed the role of public assent in ostensibly scientific policy-making by stating, "Values are an essential element in decisions about environmental policies and standards. People's environmental and social values are the outcome of informed reflection and debate", giving the lie to the idea that the science is 'rational' and the public are 'irrational'.
In 2000 the House of Lords Science and Technology Committee essentially agreed, saying that science was suffering a "crisis of trust" and that two-way dialogue, not education about science, was required. This dialogue "should be conducted in good faith" and "the role in the policy process should be clear from the start". Further they stated that "Direct dialogue with the public should move from being an optional add-on to science-based policymaking .....[to] become a normal and integral part of the policy process". The need for public dialogue on science and technology issues has become generally accepted wisdom but practical measures to make this meaningful are not evident.
