The paper was given in RC32 Public Policy and Administration, as part of the panel “Speaking truth to power? Critical perspectives on evidence-based policy making”. With an empirical view on evidence-based policy making, Sabine Weiland presented the results from a survey of policy assessment systems in 17 European countries conducted in the LIAISE project. The survey shed light on the different purposes and practices of policy assessment. In her paper, Sabine Weiland put these differences in the context of national policy assessment systems and the broader national policy process.