The chair of the working group responsible for the report, Sir Patrick Bateson, makes the observation, "...the timely and appropriate communication of research results to the public is key to maintaining public confidence, and one in which both the public and the research community hold stakes. Many of the challenges we have outlined in this report can only be tackled through a change in culture among researchers – we hope that this report provides impetus to that change."

 

And the report concludes, "...desirable modes of conduct among the scientific community depend on a reaffirmation of the old virtues of honesty, scepticism and integrity. The major thrust of this report is that, in addition, the research community should consider the public interest when communicating research results to the public. If the report stimulates developments in that direction, it will have achieved its primary aim."

 

There follows a one-page check list as a guide to researchers to help take the public interest into account when considering the communication of their results to the public.