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Expert Advisory Bodies for Policymakers
i) Permanent Advisory Bodies
What are they?
Permanent Advisory Bodies are appointed by the government for
independent advice on policy issues.
What is their role?
They vary in mandate, agenda and appointment. Germany's Council
of Economic Experts is charged with a broad mandate, whereas many
advisory bodies are limited to single issues, such as the arts or
science policy. Sometimes advisory bodies are afforded substantial
leeway over their own agenda; sometimes studies are undertaken only
on request by government. In some cases, members of these bodies
are appointed solely by government, whereas in others interest groups
have input as well.
Example
Select Committee on Science and Technology
In the UK each House of Parliament - Lords and Commons
- has its own select committees. Many of these are investigative
committees looking at particular policy areas and producing reports
on particular topics. In January 2005 the Select Committee on Science
and Technology produced a report called 'The Use of Science in UK
International Development Policy: Government Response to the Committee's
Thirteenth Report of Session 2003-04 Second Special Report of Session
2004-05'. This document sets out the government's reply to the committee's
report, examining the following issues: the role played by science
and technology research in informing the spending of the UK's aid
budget; how research is being used to underpin policymaking in international
development; and how the UK is supporting science and technology
in developing countries. Topics discussed include: the funding approach
of the Department for International Development (DFID); multilateral
funding routes; DFID scientific and technological in-house expertise
and policy division; the lack of a scientific culture; evidence-based
policymaking; the draft research strategy; capacity building and
technology transfer; UK training schemes and scholarships; and the
role of the UK Research Councils.
Source
ii) Temporary Blue-Ribbon Commissions
What are they for?
Temporary Blue-Ribbon Commissions are sometimes created as an
alternative to creating a permanent advisory body, to investigate
a particular problem.
What is it?
Membership of temporary blue-ribbon commissions tends to include
prominent citizens with some claim to expertise and representatives
of groups affected by the policy area. The breadth of the mandate
can vary, as can how governments use them. They do, however, tend
to have a clear mission and a limited time frame.
Problems with temporary commissions
The effectiveness of temporary commissions is compromised by
the fact that their existence, and often whether of not the final
report is released, is at the will of the government. Another limitation
of temporary commissions is the lack of follow through because there
is no institutional capacity, or obligation, to keep the commission's
findings and recommendations before the public.
Example
Turner Commission on Pensions
In the UK, a Pensions Commission was set up to report on the future
of the British pensions system, amid fears that many Britons were
heading for poverty in old age. The Commission was chaired by Lord
Turner and spent three years reviewing the highly contested and
complex debates surrounding pension provision. The result of the
commission was a 450-page report which produced a number of radical
recommendations yet managed to spur a consensus on many of the key
issues. These included the introduction of a universal basic state
pension with entitlement based on residency, rather than national
insurance contributions, and raising the state pension age for men
and women from 65 and 60 respectively to 68 for both.
Sources
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