ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the construction of science-citizen relations within late-1990s discussions over the biosciences. The Public Consultation on the Biosciences was an initiative without precedent in the United Kingdom in terms of the numbers of people involved in both the qualitative and quantitative research, and in terms of the focus on a range of technologies grouped under the heading 'the Biosciences'. While the preparatory meeting was broadly in favour of the new initiative, it was already clear that various parties brought contrasting models of science and democracy to the discussion. Certainly, participants placed different degrees of emphasis on the need for debate to be scientifically informative and/or citizen consultative. In more general terms, this initiative had much to say about the importance of science but rather less about the character of modern citizenship. Certainly the "citizen-led and participatory" aspect of the exercise was highly restrictive and suggestive of an indirect form of citizen engagement.
