Dr Ray Kemp

Dr. Ray Kemp is a nationally and internationally recognised expert in the effective communication of risk for both ionising and non-ionising radiation. He specialises in the public understanding of science and the perception of risk. Based in the UK near Cambridge, until 2019 he was Honorary Professorial Fellow in risk communication at the, University of Wollongong, New South Wales, and also Adjunct Professor of Risk and Sustainability at Swinburne University of Technology in Melbourne.

He is a Past President of the Society for Risk Analysis, Europe, and previously held the position of Hon. Visiting Professor of Risk Communication at the University of Surrey, Guildford, UK. A social scientist, Ray also qualified as a Chartered Town Planner, and his PhD was in Planning and Nuclear Decision Making.

Ray was appointed by the Australian Federal Government to the main Advisory Council of the Australian Nuclear Regulator (ARPANSA) and was a member, then Chair Elect then, Chair from 2012 – 2015.  He then facilitated the Independent Expert Panel advising the Australian Federal Government on the identification of a suitable site for Australia’s National Radioactive Waste Facility.

Ray is currently a member of various (multi-disciplinary) UK Scientific Advisory Committees dealing with health and safety risks. Including the Committee on Medical Aspects of Radiation in the Environment (CoMARE). He also served three terms as a member of the UK Department of Health and Social Care’s Advisory Committee on Carcinogenicity of Chemicals in Foods, Consumer Products and the Environment (COC) 2013 – 2022.    From 2017-2023 he was a member of the Office for Road and Rail (ORR) Expert Consumer Panel providing independent advice on consumer aspects of the ORR’s role as safety, economic, consumer and competition regulator of the UK rail industry and major road network.

Ray is a non-executive director in the UK Department of Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) and a member of the UK Committee on Radioactive Waste Management (CoRWM) chairing the Subcommittee on Planning and Regulation. He served on the 2022-2024 International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Expert Mission advising the Japanese Ministry of Environment on the management of the significant volumes of contaminated soil that have been generated following the 2011 nuclear accident at Fukushima. Ray was honoured to have been invited to be a member of the second Mission 2026-2028.

Ray held tenure in the School of Environmental Sciences at the University of East Anglia before embarking on an environmental and engineering consulting career in 1991. He has advised on risk management and communication for various government organisations in Europe, the USA, the Far East and Australia, including the Health & Safety Executive, the WHO, the World Bank, the UK Environment Agencies, and the IAEA, as well as on major infrastructure projects for various organisations.

In 2022 he was pleased be elected to honorary membership of the Royal College of Radiologists in recognition of his service to the College’s Curriculum Committee and the Speciality Training Board.

Register of interests

An up-to-date record of member interests can be found on the register of interests page.