Public Policy, Consultations

Government

SAPER, Scientific Advisory Panel for Emergency Response, was the predecessor of SAGE, Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies, which came to public attention during the COVID emergency of 2020-2022. SAPER had been set up by the then Chief Government Scientific Advisor, Professor Sir David King, and addressed any of the various emergencies, natural and human-created, that might occur. It worked closely with the Cabinet Office Civil Contingencies Secretariat. At the time a major concern was terrorist attack but the work also included the after-effects of industrial accidents, potential nuclear contamination, prolonged effects of drought and human and animal diseases. SAPER was not a secret organization but its existence was not publicized. The membership included government scientific staff, staff from the security and intelligence agencies but also drew on non-government scientists who acted as a bridge to the broader scientific community. SAPER members were recruited for their specialties but then encouraged to participate in multi-disciplinary discussions and exercises.

Peter Sommer served between July 2003 and March 2009.

Parliamentary Specialist Advisor

Select Committees in both the Commons and the Lords frequently appoint specialist advisors to assist with their inquiries. The inquiries may be into a theme or policy area or carry out pre-legislative scrutiny of Bills to be placed before Parliament. Advisors work with committee members and committee clerks; among other things they review submissions, assist in the framing of questions to witnesses and in the writing up of Reports. Advisors are often academics.

In December 1998 Peter Sommer was appointed Specialist Advisor to the House of Commons Select Committee on Trade and Industry to support their inquiry into ecommerce. This has produced four published Reports. Seventh Report (HC 187); “Building confidence in Electronic Commerce”. Tenth Report of Session (HC 648), “Electronic Commerce”, Fourteenth Report of Session (HC 862), “Draft Electronic Communications Bill”, Eighth Report of Session (HC66): UK Online Reviewed: The First Annual Report of The E-Minister And E-Envoy.

Between November 2015 and February 2016 he acted as a Specialist Advisor to the Lords and Commons Joint Committee scrutinizing the Draft Investigatory Powers Bill which became IPA 2016. A report was published in February 2016.

Submissions to Select Committees

In November 2010 he provided written and oral evidence to the Commons Science and Technology Select Committee’s enquiry into Scientific advice and evidence in emergencies and in November 2011 to its enquiry into Malware and cybercrime.

In 2013 he provided written and oral evidence to the Joint Committee examining the draft Communications Data Bill and in the same year to the Commons Home Affairs Select Committee investigation of e-Crime.

In 2014 he gave written and oral evidence to the Intelligence and Security Committee of Parliament in their inquiry into Privacy and Security.

In 2018 he gave written and oral evidence to the House of Lords Committee on Science and Technology for its inquiry Forensic science and the criminal justice system: a blueprint for change HL Paper 333.

In 2024 he provided written evidence to the House of Lord Industry and Regulatory Committee Who Watches the Watchdogs? HL Paper 56.

He has also given evidence to the All Party Privacy Group and the TOEIC APPG.

Submissions to Calls

In 2022-3 he provided a submission to Lord Anderson’s review of the workings of the Investigatory Powers Act 2016.

In 2025 he submitted evidence to the Ministry of Justice call Use of evidence generated by software in criminal proceedings but suggested that the call was too limited in scope and should be broadened to look at all types of digital evidence.

Surveys, Statistics

Surveys and statistics are useless unless they have proper internal discipline. Problems include: definitions that are ambiguous to participants and readers, questions and background information which are biased towards particular conclusions, samples which are either not sufficiently balanced for the desired outcomes or too small for the statistical conclusions claimed, survey conclusions which are not supported by the research methodology. LSE alumni are often asked to assist and verify surveys carried out by others. Another area where academics are asked to provide services is literature review.

The UK Audit Commission existed between 1983 and March 2015 when its role was subsumed into the National Audit Office. During its existence it ran a series of surveys on “computer crime”, sometimes in association with major management consultancies. Peter Sommer was retained for a number of these to advise on survey methodology and design.

In September 2000 a LSE team headed by Professor Sommer was awarded a contract by the UK’s Financial Services Authority to provide advice on consumer use of e-commerce facilities in the purchase of financial products such as banking, insurance, pensions, savings, and share-dealing to assist in the development of a suitable regulatory regime.

In 2009 Professor Sommer won a contract from the UK National Audit Office to support its examination of Internet Crime.

Regulatory

Between 2005 and 2009 Professor Sommer was joint lead assessor for the computer evidence speciality the Council for the Registration of Forensic Practitioners (CRFP). CRFP was formally closed down in 2009 to make way for the Forensic Science Regulator.

In 2008 he was appointed to the Digital Forensics Specialist Group which advised the Forensic Science Regulator and served on it until 2021.

In 2015 he acted as consultant to Nederlands Register Grectelijk Dsundigen (NRGD), the entity that registers court-appointed experts in the Netherlands, on standards in digital forensics expertise.

Academic Collaborations

The forensic aspects of identity systems under FIDIS (www.fidis.net) which was a European Commission-funded Network of Excellence and PRIME (http://www.prime-project.eu.org/) which was a European Commission Framework 6 Integrated Project on Privacy Enhancing Technologies (Reference Group member).

FORMOBILE Project, EU Funded, to establish a complete end to end forensic investigation chain, targeting mobile devices. 2024

Consultancies

In 2003-4, he was expert member of UK DTI Foresight Project Cyber Trust and Crime Prevention (http://www.foresight.gov.uk/cybertrust.html).

Together with LSE colleagues he provided “Best Practice” consultancy to a syndicate of central government departments and UK clearing banks and to APACS.

In 2009, with colleagues in the LSE’s Public Engagement Network, he co-authored a study of the UK Government’s Interception Modernisation Program.

In February 2010 he took part in the work of the United Nations Counter-Terrorism Implementation Task Force (http://www.un.org/terrorism/internet.shtml).

In 2011, with Ian Brown of the Oxford Internet Institute he wrote Reducing Systemic Cyber Security Risk for the Organisation of Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), part of its Future Global Shocks Program.

In 2014 he was invited to join the Home Office Digital Signature Expert Panel within the Office of Security and Counter Terrorism Communications Capability Development program.

Internet Watch Foundation

In December 2000 Professor Sommer and colleagues were awarded a European Commission contract to carry out the Intermediate Evaluation of the EC Internet Action Plan (on illegal and harmful content on the Internet). This involved, among other things, a review of the work of the IWF.

In 2009 and again in 2017 he was part of the teams that carried out the external audit of the Hotline of the Internet Watch Foundation. The audit is for the benefit of the Home Office, Crown Prosecution Service and police who need to be re-assured that the work of the IWF, which would otherwise involve a number of criminal offences, was in the public interest.

SARK

In 2000 Professor Sommer was instructed by the Chief Pleas of the Isle of Sark to advise on the prospects and consequences of becoming a top level Internet domain (TLD). Sark, one of the Channel Islands, was at the time described as the last feudal state in Europe and is directly owned by the UK Crown. There were less than 600 inhabitants. The consultancy lasted 3 days but at the end the Chief Pleas and Seigneur decided not to proceed with the proposal.