Climate Change Bill [HL]

I declare an interest as the current president of the Royal Society, and I would like to comment on the two amendments in which the society is explicitly mentioned. As the noble Lord, Lord Taylor, has emphasised, the authority and standing of the Climate Change Committee is crucial. That will depend on the perceived quality and independence of its members. In particular, it must contain some members with real clout in the sciences of climate, environment and energy, along with the associated technologies—the technologies for adaptation and for mitigation. The Royal Society is the UK’s main academy of sciences and it is routinely consulted by the Government on appointments to research councils and the like over the whole range of science and technology. Its involvement in proposing members of the committee would send a signal that the Government value independent input and expertise. I have two provisos. First, it would not be reasonable to expect that a body such as the Royal Society could actually appoint members; its role could solely be to make nominations, to be consulted and to advise. That is the current situation with respect to appointments to research councils and similar bodies where the Royal Society is consulted. Secondly, if just one scientific body were singled out as an interface with government in this context, I think that the Royal Society would be regarded as the most appropriate one. It spans the whole range of science and technology. However, its expertise is spread thin in some areas. Were the society to be entrusted with any special role, it should consult not only among its own fellowship but also with the Royal Academy of Engineering, relevant professional institutions and specialised societies. The motivation behind the amendment—that the Government should be obliged to draw on the best independent advice—would surely have the wide support of all of the scientific community, because the standing of the Climate Change Committee is a pre-requisite for achieving the Bill’s aims. But when the Bill comes back, the wording might perhaps spell out more explicitly that the national authorities should be obliged to seek and note the best independent advice, even if the society cannot be expected actually to make nominations itself.