Hi - I’m Ben Johnson, a practitioner in UK science policy. I’ve spent ~15 years in various roles in the UK government and attached scientific agencies. I spent the latter ~5 years of period as senior policy adviser to various science ministers and secretaries of state. I’m now professor of practice in research and innovation policy at the University of Strathclyde. I also head up the science policy work at the Centre for British Progress, a non-partisan think-tank focussed on practical ideas to drive economic growth and technological progress in the UK.
I’m using this Substack to write about science, research and innovation policy issues, with a specific interest in UK policy. I have a longtime interest in systems analysis, geopolitics, research funding, metascience, and state reform. Occasionally, posts will be guest-authored (or co-authored).
I won’t be sticking to a regular rhythm of posts. Sometimes I might get on a roll and you’ll see a few posts from me in a few weeks; sometimes I might get tied up with other things and you won’t hear from me for months. So the best thing to do is subscribe, so you can get my posts direct to your inbox:
