News and blogs

In their latest blog, Latha Weston and Carol Brayne, co-chairs of the NCOB Mind and Brain advisory group reflect on the pace of development happening across neurotechnologies and how this is raising new ethical questions and challenges.

The Nuffield Council on Bioethics (NCOB) is launching a new project to develop up-to-date ethics advice on brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) and their convergence with AI and quantum computing.

Drawing on her recent presentation to the Parliamentary and Scientific Committee, Sarah Devaney, Professor of Healthcare Law and Regulation at the University of Manchester and Chair of our 14-day rule Working Group, highlights the importance of strong ethical and regulatory principles to support responsible innovation in UK bioscience and deliver benefits for society.

Segun Fatumo, Professor and Chair of Genomic Diversity at Queen Mary University of London, shares thoughts from his guest presentation at our recent Parliamentary and Scientific Committee event exploring how embedding ethics across the innovation lifecycle can strengthen the UK’s science ecosystem.

Dr Marija Antanavičiūtė reflects on the need to embed ethics insights within policy development, and how a recently launched Rapid Ethics Assessment and Learning (REAL) method seeks to support this.

The Nuffield Council on Bioethics, working in collaboration with the University of Birmingham and Faculty of Public Health, have developed a new Rapid Ethics Assessment and Learning method, seeking to support policymakers to embed ethics into their time-pressured work.

The Nuffield Council on Bioethics (NCOB) has published proposals to address governance gaps in neural organoid research, calling for best practice guidance in the short term and a new approach to regulation of emerging biotechnologies in the longer term.

Nuffield Council on Bioethics Director Danielle Hamm reflects on findings from the 2025 Public Attitudes to Science survey, highlighting the role that ethics can play in securing public trust in science and innovation.

Council Member Professor Suzanne Ost shares insights from her role as an expert adviser to citizens’ juries on assisted dying both in Jersey and in England.

More than 100 people from across the UK will soon meet to learn, deliberate and reflect on the 14-day rule for human embryo research, including potential future regulatory options.

The Nuffield Council on Bioethics (NCOB) is specifically seeking information on how to effectively incorporate the interests of non-human species, the environment and future generations into policy and decision making on emerging technologies.

Melissa Haynes Agoro, Horizon Scanning Coordinator at the Nuffield Council on Bioethics, reflects on themes that have emerged in our work this year.