Expert joins panel advising Scottish Government

Roslin Director appointed to Scottish Scientific Advisory Council, to support work of national Chief Scientific Adviser.

The Director of the Roslin Institute has been appointed to a panel of experts which supports the Chief Scientific Adviser for Scotland’s work with ministers.  

Professor Bruce Whitelaw will bring expertise in animal biotechnology to the work of the Scottish Scientific Advisory Council (SSAC), Scotland’s highest level science advisory body.

Professor Whitelaw is joined as a newly appointed member of SSAC by his colleague Professor Lisa Boden, an expert in population medicine and veterinary public health from the Global Academy of Agriculture and Food Systems, which is also part of the Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies.

Other experts from across the University of Edinburgh are among 12 newly appointed members of the SSAC.

Independent experts

Members will serve for three years, providing independent advice, through the SSAC Chair, to the Chief Scientific Adviser Professor Julie Fitzpatrick.

Their efforts will inform policy development and delivery across all areas of the Scottish Government’s work.

The SSAC also supports the work of the Chief Scientist (Health), Professor Dame Anna Dominiczak, and the Chief Scientific Adviser for Environment, Natural Resources and Agriculture, Professor Mat Williams.

The Roslin Institute is also represented in the Scottish Government by Professor David Gally, who is Professor of Microbial Genetics and Chief Scientific Advisor at Food Standards Scotland.

Our new members and associates bring a wealth of expertise and experience to the SSAC, putting us in a strong position to provide expert science advice across a broad range of areas, adding value to the Scottish Government’s work.

Scientific knowledge and literacy is valuable in informing policy development, and I am very glad to add my experience to that of colleagues and scientists from around the country in supporting the work of the Scottish Government.

** The Roslin Institute receives strategic investment funding from the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council and it is part of the University of Edinburgh’s Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies. **

Related links

Scottish Science Advisory Council

_{Image credit: Paul Dodds}