Times letters: Shortage of scientific insight in government – The Times

Sir, Dame Kate Bingham is right that government contains too few scientists and often applies science poorly (“Britain ‘put at risk by civil service groupthink’ ”, news, and Thunderer, Nov 23). Her huge success with the Vaccine Task Force was a notable exception. The paucity of scientists in Whitehall is an old problem, with many put off by a culture that values generalists. Patrick Vallance, the chief scientific adviser, set out a sensible plan to tackle this before the pandemic; he deserves the backing and resources to do so.

Better decisions will require ministers with a stronger grasp of science, too. Improved training would be a good start but we also need to ask why so few scientists enter politics in the UK. The