All ministers and senior officials on GOV.UK

Isabel Oliver is the Director General of Science and Research & Chief Scientific Officer at the UK Health Security Agency ( UKHSA ). Prior to this, Isabel was Director of National Infection Service at Public Health Engla…

Jackline Wahba is Professor of Economics at the University of Southampton, where she leads migration research at the ESRC Centre for Population Change. She has advised national governments and international organisations, in…

Professor Jacob George is the Chief Medical and Scientific Officer of the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA).  Jacob is also Professor of Cardiovascular Medicine and Therapeutics at the University of …

Jim Ryan was the first Leonard Cheshire Professor in Conflict Recovery at the Department of Surgery, University College London, serving in that capacity from 1995 until 2007. He was also visiting professor in trauma care and…

Professor James Smith was a Commonwealth Scholarship Commissioner from 2021 to 2024. James is Vice Principal International and Chair of Africa and Development Studies at the University of Edinburgh.

Professor Jason Chin FRS was appointed as a non-executive director at the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology in April 2023. Jason is a Programme Leader at the Medical Research Council Laboratory of Molecular B…

Professor Rubin served as Home Office Director General, Science, Technology, Analysis and Research (STAR) and Home Office Chief Scientific Adviser until 12 December 2025. Before joining the Home Office in 2021 Professor Rubi…

A professor of economics and Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences at the University of Southampton, Professor Swaffield is an applied micro labour economist with strong research expertise in the UK labour market and a trac…

Professor John Aston became the Home Office Chief Scientific Adviser in September 2017. Professor Aston specialises in applied statistics. He was, until recently, a trustee of the Alan Turing Institute, and has previously sp…

Professor John Beath studied at the Universities of St. Andrews (Queen’s College Dundee), London and Pennsylvania (where he was a UK Thouron Scholar) and held academic posts at Bristol, Cambridge and St. Andrews. He became P…

John Latham is: Vice-Chancellor and Chief Executive Officer of the Coventry University Group a Non-Executive Director for the NHS England Workforce Training and Education Committee an Independent Panel Member on the Advisory…

Professor John Loughhead, CB , OBE , FREng , FTSE , FIMechE , FIET , is Chair of the Mission Innovation Steering Committee. He was Chief Scientific Adviser at the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy ( BEI…

John Newton was appointed on 12 October 2012. Career highlights: led England’s contribution to the Global Burden of Disease project Chairman of the WHO European Burden of Disease Network Honorary Professor of Public Health a…

Professor John Perkins was appointed Chief Scientific Adviser at the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills in 2012. John is currently an Honorary Professor at Manchester University, a Visiting Professor at Imperial …

Professor John Watson was appointed deputy Chief Medical Officer for the Department of Health in October 2013. He was previously Head of Respiratory Diseases at Public Health England’s Centre for Infectious Disease Surveilla…

Professor John Wood was a Commonwealth Scholarship Commissioner from June 2020 to May 2023. John is a materials scientist by background and has honorary chairs at a number of UK universities. He is an adviser to governments …

Professor Jonathan Van-Tam was Deputy Chief Medical Officer from October 2017 to March 2022. He led on health protection. Career highlights: Clinical experience in emergency medicine, anaesthesia, general medicine and infect…

Jonathan Wadsworth is a professor of economics in the Economics department at Royal Holloway College, University of London. He obtained his undergraduate degree from the University of Hull and his M.Sc and PhD from the Londo…

Professor Julia Sutcliffe was appointed Chief Scientific Adviser at the Department for Business and Trade in February 2023. Julia provides science and engineering advice and independent challenge to the department’s minister…

Julia West is Principal of West Consult having spent most of her career at the British Geological Survey ( BGS ). She is also an Honorary Visiting Professor at the University of Manchester (School of Earth, Atmospheric and E…

Professor Julie Fitzpatrick was appointed Chief Scientific Adviser ( CSA ) for Scotland in June 2021. This is a part-time position. Julie also remains Scientific Director of Moredun Research Institute and CEO of The Moredun …

Professor Julie Williams was Chief Scientific Adviser for Wales from September 2013 to September 2017. Professor Williams is a leading researcher into Alzheimer’s disease. She is head of the Neurodegeneration section of the …

Julius Weinberg became Interim Chair of Ofqual on 1 December 2016, following the departure of Amanda Spielman. Julius was previously Deputy Chair of the Ofqual board. He has been Vice Chancellor of Kingston University, from …

Professor Keith Palmer became the chair of the Industrial Injuries Advisory Council (IIAC) in 2008. Before this, he was a member of the council, and then chair of its Research Working Group between 2001 and 2008. His is also…

Professor Mayhew is currently Emeritus Fellow in Economics at Pembroke College, Oxford and Emeritus Professor of Education and Economic Performance at Oxford University. He also has a chair at Maastricht University in the Ne…

Professor Kevin Fenton joined Public Health England ( PHE ) on 12 November 2012. Kevin has worked in a variety of public health roles across government and academia, before joining the PHE board in 2020. Before taking up the…

Professor Kevin Ibeh is a Commonwealth Scholarship Commissioner. Kevin is Professor of Marketing and International Business at Birkbeck, University of London.

Linda Luxon CBE BSc FRCP is Emeritus Professor of Audiovestibular Medicine at UCL and Honorary Consultant Physician in the Department of Audiovestibular Medicine, UCLH . Formerly she was Head of the Department of Neuro-otolo…

Professor Liz Baggs is a Commonwealth Scholarship Commissioner. Liz is Vice-Principle for Research and Innovation and Professor of Food and Environmental Security at the University of Edinburgh. Prior to this role, Liz was D…

Louis Appleby has championed suicide prevention at the national level since 2000. He chairs the National Suicide Prevention Strategy Advisory Group which provides leadership and support in ensuring successful implementation …

Louise Bryant is a Professor of Psychological and Social Medicine at the University of Leeds, and a chartered psychologist. Her applied health research focuses on psychosocial aspects of prenatal screening technologies: cons…

Louise was Chair of Defra’s Science Advisory Council between July 2021 and June 2024. Louise Heathwaite is a hydrochemist who combines field and geospatial modelling research to understand the environmental impact of land us…

Professor Lucy Chappell FMedSci is the Chief Scientific Adviser for the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC), with overall responsibility for the department’s research and development, including the National Institute…

Professor Lynn Dicks is a Professor of Ecology at the Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge. She leads a research group working on sustainable agriculture and insect conservation, and teaches ecology and conservatio…

Madeleine Arnot was a Commonwealth Scholarship Commissioner from January 2019 to September 2023. Madeleine is Emeritus Professor of Sociology of Education and Emeritus Fellow, Jesus College, University of Cambridge, and co-f…

Malcolm Bennett is Professor of Zoonotic and Emerging Diseases at the School of Veterinary Medicine and Science, University of Nottingham and was appointed Chair of the VPC from January 2018, having served as a member since …

Malcolm Joyce was appointed to the Committee on Radioactive Waste Management (CoRWM) in June 2023. Malcolm is currently Professor of Nuclear Engineering and Cross-faculty Associate Dean for Research at Lancaster University. …

Martin Cave (appointed in January 2012) is an economist specialising in competition issues and the regulation of network industries. He was BP Centennial Professor at the London School of Economics in 2010/11 and Professor a…

Mary Ryan is the Vice Provost for Research and Enterprise and the Armourers and Brasiers’ Chair in Materials Science at Imperial College London. Mary completed her undergraduate studies, earning Joint Honors in Mathematics a…

Professor Mary Stiasny OBE is a Commonwealth Scholarship Commissioner. She is also Pro-Vice Chancellor (International) University of London and Chief Executive University of London International Programmes.

Matthew became a non-executive director at the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency ( DVSA ) in June 2019 He has worked across the public, private and third sectors in marketing and sales, media and technology. He has also co…

Professor Meghana Pandit took up the post of Interim Medical Director, initially at NHS England, on 1 April 2025. Previously, she has served as Chief Executive Officer at Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Chi…

Prof Mel Austen is Professor of Ocean and Society at the University of Plymouth where she is also Director of its Centre for Systems Thinking: Ocean, Land and Society. She leads and undertakes collaborative transdisciplinary…

Melanie Jones is Professor of Economics at Cardiff University. Her research interest is in applied labour economics and focuses on labour market inequality. Melanie is currently an editor at the British Journal of Industrial…

Melissa Denecke is Scientific Director of the Dalton Nuclear Institute at The University of Manchester and holds a Chair in the University’s School of Chemistry. Previously she was department head for ‘Actinide Speciation’, …

Professor Michael Thomas was appointed Chief Scientific Adviser for the Department for Education in January 2026. He is a cognitive neuroscientist and developmental psychologist, a professor at Birkbeck University of London …

Professor Winter OBE is a rural policy specialist and social scientist with expertise covering a wide range of environmental and agro-food issues with particular interests in applying inter-disciplinary approaches to policy-…

Mona Siddiqui is Professor of Islamic and Interreligious Studies at the University of Edinburgh, a member of the Commission on Scottish Devolution and a member of the Nuffield Council on Bioethics. She is also a regular cont…

Professor Morag McDonald is a Commonwealth Scholarship Commissioner. Morag is Dean of the College of Environmental Sciences and Engineering at Bangor University.

Professor Muffy Calder took up her post as Chief Scientific Adviser for Scotland in March 2012. Professor Calder came to the Scottish government from the University of Glasgow where she continues to hold chair of Professor o…