Committee to take evidence from engineering biology industry
The House of Lords Science and Technology Committee will hold an evidence session with Dr Michael Adeogun, Head of Strategy (Life Sciences and Health) at the National Physical Laboratory; Professor Robin May, Chief Scientific Adviser at the Food Standards Agency; and Professor Isabel Oliver, Director General of Science and Research and Chief Scientific Officer at the UK Health Security Agency as part of its engineering biology inquiry.
A second panel following up the recent inquiry into long-duration energy storage will be held with Justin Tomlinson MP, Minister for Energy Security and Net Zero.
Meeting details
Panel details
The first panel will focus on how regulators strike a balance between encouraging innovation and ensuring safety; whether regulators are adequately resourced to keep pace with developments in engineering biology; and how regulators co-ordinate with one another.
Possible question areas include:
- The development of international standards in engineering biology
- The balance between encouraging innovation and ensuring security
- Co-ordination between regulators, including the role of the Engineering Biology Regulators’ Network
- Whether regulators are sufficiently well-resourced, in terms of expertise and capacity, to regulate engineering biology.
The second panel will focus on the overall plan for a net zero grid by 2035, the role of long-duration energy storage in achieving that goal, and the recently published second REMA consultation.
Possible question areas include:
- The overall plan for a Net Zero grid by 2035; the mix of technologies that will provide low-carbon flexibility; progress with developing the Strategic Spatial Energy Plan and launching the National Energy System Operator
- The concept of a strategic reserve for energy storage and electricity generation
- Ensuring security of supply in the energy system and the role of Capacity Market reforms in ensuring this
- The “net zero ready” requirements for new-build gas plants