Appearing in front of a Select Committee: does this prove that we had an impact or were we a convenient political cover for positions already taken?

Professor Christopher Hood of the University of Oxford and Dr Martin Lodge of LSE were confronted with many questions about making impact when they were invited to appear in front of the House of Commons’ Public Administration Select Committee. Here they tell how their experience highlights some of the ambiguities around defining impact, and question whether they could have made any real impact at all if policy makers had already taken decisions.