The Cabinet Secretary is pleased to announce the appointment of Professor Dame Angela McLean DBE FRS as the new Government Chief Scientific Adviser (GCSA). Dame Angela, who is currently Chief Scientific Adviser for the Ministry of Defence, was selected by the Prime Minister following an open competition. Dame Angela will be the first woman to hold the role of GCSA and will take up the post on 1 April.
The role of the GCSA is to provide independent scientific advice to the Prime Minister and members of cabinet, advise the government on aspects of policy on science and technology and ensure and improve the quality and use of scientific evidence and advice in government.
The GCSA is also Head of the Government Science and Engineering Profession and is part of the executive team of the newly formed Department for Science, Innovation and Technology.
The Prime Minister Rishi Sunak welcomed the appointment and said:
Delivering improved public services, creating new jobs and growing our economy through cutting-edge industries can only be made possible by advances in science, technology and innovation.
I'm delighted that Dame Angela is taking on this role to advise the government on how we make this happen - building on Sir Patrick's instrumental work over the past five years, which included helping the country through some of our greatest challenges from the pandemic to climate change.
Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, Michelle Donelan said:
The UK is starting a hugely exciting new chapter in our future in scientific innovation and I congratulate Dame Angela McLean on her appointment as the new Government Chief Scientific Adviser.
Dame Angela is well respected across the science community and I hope this appointment will inspire more women and young girls to see STEM subjects as an exciting career choice.
I look forward to working with her to build on the immense work of Sir Patrick Vallance to ensure that the UK remains at the forefront of the science and technology revolution.
The Cabinet Secretary, Simon Case said:
This is an excellent appointment for the Civil Service, to a vital position for the government and the country. I congratulate Angela on her role and look forward to the contribution she will make in leading the science community across government.
I would also like to take this opportunity to thank Patrick for his outstanding contribution and commitment to public service, evident not only in the leading role he played during the Covid-19 Pandemic but also in the great strides he has made in improving scientific capability across government.
Commenting on her new role, Dame Angela said:
I am delighted to take on this role at such an important time in our country for Science Innovation and Technology. All of us in government are going to greatly miss Sir Patrick, and I look forward to working with colleagues to build on the work he has led during his time as GCSA.
My long-term mentor, the late Lord Robert May, held the post of GCSA between 1995 and 2000 and that personal connection adds a particular depth to my sense of honour in being asked to take on this role.
Biography - Professor Dame Angela McLean DBE FRS
Professor Dame Angela McLean DBE FRS has been the Chief Scientific Adviser for the Ministry of Defence since September 2019.
She is a Professor of Mathematical Biology in the Department of Zoology at Oxford University, and a Fellow of All Souls College. Her research interests lie in the use of mathematical models to aid our understanding of the evolution and spread of infectious agents.
She is also interested in the use of natural science evidence in formulating public policy and has co-developed the Oxford Martin School Restatements: an activity which restructures and presents the evidence underlying an issue of policy concern or controversy in a short, uncharged, intelligible form for non-technical audiences.
During the Covid-19 pandemic she regularly attended SAGE and co-chaired SPI-M-O, the sub-group of SAGE that prepared advice for government using epidemiology, data analysis and mathematical modelling. In those roles she played a substantial part in generating scientific advice for government on the management of the pandemic.
She established Mathematical Biology at the Biotechnology and Biological Science Research Council's Institute for Animal Health in 1994. Before this, Angela was a Royal Society Research Fellow at Oxford University and a Research Fellow at the Institut Pasteur in Paris.
As the Chief Scientific Adviser (CSA) to MOD, Dame Angela is its principal adviser on science and technology, with responsibility for directing research through the MOD's core S&T research portfolio.
In 2009 Angela was elected as a Fellow of the Royal Society. She has been awarded the Gabor Medal in 2011 and the Weldon Memorial Prize in 2018. She received her damehood in the 2018 Queen's Birthday Honours List.
