Delivering the lessons of Haldane

Richard Haldane’s report has shaped the structures by which UK research is funded, says Mark Walport.

This December sees the one hundredth anniversary of the publication of the Report of the Machinery of Government Committee, colloquially known as the Haldane report. In laying out a map for governmental and ministerial reforms, the report also set out a series of lessons and principles for evidence-based policy making.

Richard Haldane has had a unique influence on UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), as the principle bearing his name is written into the act of parliament that created our organisation. However, it is well known that the report that we are celebrating this week did not feature the Haldane principle.