As indicated by the Chief Medical Officer for England, the SAGE secretariat faced “huge pressure” in managing the monumental task of organising SAGE whilst adhering to the principles of transparent and scrutable scientific advice. We commend the efforts of officials in the Government Office for Science, the SAGE secretariat and independent advisers in their efforts to establish a regular rhythm of publicly available information, and hope that this is taken forward as a key learning for future emergencies. The Cabinet Office should work alongside the Government Office for Science to update SAGE guidance to incorporate the lessons learned for managing transparency during emergencies, taking account of: a) the potential volume of information; b) the publication and communication of non-peer-reviewed research informing SAGE; c) the potential length of time over which SAGE is activated; and 78 The UK response to covid-19: use of scientific advice d) the potential impacts on public trust.