Commission gets Chief Scientific Advisor

Yesterday (December 5) during the first Innovation Union Convention in Brussels, the appointement of Professor Anne Glover as the European Commission's first Chief Scientific Advisor (CSA) was announced. Prof. Glover will provide high-level and independent scientific advice in all stages of EU policy development and delivery. She will also provide advice directly to President Barroso and give regular updates on major scientific and technological developments.

Prior to this appointement Prof. Anne Glover (right) has served as CSA for the devolved Scottish government in Edinburgh since August 2006. She holds a Personal Chair in Molecular and Cell Biology at the University of Aberdeen, and has honorary positions at the Rowett and Macaulay Institutes. She is an elected Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh, a member of the Natural Environment Research Council, and a Fellow of the American Academy of Microbiology.

Most of Prof. Glover's academic career was spent at Aberdeen University where she had an active research group pursuing a variety of areas from microbial diversity to the development and application of biosensors for environmental monitoring and investigating how organisms respond to stress at the cellular level.

While announcing the appointment President Barroso praised Prof. Glover saying: "I believe her outstanding background and calibre will bring invaluable expertise to the Commission. She has a strong track record in leading the Scottish Science Advisory Committee which made her the standout candidate for this post."

Science for policy
The appointment of a CSA to the European Commission is a very welcome move and will hopefully lead to a strengthening of the scientific input to policy-making across the European Commission.

President Barroso announced his intention to appoint a CSA in September 2009. Prof. Anne Glover will report directly to the President with administrative support being provided by the Bureau of European Policy Advisors (BEPA).

The functions of the CSA are:

• To provide independent expert advice on any aspect of science, technology and innovation as requested by the President
• On request, to provide analysis and opinion on major policy proposals being submitted to the Commisson touching upon issues of science, technology and innovation; in particular the CSA will provide authoritative guidance on interpretation of scientific evidence in presence of uncertainty, and will be involved in strategic emergency planning
• To build relationships with high-level advisory groups (e.g. European Research Area Board), the scientific Committees of the Commission, the EU agencies (European Medicine Agency, European Food Safety Authority, the European Chemicals Agency and the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control), the European Group on Ethics in Science and New Technologies
• To build relationships with similar structures in Member States and other countries
• To advise on novel science, technology and innovation issues arising both in the context of the EU and internationally; to serve as an early warning conduct point on issues that might arise when scientific progress entails either opportunity or threat for the EU
• To communicate the scientific values on which specific Commission proposals are based in order to enhance public confidence in science and technology, and in general to promote European culture of science and technology widely within Europe and abroad