As an economic policy adviser to heads of government in the UK and Australia, I was at the coalface as regards issues of impartial or politically-biased advice. Like most others I’ve known in that field, I agreed with van der Voosen’s maxim that “The search for the truth requires that researchers do their best to honestly assess and evaluate all the relevant available evidence.” My role was to sufficiently research an issue so as to give well-based advice, consider what options were available to deal with the issue, and present advice in such a way as to facilitate a decision. I often had a preferred option, but I don’t think that would ever have been apparent from my papers and briefs, unless I was specifically asked for a recommendation. The politics of the government I advised were irrelevant to my advice.
One of my first roles in Canberra in 1985 was as part of a Ministerial Taskforce on Longer-Term Economic Growth, chaired by Industry Minister Senator John Button. One of the first things that Button said to the group of economists and other specialists was that we should forget ALP policy and ACTU policy, what the government wanted to know was what policies were best for the people of Australia as a whole. That attitude helped to underpin the success of the Hawke government.
(It has not, unfortunately, been present in recent Australian governments, and I was mocked in Queensland for not joining the (Labor) party, where partisanship and biased advice was essential for career advancement.)
For the record, I joined the UK Labour Party in 1965. At the time I was in the central office of the UK energy utility, the Central Electricity Generating Board, a GOE rather than a political entity. About 2-3 weeks later, before I had been active, I was near-fatally injured when run down by a car. That was the end of my political involvement.
Judith, like you, “I find the APS argument for civic engagement by scientists to be compelling.” Such engagement does not a priori involve any element of advocacy or bias. And I applaud Kniss’s good sense.
If as an adviser to Prime Ministers in the crucial field of economics, I could avoid partisanship and advocacy, surely those in academia should be able to do the same?
