Uncertainty, Ignorance and Open Policy-Making

Achieving policy requires both sound evidence of practicability and public acceptance. The “evidence” on which policy makers have to take decisions is inevitably incomplete; “science” rarely decides the policy decision. Approaches to deal with the uncertainties and areas of ignorance include expert opinion, multi-disciplinary approaches and open dialogue with both specialists and the affected public. The importance of “non-specialist” knowledge in policy making is often only tacitly recognised and may be down-played by experts. Social scientists have an important role to play in helping both specialists and non specialists formulate and frame issues suitably for open discussion.  The skills needed by government science advisers go beyond mere expertise, especially with respect to the assessment and communication of risk.