Two senior science and medical posts at the UK Health Security Agency have now been filled, the BBC reports. Dr Gail Carson is to become the agency's chief medical advisor, and Professor Robin May has been given the chief scientific officer role on a permanent basis.

Key points

  • New medical advisor — Dr Gail Carson joins UKHSA in January 2027.
  • Outbreak experience — over the years she has tackled Ebola, Crimean-Congo Haemorrhagic Fever, H1N1, SARS and H5N1 through her work with the WHO.
  • Oxford role — at the University of Oxford she is Director of Network Development for ISARIC, the body she helped found in 2011.
  • Science post confirmed — Professor Robin May has been interim chief scientific officer since September 2025 and now takes the job permanently.

Dr Carson's many years of work on outbreak preparedness and response include time at the World Health Organization, where she handled Ebola, Crimean-Congo Haemorrhagic Fever, H1N1, SARS and H5N1. She was also chair of the Global Outbreak Alert & Response Network, a WHO partnership of organisations, and took part in founding ISARIC in 2011. That network — a worldwide alliance of investigator-run clinical research bodies — works across over 130 countries, with the goal that patient care and policy are shaped by clinical research from the earliest stages of public health emergencies.

Since September 2025 Professor May has been interim chief scientific officer at UKHSA, a title he now holds on a permanent basis. He is Professor of Infectious Disease at the University of Birmingham as well, and before that was chief scientific advisor at the Food Standards Agency. Microbiology and infection are at the centre of his research, and he brings broader know-how in assessing scientific risk and in policy grounded in evidence.

Professor Susan Hopkins, chief executive at UKHSA, announced both appointments, remarking that the two bring decades of expertise spanning clinical work and science — from infectious disease research to outbreak response on the front line — and that their knowledge would prove invaluable as the agency goes about protecting the public from health threats.

Dr Carson said she was delighted to join the agency, adding: "Together, we will keep building our capabilities, meet new challenges head on, and make sure we stand ready for whatever lies ahead." Professor May said working with experts across UKHSA had been a privilege and that he looked forward to building on that foundation.

Editor's comment

What it means in practice

These are internal appointments at a public body, so most people will not notice any immediate change to services, jabs or health advice. The effect is on how the agency plans for and responds to outbreaks, which matters when a new health threat emerges.

  • No change to services — appointments at this level do not alter what the public can access day to day.
  • Preparedness focus — the roles shape how the UK spots and responds to infectious disease threats.
  • Watch for later work — any practical impact will show up in future public health guidance and outbreak response, not now.