PIU Updates
The PIU Update is our monthly newsletter featuring the latest news, publications, impacts, and events from the Policy Impact Unit. You can access the latest editions below.
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Read the Policy Impact February 2025 newsletter here.
2024
2023
Staffing
We were delighted to welcome Jennifer Reed as our new Policy Adviser. Jen is joining us from the Department of Education where she worked as a Senior Manager for Strategy & Policy.
Emily Gloinson has moved on to the Norwegian Mission to the United Nations in Rome – her replacement has been appointed, and is due to join in early February. Joe Matthews, Head of PIU, has moved on to take up a new role with Ofgem – recruitment for his replacement is underway.
Outcomes and Impacts
- Prof Paul Dalby (Future Targeted Healthcare Manufacturing Hub) gave evidence at an oral session for the House of Commons Health and Social Care Committee inquiry onFuture Cancer, on how the UK can be a global leader in the manufacturing of innovative cancer therapies like CAR-T; This was the result of a consultation response supported by PIU.
- Dr Feja Lesniewska (ICEC-MCM) gave oral evidence to the Scottish Net Zero, Energy and Transport Committee, as a result of a consultation response supported by PIU.
- ICEC-MCM was requested by Defra to produce a briefing on landfill tax bands, following a meeting that was secured by Jen – she subsequently drafted and coordinated the Brief.
- The Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee published their report ‘Connected Tech: Smart or Sinister?’ with evidence provided by Dr Leonie Tanczer and led to a formal recommendation to Government make tackling tech abuse a priority.
Engagement activities
- Luís published a “policy insight” article on science diplomacy, collaborating with STEaPP lecturer Jean-Christophe Mauduit and former Portuguese Minister for Science Technology and Higher Education. The article discusses the role that scientific diaspora and other related non-state actors have increasingly been playing to permeate and promote modern science diplomacy and governmental action and adds to STEaPP’s research on policy impact.
- Jen designed a Comms plan to support engagement throughout #CircularEconomyWeek ’23, and has supported a number of engagements including correspondence and meetings with stakeholders such as UNWomen, OfCom, and Ministers.
Collaborative workshops and sandpits
- Emily worked with Vax-Hub to deliver a workshop on public perceptions of vaccine manufacturing. The workshop brought together researchers and policymakers in the biochemical engineering department at UCL (and included a tour of the labs for policymakers). A workshop report was published on the PIU webpage.
- The PIU, in collaboration with the Institute of Healthcare Engineering and Ine Steenmans of STEaPP, delivered a ‘Futures Forum on Health Inequalities’, a new engagement activity that has been designed to provide policymakers and researchers with a space to think about possible future scenarios, free from any barriers that might inhibit free thinking in day-to-day work. Luís led the writing of the workshop report, which was published on the STEaPP website.
- Jen supported the development and delivery of a workshop for ICEC-MCM to agree outline approach to a research dissemination strategy for 2024, including identifying priority topics for a series of new policy briefs for Q1 and Q2.
- Jen delivered a policy briefing training to the CDT module.
Consultation responses
- Circular Economy (Scotland) Bill – August ‘23 (ICEC-MCM).
- Department for Science, Innovation and Technology call for evidence on Engineering Biology. The consultation response was an ambitious project, as it sought to take account of the entire scope of the work of the biochemical engineering department at UCL.
- Northern Ireland Strategic Framework to End Violence Against Women and Girls (EVAWG) which was well received and led to follow up discussions with officials from multiple NI Departments focused on the proposals made – and how they might be implemented (outcomes expected in New Year).
Meetings and interviews with policymakers
- 11 interviews on ‘Environmental sustainability challenges and opportunities in healthcare and biopharmaceutical manufacture’ to understand the main trends that support the environmental sustainability agenda in biopharmaceuticals and healthcare (To be published in December 2023)
- Jen presented to a U.S delegation which included representatives from the White House Gender Policy Council, FCDO and the Global Partnership, at the invitation of the HomeOffice – focused on tech abuse within the context of abusive relationships. Following the visit, the U.S published a refreshed commitment to tackle tech abuse, and an invitation was extended to speak at an international domestic abuse event in Feb 2024.
- Coordination of engagement with DSIT, including securing and attending a meeting with research and policy leads in the Department to share, alongside Leonie, research tosupport the Perm Sec ahead of her appearance at an Inquiry into the Online Safety Act – and discuss other areas of potential collaboration. This has led to an opportunity to feed into DSIT a wider range of UCL research on the IoT (including PETRAS).
- Jen has led engagement with the Home Office Interpersonal Abuse Unit, securing contacts and follow up meetings with three additional Home Office Teams focused on new policy areas launched in the Kings Speech, which impact Gender and Tech policy (e.g. Criminal Justice Bill).
- Jen represents the ICEC-MCM at the cross-Programme Policy Cluster, which has representation from multiple Government departments.
Forthcoming activities
- Publication of report “Environmental sustainability challenges and opportunities in healthcare and biopharmaceutical manufacture” (Likely December ‘23, TBC)
- ICEC-MCM Consultation response on Scope 3 Greenhouse Gas Emissions reporting (December ‘23)
- Workshop on Accenture-UCL partnership on “Reimagining the Future of Digitalisation in the Biopharmaceutical Industry” (Date TBC, but likely January ‘24)
- Cross Departmental (BEIS, Defra, Environment Agency, DESNEZ) meeting on material flows for circular construction for ICEC-MCM, meeting secured by Jen (Jan ’24)
- Two new projects live in PIU’s Portfolio (from Jan ’24) on infection prevention/control in hospital settings; and Seaweed as an energy source.
- Festival of Engineering, PIU led activities: Faculty Policy Priorities Workshop (Jan ’24) Launch of Policy Engagement Steering Group (Jan ’24) House of Commons Launch Event (July ’24)
- NICER Circular Economy Showcase 2024 – Planning workshop Jan 2024 (Showcase: Sept ’24)
- Response to OfCom consultation re Online Harms, for the Gender and Tech Research Group (Feb 2024)
- Call for evidence: EU Retained Law Act – response from ICEC-MCM re impact to circular economy policy (Feb ’24)
- Knowledge Exchange event to launch first three Policy Briefs for ICEC-MCM, audience Policymakers and Industry (March ’24) – event to be repeated for next batch of briefs in May/June ’24 TBC
- Policy Briefs: Disssemination – Student workshop for CDT module (March ’24)
- Follow-up workshop on the Futures Forum series (topic to be defined, potential candidates: circular economy/net zero, digital skills and AI)
- Follow-up workshop to the Futures Forum on Health Inequalities (IHE)
Staffing
We were delighted to welcome Joe Matthews as our new Deputy Head. Joe is joining us from the Department of Health and Social Care where he worked as a Senior Adviser.
Jenny Bird will be moving on at the end of May to take up a new role with the Grantham Institute at Imperial.
Outcomes and impacts
- Prof Suzy Farid (Future Targeted Healthcare Manufacturing Hub) was invited to participate in a consultation hosted by International Aids Vaccine Initiative, Unitaid and Medicines Patent Pool on novel business models for accessible monoclonal antibodies for infectious diseases in low- and middle-income countries.
- Evidence submitted by the Wellcome/EPSRC Centre for Interventional and Surgical Sciences (WEISS) was cited in the House of Commons Health and Social Care Committee’s report from the Expert Panel: Evaluation of Government commitments made on the digitisation of the NHS
Engagement activities
Publications
- Emily Ryen Gloinson and Ludovica Vaiarelli wrote an article about Vax-Hub published in National Health Executive magazine.
Collaborative workshops and sandpits
- ‘Achieving ‘net zero’ carbon and transitioning to a circular economy: trade-offs and choices’ (Interdisciplinary Circular Economy Centre for Mineral-based Construction Materials; Plastic Waste Innovation Hub; Institute for Sustainable Resources), attendees included staff from DESNZ, Defra, GO-Science and the Environment Agency. This was delivered jointly by the PIU and Kathy Page of ISD and was funded by UCL PP’s Policy Dialogue fund.
Consultation responses
- Submission to House of Commons Health and Social Care Committee inquiry on Future Cancer (FTHM Hub)
- Submission to House of Commons Science and Technology Committee inquiry on Emerging Diseases and Learnings from COVID-19 (Vax-Hub)
- Submission to consultation on the draft Circular Economy Strategy for Northern Ireland (ICEC-MCM)
Meetings and interviews with policymakers
- 16 policy stakeholder interviews conducted to inform development of next phase of Vax-Hub research
Forthcoming activities:
- Workshop on public perceptions of vaccine development (Vax-Hub)
- Workshop on the future of healthcare technologies and inequality (IHE) (funded by the UCL QR Policy Support Fund)
2022
Staffing
We were delighted to welcome our new Policy Adviser, Emily Ryen Gloinson to the team. Emily joins us from the Norwegian delegation to the United Nations in Rome, where she worked as a Policy Adviser. She will be leading on policy engagement for the Future Targeted Healthcare Manufacturing Hub and Vax-Hub projects.
Florence Greatrix and Katrina Rattu have moved on to pastures new: Flo with the Information Commissioner’s Office and Katrina with UCL’s Public Affairs team. While we are sorry to see them leave, we wish them both the best of luck in their new roles. We will be recruiting a new Policy Adviser to continue our collaborations with the ICEC-MCM and Gender-IoT teams.
Evaluation and Theory of Change
We commissioned independent evaluators M2 consulting to carry out an evaluation of the PIU’s work and to help us evolve our theory of change. The evaluation found that our model of deploying dedicated policy advisers to lead on the delivery of policy engagement work has enabled FES research to reach wider audiences and to influence policy. The executive summary is available to read on our website.
Our updated theory of change is also available online.
Outcomes and impacts
Future Targeted Healthcare Manufacturing Hub (FTHMH)
- Article published in The Conversation: Personalised medicine made in hospitals can revolutionise the way diseases are treated – the challenge now will be implementing it
Research Institute for Sociotechnical Cyber Security (RISCS)
- Prof Madeline Carr invited to give oral evidence to DCMS Select Committee inquiry ‘Connected tech: smart or sinister?’ (via PIU contact).
- Invitation to RISCS researchers to attend DCMS and NCSC Cyber Essentials Showcase event (via PIU contact).
- Two RISCS journal articles cited in POSTnote The impact of remote and hybrid working on workers and organisations.
- RISCS researchers invited to RUSI event ‘The societal impact of ransomware’ (via PIU contact).
Interdisciplinary Circular Economy Centre for Mineral-based Construction Materials (ICEC-MCM)
- Researchers invited to present to a cross-government working group (including Cabinet Office, DEFRA and ONS), which led to a further invitation to join a data network run by the Cabinet Office.
- Invitation from DEFRA to help inform policy development to reduce construction waste.
Engagement activities
Publications
- Policy brief: Food waste recycling behaviours (Plastic Waste Innovation Hub)
- Policy brief: AI, Surgery and Inequalities (Wellcome/EPSRC Centre for Interventional and Surgical Sciences - WEISS)
- Workshop report: Opportunities in needle-free formulation (Vax-Hub)
- Workshop report: The skills agenda for vaccine manufacturing (Vax-Hub)
- Workshop report: Sustainable practices in personalised medicine manufacture (FTHMH)
- Policy brief: Home composting and compostable plastics (Plastic Waste Innovation Hub)
Collaborative workshops and sandpits
- Policy workshop: Compostable plastics, exploring outcomes (attendees from Defra and BEIS as well as the wider policy community) (Plastic Waste Innovation Hub).
- Policy workshop: waste policy in devolved administrations (attendees from the Welsh Government and Scottish Government) (ICEC-MCM).
- 2 Policy workshops with WEISS:
- Artificial Intelligence (AI), surgery and inequality (included attendees from the Department of Health and Social Care, NHS England and Centre for Data Ethics and Innovation).
- Towards Equitable Research in AI and Surgery (included attendees from the Department of Health and Social Care, NHS England, NHS AI Lab).
Consultation responses
Submission to House of Commons DHSC Committee Expert Panel Evaluation of the progress that the Government has made against its commitments in the area of the digitisation of the NHS (WEISS).
Submission to the Independent Review of Equity in Medical Devices (WEISS).
Welcome to a bumper update for the last 6 months. In April, we were delighted to welcome Dr Luis Lacerda to the team, who joins us from the Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health. Luis is working with the WEISS research team to deliver policy engagement on AI, surgery and inequality.
As one door opens, another closes; Dr Penny Carmichael left the PIU in July to take up a policy role at Ofgem. Penny has played a central role in establishing the PIU and has delivered fantastic policy engagement for the Future Targeted Healthcare Manufacturing Hub and the Vax-Hub. We were very sorry to see her leave, but wish her the best of luck in her exciting new role. We will be recruiting a new Policy Adviser to continue our collaborations with the Vax-Hub and FTHMH teams.
Congratulations to Flo Greatrix, who recently started a CAPE Fellowship with GO-Science, where she will be working on developing new knowledge exchange mechanisms with the emerging technology sector.
Outcomes and impacts Tech abuseOur collaboration with Dr Leonie Tanczer (Computer Science) has sought to put the issue of ‘tech abuse’ on the policy agenda. After 4 years of ongoing engagement, the idea is now very much on policy makers’ radars:
New Home Office Guidance on Controlling or Coercive Behaviour published in April includes a section on ‘technology facilitated abuse’
The National Crime Agency requested a tech abuse briefing and meeting with Dr Tanczer as part of their new Digital Strategy on Violence Against Women & Girls.
Dr Tanczer gave oral evidence to the DCMS Select Committee for their inquiry ‘Connected tech: smart or sinister?’ Her comments were reported in the Times and Tech Monitor.
Product Security and Telecommunications Infrastructure BillWe were pleased to support UCL researchers to engage with legislators as the Bill makes its way through Parliament.
Our briefing on the security of consumer IoT, produced with Prof Shane Johnson (SCS) was cited in the explanatory notes to the Bill.
Prof. Madeline Carr (CS) was invited to provide oral evidence to the Commons Bill Committee and was quoted by the Shadow Digital, Culture, Media & Sport Minister Chris Elmore on the floor of the House in the subsequent debate on the Bill.
We worked with Lord Clement-Jones to table an amendment based on Prof. Carr’s evidence to the Bill in the Lords Committee stage with the intention of raising the issue of the need for increased security measures in products that are used by children. In response, the Minister gave an assurance that security requirements would be designed with full consideration for the security of children.
Vax-HubHub researchers participated in a working group of UNCTAD/WHO on building vaccines production capacity.
The team was invited to discuss leading a viral vector initiative for WHO Vaccine Technology Transfer Hubs.
We hosted a lab tour for CEPI Executive Director of Manufacturing and Supply Chain and meeting with CEPI representatives to discuss future engagements.
Circular economy of construction materialsFollowing an initial collaboration, ONS provided additional funding to the Interdisciplinary Circular Economy Centre on Mineral-Based Construction Materials (ICEC-MCM) to inform their Integrated Data Service Project.
National Security StrategyIn June Prof Neil Morisetti (Vice Dean Public Policy) gave oral evidence to the Joint Committee on the National Security Strategy on the topic of global supply chains, focusing on the impact of the Ukraine conflict (particularly on food supply chains), and climate change (on supply chains more broadly, as an aspect of CNI). He also gave evidence on the recently published UK government Food Strategy.
Engagement activities Publications- Improving the UK’s Resilience to Ransomware (RISCS workshop report)
- Future directions in EU cyber security: implications for UK policy and strategy (RISCS workshop report)
- Point of Care Manufacture: Regulatory Opportunities and Challenges for Advanced Biotherapeutics (FTHMH workshop report, Biochem Eng and STEaPP)
ECR away day provided for RISCS, including a training session on policy engagement.
Collaborative workshops and sandpits- Sandpit ‘International Dimensions of Cybersecurity’ (RISCS, CS). Included participants from DCMS, NCSC and FCDO.
- Sandpit ‘Sustainable practices for manufacturing personalised medicines’ (FTHMH, Biochemical Eng). Included participants from Cell and Gene Therapy Catapult, NHS, AstraZeneca and KTN.
- Sandpit ‘The skills agenda for vaccine manufacturing’ (Vax-Hub, Biochemical Eng). Participants included CEPI, Cell and Gene Therapy Catapult, CHAI, PATH and WHO
- Sandpit ‘Opportunities in needle-free vaccine formulation’(Vax-Hub, Biochemical Eng). Participants included CEPI, CHAI, BEIS, PATH, UNICEF and Wellcome.
- Event ‘The pandemic two years on: what have we learned, and are we better placed to deal with future crises?’ (IPPO, STEaPP)
- Roundtable on Social Capital (IPPO, STEaPP)
- Launch of NHS Staff Wellbeing and Mental Health report (IPPO, STEaPP)
- Point of Care Manufacture: Regulatory Opportunities and Challenges for Advanced Biotherapeutics (FTHMH workshop report, Biochem Eng and STEaPP) .
Consultation responses
- Cabinet Office Biological Security Strategy Call for Evidence (Vax-Hub, Biochemical Eng)
- NHS Innovative Medicines Consultation (FTHMH, Biochemical Eng)
- House of Commons DCMS Select Committee inquiry Connected tech: smart or sinister? (Dr Leonie Tanczer, Computer Science)
- DCMS consultation ‘Embedding standards and pathways across the cyber profession by 2025’ (RISCS Fellow Dr Shamal Faily)
- House of Commons Health and Social Care Committee inquiry ‘Digital transformation in the NHS’ (WEISS, Medical Physics and Biomedical Engineering)
- Home Office consultation on the Statutory Guidance on controlling or coercive behaviour (GIoT, Computer Science)
- Defra consultation on Environmental Targets (ICEC-MCM, CEGE)
- Defra consultation on mandatory digital waste tracking (ICEC-MCM, CEGE)
- BEIS Call for evidence: Towards a market for low emissions industrial products (ICEC-MCM, CEGE).
2021
The PIU rounded off 2021 with a flurry of publications, including several briefings on future crime with the Dawes centre and a suite of briefings on areas for future research in healthy aging with the Institute for Healthcare Engineering.
We also ran the 2021 ‘Meet the Policymaker’ series, which included speakers from the NCSC, London Borough of Islington, Wildlife and Countryside Link, European Commission and the Office for Life Sciences.
We have continued to develop our Policy Impact Sandpit approach, with support and training from the Climate Action Unit and Co-Production Collective.
We were sorry to say goodbye to Rita Goncalves De Pinho, who has moved on to pastures new at Cern, but we wish her the best of luck in her exciting new role.
Outcomes and impacts- MHRA and GO-Science requested a meeting to learn more about Dawes Centre research on synthetic biology and future crime.
- Prof Mark Miodownik (Plastic Waste Innovation Hub) invited to meet with EFRA Committee staff to provide expertise to its inquiry into plastic waste.
- Prof Suzy Farid’s work cited in the 100 Days Mission Report to G7 Leaders on reducing the impact of future pandemics.
- Cybercrime ransomware (RISCS).
- Meeting between researchers and the Cell and Gene Therapy Catapult to discuss their white paper on adoption of CAR-T therapies (FTHMH).
- Meetings with members of a virtual Canadian mission to the UK to highlight cell and gene therapy infrastructure organized by Innovate UK (Vax-Hub).
- Meeting and subsequent workshop with ONS on their work programme and mapping areas of potential collaboration with ICEC-MCM researchers.
- Webinar as part of the Tomorrow’s Home event at the Museum of the Home (to launch Healthy Aging briefings)
- Meeting with Defra and the Environment Agency on the use of compostable liners for food waste collections (Plastic Waste Innovation Hub).
- Spatial and regional inequalities roundtable (IPPO).
- Two international roundtables on the role, remit and scope of COVID-19 public inquiries (IPPO).
- Briefing for Prof Suzy Farid ahead of the 100 Days Mission roundtable.
- Set of policy notes on healthy ageing (age-friendly homes; healthy and active spaces; improving the management of common conditions of ageing; supporting social connections; and sustaining physical activity) (IHE).
- Policy brief Synthetic biology and future crime (Dawes Centre).
- Policy brief Older adults as victims of financial crime (Dawes Centre).
- RISCS Project Catalogue update and relaunch.
- Workshop report: Anticipation and Futures Literacy (RISCS).
- Response to House of Lords Environment and Climate Change Committee inquiry into mobilizing action on climate change and environment. (Plastic Waste Innovation Hub).
- Introduction to policy engagement training delivered to IHE Impact Fellows.
- Recorded training module on producing policy briefings for UCL Public Policy’s online training Module 3: Writing for Policy Audiences.
