Sophie Mirabella (Indi, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Innovation, Industry and Science) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to indicate that the coalition will be supporting the Australian Research Council Amendment Bill (No. 2) 2010. This is a bill to amend the ARC Act to alter its administered funding arrangements. Given that this is the pretext for this debate, we are happy to accept and support the government’s actions in bringing these amendments to the House. We acknowledge and respect that this bill is not about changing the substance of the act itself.

The Australian Research Council has played a long and central role in helping to ensure the excellence of our country’s research, including at a global level. The coalition has long recognised the value and importance of government funding for that very high quality research, including by providing the ARC with significant increases in funding during the life of the Howard government, especially through the $5.3 billion Backing Australia’s Ability package. So the government is correct on this occasion in introducing this legislation—

Craig Thomson (Dobell, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Craig Thomson interjecting

Jill Hall (Shortland, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Ms Hall interjecting

Sophie Mirabella (Indi, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Innovation, Industry and Science) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I am glad to see that there is furious agreement from the other side—to ensure that the ARC continues to receive an appropriate level of administered funding to support its activities. I commend the bill to the House.

Craig Thomson (Dobell, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It is almost unique in this parliament to speak to a bill that is actually being supported by the opposition. We are used to the no, no, no from the other side, the negative rants that come out of there. I am shocked—we have a bill, the Australian Research Council Amendment Bill (No. 2) 2010, which they are actually supporting! Gosh, this is a red letter day. What makes it even more of a red letter day is that it is about investing in education.

The former government had an abysmal record in relation to education, both higher education and school education. The best thing the opposition did when they were in government, the big issue that they are very proud of, was putting flagpoles in schools. That is the crowning glory in their contribution to education over 13 years in government.

Opposition Members:

Opposition members interjecting—

Craig Thomson (Dobell, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

You should hang your heads in shame in relation to what you did to education. What we saw under your government was that investment in tertiary education went backwards.

Peter Slipper (Fisher, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Dobell will direct his remarks through the chair.

Craig Thomson (Dobell, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you, Mr Deputy Speaker. What we saw under the previous government was a decline in investment in education. We were ranked last in the OECD in terms of the investments in education that occurred during the Howard government. They have a very, very sorry track record. That is what makes today such a red letter day. They have decided at last—and let us hope they do this in relation to the NBN and the carbon tax, because they do not have policies; I hope this is a change—to get out of the way and let us get on and do the job that governments do. I am very, very pleased that this bill is being supported.

The bill updates the special appropriation fund cap administered by the Australian Research Council to include indexation adjustments and an additional forward estimate for existing schemes within the National Competitive Grants Program. Indexation adjustments and adding of forward estimates are part of the standard budget process and are administrative in nature. The bill only alters or creates appropriations. The Australian Research Council Act 2001 is the source for administered funding which enables the Australian Research Council to provide funding to underpin high-quality Australian research, which is both fundamental and critical to the Australian national innovation system.

All universities, including the Central Coast campus of the University of Newcastle—which is in my region, a region that I share with the member for Shortland, who is here—are eligible to apply for funding under the National Competitive Grants Program. We would not have a university campus on the Central Coast if it were not for a Labor government. The former member for Dobell, Michael Lee, was successful in securing funding so that kids on the Central Coast would not have to travel up to Newcastle or down to Sydney for their higher education because we would have that campus.

It is a wonderful campus that is expanding in size every year. It is one of the most successful and innovative campuses in Australia. In fact, the Bradley report came out and there were recommendations in relation to the way higher education should be done, being integrated with TAFE and community colleges, and that is precisely the model that we have on the Central Coast. The Pro-Vice-Chancellor who looks after the Central Coast, Professor Stephen Crump, should be congratulated for the development of that campus and the role that he has played in terms of that.

University campuses and investments in education are very important to the people on the Central Coast because they have not always had these resources. It has only ever been Labor governments that have turned their minds to looking after the people on the Central Coast. We still have some problems in education and need continuing investment in what is there. Less than 40 per cent of the kids on the Central Coast actually complete year 12. We are talking about raising national benchmarks to 90 per cent. We are still at half the current national benchmarks of 80 per cent. So you can see that it is a region that, at the high school level, needs particular investment. It also needs it at the university level. We have this great campus that is now attracting more and more kids and fewer of them have to go to Sydney. One of the problems with going to Sydney is that they often drop out because of the difficulties with the four-hour round trip every day. In my electorate we still have the second lowest number of people who go on to get degrees. We have difficulties in retention at year 12 and in terms of people going on to get their degrees.

The Central Coast campus of the University of Newcastle has terrific programs, including Next Steps, which is a program for kids who did not quite have the marks to get into university. They can come to the campus and do courses. If they are successful in doing that, those courses are converted to their first year of university. That has been a great bridge in an area that has struggled to have these facilities for children to go through and get the training they need to get jobs. These programs have been absolutely fantastic.

The Ourimbah Campus has a new exercise science building, which is a fantastic project that this government has funded. It will provide three special teaching spaces and laboratories for exercise and sports programs. The Central Coast has a very strong sporting culture. We are home to the Central Coast Mariners. I take this opportunity to wish them all the best in their game on Saturday. I am sure it will not be their last game of the year. I am sure that they will have some success over the member for Moncrieff’s team, Gold Coast United, and go on to meet Brisbane Roar in the grand final. I think it is only fitting that that actually happens. We have a very strong sporting culture. The university, as part of that culture, has developed specialist expertise in exercise science, which plays a great role for us on the Central Coast. That is one of the areas that they work on.

Work is well underway on extensions to the campus library. It will soon be bigger and will be a great facility for students, staff and lecturers. It is worth mentioning, while we are talking about the Central Coast campus of the University of Newcastle, that the fine member for Robertson was a lecturer at this esteemed campus until she won the election last year. This is an area that is close to all three federal MPs who come from the Central Coast. The project to open up the library to the quadrangle will promote greater activity in the area. It will relocate the information common area and that will mean it is more accessible. There will also be a boost to the campus’s research capabilities, which is important. The investment needs to continue in one of the fastest growing campuses in Australia.

We know Australia is a clever country and now, thanks to this Labor government and the Excellence in Research for Australia initiative, for the first time we can see exactly how our country’s research efforts compare to the rest of the world. The first full ERA evaluation, its 2010 national report, showed us that we have a large number of research strengths and that we should be proud of this. It showed that our performance in areas like history, immunology and quantum physics is truly outstanding. The Minister for Innovation, Industry, Science and Research, Senator Kim Carr, observed:

… when it comes to funding quality research it is important the Australian Government fully understands Australia’s strengths and weaknesses.

The Australian Government invests billions of dollars in research each year. ERA gives the Australian taxpayer assurance that their money is being invested wisely and gives the Government a clear idea of the research areas we need to focus on for improvement and continued excellence.

The report also showed that we need to do better in some areas. The evidence the ERA evaluation gave us is helping us to find ways to improve.

Earlier this month the government announced the establishment of the Gillard Labor government’s Australian Research Integrity Committee. Australian taxpayers can now be more confident that the research activities that they fund meet the highest ethical and moral standards. The establishment of the committee reinforces the importance of upholding Australia’s science and research reputation in ensuring public research funding is used appropriately.

The government recognises that Australian researchers and research institutes are among the best and most respected in the world. We proudly invest billions of dollars in research each year. However, the government’s reputation must be protected and our investment must be ethical. That is why the government takes allegations of misconduct very seriously. We expect all allegations to be investigated thoroughly. The taxpayer deserves nothing less. The committee can be asked to investigate if it believes an institute has not taken appropriate action in their internal investigations into alleged research misconduct.

This bill will apply indexation to existing appropriation amounts in the act and add an additional out year for the financial forward estimates. Indexation adjustments and adding a forward estimate are part of the standard budget process and are administrative in nature.

In the time that I have available I would like to talk a bit about the grants program. The Australian Research Council Amendment Bill (No. 2) 2010 provides additional funding for the council as part of the standard budget process. This is important legislation to ensure the ARC can continue to support high-quality research in Australia. Through the National Competitive Grants Program, the Australian Research Council supports the highest quality fundamental and applied research training through national competition. The ARC funds research and researchers under the National Competitive Grants Program.

As part of its commitment to nurturing creative abilities and skills of Australia’s most promising researchers, the NCGP provides support for the highest quality research leading to the discovery of new ideas and the advancement of knowledge; financial assistance towards facilities and equipment that researchers need to be internationally competitive in; support for the training and skill development of the next generation of researchers; and incentives for Australia’s most talented researchers to work in partnership with leading researchers throughout national innovation systems and internationally and to form alliances with Australian businesses.

The NCGP comprises two main elements: Discovery and Linkage, under which the ARC funds a range of complementary schemes to support researchers at different stages of their careers, build Australia’s research capability, expand and enhance research networks and collaborations, and develop centres of research excellence. A major component of Linkage is the ARC Centres scheme, which brings together leading researchers from around the world to work collaboratively on specific research problems. The ARC Centre’s scheme is administered independently of the other components of Discovery and Linkage.

As I noted at the start of my contribution, this is an important bill. It is a great pleasure that we at last have a bill that is supported by the opposition. We are hoping that this is a change in trend and that we are now going to see a more positive opposition—though I am not holding my breath. It has been a very unusual feature to see them make any positive contributions to any national infrastructure issues or national policies that further develop Australia’s interests. Given their extremely poor record in government in relation to education it is somewhat of a surprise that we find them supporting any government legislation. But we do welcome this support—it is something that should be given bipartisan support. Let us hope that they can come to the party in relation to the other big issues that we are also debating in terms of carbon tax, the future of our planet, and the NBN—some of the big, major infrastructure issues. We need to be able to take a bipartisan view in relation to these issues so that the Australian people get the best they can out of this parliament rather than the continual negative ‘No, no, no’ that we see every day from the opposition. It was refreshing today to hear the opposition support our bill. I commend this bill to the House.

Jane Prentice (Ryan, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Research is of fundamental importance to society. In particular, Australia has a proud history of delivering world-leading innovations, inventions and cutting-edge technology. From the Hills hoist, Victa lawnmower and Cochlear implant to the black box, Australian research has set high standards in improving lives all over the world.

Our researchers are of exceptional calibre, and change lives for the better. By providing the government with advice on research matters, and administering programs such as the National Competitive Grants Program and the Excellence in Research for Australia initiative, the Australian Research Council plays a vital role in the development of research in Australia. The ARC also provides Australian researchers across all disciplines with international benchmarks with which to measure themselves, promoting excellence in research through providing both domestic and international standards for comparison.

My electorate of Ryan is home to the University of Queensland, one of Australia’s Group of Eight research intensive universities. The University of Queensland consistently ranks well above world standards across the board with respect to research. The University of Queensland is host to the Diamantina Institute, directed by Professor Ian Frazer. As we all know, Professor Frazer, a local resident, was Australian of the Year in 2006 for creating the world’s first preventative cancer vaccine—the HPV vaccine against cervical cancer.

The HPV vaccine began to be administered in Australia in 2006 under the common name of Gardasil. It has changed the lives of girls and women around the world, and indeed changed the future of the Australian health industry with the virtual elimination of an entire strain of cancer. This development, which will not only achieve huge savings for the health industry in Australia but also, importantly, prevent the pain and stress families may have otherwise suffered through a fight against cervical cancer, is truly invaluable.

I would also like to take this opportunity to congratulate Professor Frazer on his recent appointment as chief executive of the new $345 million Translational Research Institute, which will be the only one of its kind in the Southern Hemisphere, able to research, trial treatments, and manufacture drugs all in the one location.

Professor Frazer’s work on the HPV vaccine dates back to 1989—almost 20 years before it was widely administered. This in itself shows the importance of continued funding of research. Ensuring that funding of the Australian Research Council is, at the very least, indexed in accordance with inflation is an important part of ensuring that our Australian research community is not short-changed. These projects take time—years and decades—but they change lives forever.

Another researcher in my electorate who is changing lives is Professor Mark Kendall. Professor Kendall is a researcher with the Australian Institute of Bioengineering and Nanotechnology, also based at the University of Queensland. Professor Kendall and the AIBN are currently developing a needle-free vaccination, focusing on the delivery of biomolecular stimuli to cells in the skin using physical methods.

On a recent tour of the institute, researchers showed me a device the size of a fingernail that has the power to administer vaccinations without the use of a syringe. The device—a micronanoprojection array patch—is a patch with thousands of tiny projections, invisible to the naked eye, that are covered in biomolecules. When placed against the skin, these projections deliver the biomolecules precisely through to the target cells. How remarkable is that! Imagine the difference such a breakthrough will have in developing countries.

Tragically, at the moment 14 million people around the world die annually from infectious diseases, many of which can be prevented by vaccination. With the development of a micro-nanoprojection array patch so many current barriers to mass vaccination could be simply eliminated. Barriers such as climate control, transportation, fragility of the syringes, the simple size of a vaccination device, needle-stick injuries, ease of administration and even needle phobia could all be eliminated. Imagine a world where, if a swine flu epidemic breaks out, health administrators can send a vaccination out in the post. This world is not too far away as a result of world leading research in Australia, indeed in Ryan. To achieve this world, researchers need access to generous funding and funding needs to be managed. That is the Australian Research Council’s role.

I am also privileged to have living in my electorate the President-elect of the Australian Society for Medical Research, Dr Paul Dawson. The Australian Society for Medical Research is one of the nation’s peak professional bodies, representing approximately 160,000 researchers around Australia. I recently met with Dr Dawson to discuss the issues that he regarded as most important to his industry. Funding was his top priority. As Dr Dawson rightly pointed out, Australia is faced with an ageing population. With an ageing population comes increased costs and burdens on our health industry that this government and state Labor governments around the country are clearly already struggling to manage. Continued support for research is as vital as it is valuable. The Australian Society for Medical Research estimates that for every dollar invested in research and development, an average of $2.17 of health benefits is returned—more than double—with a minimum of 57c and a maximum of up to $6.

It would also be remiss of me whilst discussing the Australian Research Council not to mention the outstanding result achieved by the University of Queensland in the recent Excellence in Research for Australia initiative. The University of Queensland has recorded above world standard results across the board in every field assessed. This has placed the University of Queensland third amongst Australian universities and is clearly a reflection of the outstanding dedication, commitment and hard work being conducted by both those on campus and the specialised research institutes encompassed by the University of Queensland. Additionally, UQ has been confirmed as Australia’s most comprehensive university, being active in 24 out of a possible 25 fields of research.

As well as the University of Queensland’s outstanding ERA results, the findings show that Australian universities across the board are achieving significant feats in research. Whilst all of our Group of Eight universities ranked above world standard, it was heartening to note that our younger universities are also making inroads into a wide range of disciplines, giving the sector an important layer of diversity. The success of these younger institutions is reflective of the success of their young researchers and lecturers. As noted in the Australian last week, selection committees that hire new lecturers are being impressed by both the quantity and the quality of publications coming from the applicants. As the paper simply puts it:

… most lecturers in Australia are more highly accomplished in terms of publications than their forebears …

Whilst this is heartening news for the sector and the motion before us today is an important step, in light of the up-and-coming nature of our researchers the question must always be: can we do more? We face a challenge to ensure that future funding streams are sufficient to maintain the momentum behind research institutions which create social and economic dividends for taxpayers, industry partners and investors. These examples are just part of Australian research, yet they alone achieve so much and provide so much positive change in people’s lives around the world. The continued funding of the Australian Research Council, indexed for inflation and forward estimates, is a vital component in Australia continuing to be a world leader in research. I support this amendment.

Mike Symon (Deakin, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I speak in support of the Australian Research Council Amendment Bill (No. 2) 2010. The purpose of this bill before the House is to index funding for the Australian Research Council over the next four financial years. It results in additional spending of just over $824 million over those years by adding an additional out year to the forward estimates and by updating the indexation rates. The ARC is a statutory authority within the Australian government’s Innovation, Industry, Science and Research portfolio. Its mission is to deliver policy and programs that advance Australian research and innovation globally and benefit the Australian community as a whole. We all know that research is critical to Australia’s future prosperity. It drives our economic productivity, delivers new solutions to environmental challenges, attracts global investment and improves our social wellbeing. The ARC builds Australia’s research capabilities by advising the government on research matters and managing the National Competitive Grants Program and has responsibility for the Excellence in Research for Australia Initiative.

In the last parliament, I was privileged to be a member of the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Industry, Science and Innovation. That committee undertook a report into the sector as part of its work in the 42nd Parliament. The report was titled Building Australia’s research capacity. It followed an inquiry into that area examining key issues to deal with or happening in Australia’s research fields. I believe the work that was done by the standing committee has fed into government policy and new initiatives. It is a good thing for any member of the House involved with a committee to see the work that has been done over a number of months turned into reality, coming through the legislation in this place. The inquiry into research training and research workforce issues examined the needs of researchers at different stages of their careers. The final report identified the clear need for the government to do more to support researchers’ career development. I am pleased to note that many of the recommendations we made at the time have come into being, although there are many more that are still waiting their turn.

The ARC has a series of fellowships to support researchers at different stages of their careers, including the Australian Laureate Fellowships, Future Fellowships and Super Science Fellowships. The ARC fellowships help support researchers. As an example of the research supported by the ARC fellowships, I would like to talk about a research project at the University of Melbourne. Associate Professor William Shieh, from the Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, was granted a Future Fellowship to investigate ultrahigh-speed optical transport for sustaining the growth of the internet. This research aims to study novel transport technologies to construct optical backbone networks supporting internet traffic, and the project will help keep Australia at the leading edge of the exciting terabit technologies that are coming up as well as create commercial opportunities within Australia. This Future Fellowship is one example of how we in government have acted to support the careers of Australia’s researchers.

Encouraging and supporting research has been a theme of this government since we were elected. Innovative research feeds into the wider economy, delivers highly skilled jobs and supports our local industries. As well as overseeing the fellowship programs, the ARC manages the National Competitive Grants Program, which includes schemes to encourage individual and collaborative research, research infrastructure, equipment and facilities. The National Competitive Grants Program directly funds research programs from around Australia.

The ARC manages linkage projects which encourage and develop long-term strategic research alliances between higher education organisations and other organisations, including with industry, in order to apply advanced knowledge to problems that have been identified. The ARC supports centres of excellence, special research centres, co-funded centres and special research initiatives. ARC centres of excellence are hubs of expertise through which high-quality researchers maintain and develop Australia’s international standing in research areas of national priority.

As an example of a funded centre of excellence, the ARC Centre of Excellence for Ultrahigh Bandwidth Devices for Optical Systems is based at the University of Sydney. This centre will receive $23.8 million over seven years to conduct its cutting-edge research. Another example is the ARC Centre of Excellence for Quantum Computation and Communication Technology, based at the University of New South Wales, which will receive $24.5 million over seven years to continue research. These are just two of the 13 ARC centres of excellence funded by the government.

In addition to the ARC centres of excellence, the ARC funds special research centres. These are funded by the ARC on the basis of research excellence and their potential to contribute to the economic, social and cultural development of Australia. Subject to satisfactory performance, the special research centres have been funded for nine years. Currently there are 15 special research centres covering areas as diverse as particulate fluids processing, the subatomic structure of matter and tectonics.

The ARC Special Research Initiatives scheme identifies new or emerging areas of research and provides funding for them. In 2009 the Australian Research Council funded a new collaborative research initiative to develop a functional bionic eye. In government, Labor committed $50 million over four years to fund this research. In 2011 the Australian Research Council will fund a new collaborative research initiative under the Special Research Initiatives scheme to support stem cell science. The Australian government has committed funding of to $21 million for a period of up to seven years. The Special Research Initiative in Stem Cell Science will fund one or more proposals to deliver a program of activity supporting stem cell research.

This is just a snapshot of the initiatives of the ARC and how these initiatives support Australia’s research output. The ARC’s strategic plan for 2010-11 to 2012-13 was released in October last year and provides insight into the direction of the ARC and, therefore, where Australia’s research efforts are heading. Over the period of this strategic plan the ARC will further improve its fellowship schemes by providing more opportunities for female and early career researchers. The ARC will award two additional research fellowships specifically for women to its funding schemes. The two additional fellowships will be awarded each year under the competitive ARC Australian Laureate Fellowships scheme. This scheme aims to attract and retain outstanding researchers and world-class research leaders. The additional fellowships will bring the total to be awarded each year to 17.

The ARC will also deliver the new Linkage Research Training Awards scheme during the period 2010-11 to 2012-13. As part of the government’s Clean 21 initiative, the Linkage Research Training Awards scheme will not only create opportunities for our early career researchers but also target a range of industry sectors, with priority given to green industries and new strategies to enable the greening of existing industries. This research will help develop the new and clean industries of the 21st century that Australia needs and put us at the forefront of global efforts.

Also during the period 2010-11 to 2012-13 the ARC will identify and promote Australia’s research strengths following the first full Excellence in Research for Australia evaluation. For the first time, the government and all Australians will be able to identify the disciplines within Australian universities that are internationally competitive, as well as the emerging areas where there are opportunities for development and further investment. This will help Australia map out its research specialities and help focus its resources. The ARC continues its responsibility for the National Competitive Grants Program, which is a significant component of Australia’s investment in research and development.

This bill will expand the total funding of the ARC and by 2012-13 the funding for the ARC’s various programs will reach $817 million. The dispersal of this spending reveals the extent of the programs and innovation supported by the ARC. Discovery projects will receive nearly $312 million in 2012-13 and this funding will support individual and team research projects in Australia. As part of this funding, the ARC will introduce the new Discovery Early Career Researcher Award in 2012. This scheme will provide more focused support for researchers and create more opportunities for early career researchers in teaching and research positions and in research-only positions. It is anticipated that up to 200 three-year awards of up to $125,000 per annum will be awarded under this scheme.

The ARC will also invest substantial funds to support the careers of researchers through its fellowship programs. The Federation and Australian Laureate fellowships will receive $44½ million, $157-odd million will go to Future Fellowships and the Super Science Fellowship will receive just under $7 million. The Future Fellowships scheme offers four-year fellowships of up to $143,000 a year to 1,000 outstanding Australian and international researchers in the middle of their careers. The Super Science Fellowship scheme will offer three-year fellowships of up to $72½ thousand a year plus 28 per cent of on-costs to 100 outstanding Australian and international early career researchers.

Funding for Linkage Projects will reach $145.9 million in 2012-13. Linkage Projects is the main ARC funding scheme to advance research collaborations with end users. This funding includes: $30 million for infrastructure, equipment and facilities; $94½ million for research centres; and $24½ million for special research initiatives.

The ARC plays a central role in building Australia’s research capacity. This increase in funding for ARC activities will fund new initiatives and continue to build on Australia’s research capacity. I commend this bill to the House.

Gai Brodtmann (Canberra, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Australian Research Council Amendment Bill (No. 2) 2010 is an appropriation bill to support the ongoing and incredibly valuable research and work of the Australian Research Council. This bill applies indexation against existing schemes and adds the last year to forward estimates. This will add an additional $824 million over four financial years. That said, this bill does not alter the substance of the act or increase departmental funds. The ARC is a statutory authority existing under the Department of Innovation, Industry, Science and Research. Its mission is to deliver policy and programs that advance Australian research and innovation globally and to benefit the Australian community. To achieve its mission the ARC advises the government on research matters and manages the National Competitive Grants Program, which constitutes a significant component of government investment in Australian research and innovation.

Many in this chamber will also be aware of the ARC’s role in monitoring the quality of Australian research and ensuring it is hitting the mark internationally. The ARC achieves this through the Excellence in Research for Australia initiative. The ARC has a long history in this country, beginning in 1946 with the establishment of the Commonwealth Universities Research Grants Committee to advise government on the allocation of research grants. Initially, this was an interdepartmental committee under the Department of Education. In 1965 it was more formally established to advise government on the allocation of the Australian Research Grants Scheme, the predecessor of today’s Discovery Grants scheme. In 1966, almost $4 million was received by 406 successful applicants to the scheme. That was a significant amount of money in 1966 terms. In 1988, under the Dawkins reforms of the Keating government, the ARC was established under its current name. In 2001 it was created as a statutory authority and given broader advisory functions and full responsibility for the assessment of grant applications.

The grants awarded by the ARC play an essential part in ensuring that Australia develops and attracts the highest quality of research talent from our own country and overseas. It also plays a vitally important role in retaining researchers in Australian institutions. This is particularly important. In addition, the ARC plays a crucial role in supporting the research and innovation that makes Australia the clever country. It is through this funding that Australia has been able to develop key innovations that have a direct impact on the lives of Australians and people across the globe. Innovations such as the bionic ear have their origins in ARC funding.

There are many types of grants that the ARC manages. Each type is designed to foster a different kind of outcome and broadly fall under the categories of Discovery Grants and Linkage grants. There are many layers to the onion, as I have discovered in doing the research for this speech. Discovery Grants scheme recognises the importance of fundamental research. The scheme recognises that a strong capability in fundamental research will result in the development of new ideas, the creation of jobs, economic growth and an enhanced quality of life for all Australians.

Funding under the discovery schemes goes towards developing early career researchers to make sure that Australia has a high-quality and ready pool of local research talent. It also goes to those researchers with a proven track record of results in research. The Future Fellowships scheme under the discovery program promotes research in areas that have been identified as being of critical national importance. This program aims to attract the best mid-career researchers with a proven track record to work on problems important to us all.

The Linkage program, as the name suggests, aims to encourage collaborative approaches to research between researchers, business, industry and community organisations. As someone who has been involved in business and also actively involved in industry associations, I can say that I really appreciate this kind of effort. It is really good to get research ideas realised through business and industry.

Linkage grants support the transfer of skills and knowledge to provide direct and tangible benefits to Australian society. The ARC awards grants through the Linkage, Infrastructure, Equipment and Facilities scheme. This scheme ensures Australian researchers have the latest and best equipment to further their projects.

Institutions in my own community have been successful in achieving some of these grants. The Australian National University, University of Canberra and the CSIRO have all been successful in gaining funding in 2011. Some of the projects that have been funded include over $196,000 for a project at the University of Canberra to investigate how DNA can be better used to identify physical traits and solve crime—very CSI. University of Canberra researchers also received $105,000 to investigate how mistletoe can be used in the treatment of cancer. A further $80,000 went to the University of Canberra to investigate the social and economic impacts of Fragile X syndrome and the benefits of early diagnosis.

The Australian National University has also been a significant contributor to the nation’s knowledge bank through the ARC. In 2011, $556,000 has been granted to researchers at the ANU to develop materials for a more efficient solar cell. This is an important aim given our current climate challenge, which some opposite deny. The ANU has also been given $330,000 to look at how recent reforms to the Community Development Employment Program have affected the livelihoods of Indigenous Australians. In all, $40 million has been invested in ACT institutions to fund 111 projects to improve our knowledge of the world. This is a significant investment and I commend the ARC for making that investment in Canberra.

As I stated earlier, the ARC recently completed its Excellence in Research for Australia 2010 national report. The report was the first comprehensive review of research conducted at Australian institutions. It was an incredibly large and comprehensive piece of work. This review covered 333,000 unique research outputs and 55,000 researchers across eight disciplines. It showed that Australia has many areas of strength where we are the very forefront of global research. In particular, we excelled in the fields of history, immunology, and quantum physics. These were all standout areas. The report also identified gaps and areas where we need to improve. That is the beauty of reports of this nature, of these transparency measures. They highlight our strengths, but they also highlight our weaknesses. The government has undertaken a project to address the identified gaps because of our continued commitment to innovation.

It has become cliche to attack academics and researchers as being aloof and distant from the problems of the real world. By extension, it is often easy to question government research grants. However, Australia is a small nation and we are a nation that runs a first world economy on what some would call a third world climate. The only way we have been able to survive as a nation is through our investment in research—research into resilient wheat, for example, and a whole range of other things to deal with the climate challenges we face. Our research holds the key to meeting the challenges that we face today from climate change.

Our research also holds the key to growing and developing our economy, to healing our sick, to educating our children, to ensuring we all have jobs and a roof over our heads and, particularly, to ensuring we are prosperous in the future. Far from being divorced from the real world, I know from my time at the University of Canberra that academics are serious people, committed people, who are deeply concerned with answering the real and large key questions that lie before us. While I may not always understand their work, I appreciate the results of their work and I commend this bill to the House.

I would like to add that International Women’s Day is coming up next week and I am looking forward to celebrating the achievements of 100 years of International Women’s Day with the sisters. I am also looking forward to working out ways we can continue to fight against the barriers that women face, particularly in achieving equal rights and equal opportunities. One of the areas I would like the ARC to consider looking at is the barriers to women achieving their goals in postdoctoral work. In speaking on this bill, I would like to ask the ARC to examine the introduction of a protected funding pool for female grant applicants. I welcome the initiatives they have had to date, but I wonder if there is more they can do. I would also like them to consider increasing the duration of part-time postdoctoral grants from four to six years and to examine the introduction of female postdoctoral advocates for each grant area. I would like the ARC to look at developing leadership career coaching and network-building programs for postdoctoral women and, finally, to explore possible sources of implicit bias, particularly in the science arena. Again, I commend this bill to the House.

Darren Cheeseman (Corangamite, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Today I rise to speak on the Australian Research Council Amendment Bill (No. 2) 2010. I must commend the previous speaker, the member for Canberra, for the very well thought through contribution that she made today. This bill makes a special appropriation funding cap that is administered by the Australian Research Council. The Australian Research Council is a statutory authority within the Australian government’s Innovation, Industry, Science and Research portfolio. Its mission is to deliver policy and programs that advance Australian research and innovation. The ARC provides advice to the government on research matters and manages the National Competitive Grants Program. This is a major part of Australian investment in research and development. The National Competitive Grants Program supports the highest quality fundamental and applied research, and research training, through competitive selection processes across all disciplines.

The ARC is a major funding source for research and innovation and investor driven research. I think they are lofty and important aims. The funding will help higher education providers do research in all areas of science and academia. ARC funding has been a big success for regional institutions. Of course, this is very good for my electorate of Corangamite and I certainly look forward to working very closely with Deakin University to ensure that it can access these competitive grants to give the university every opportunity to participate in research and innovation. This funding for the ARC is also very important for the future research of our higher education system. Since 2007 the ARC has delivered some 1,000 Future Fellowships. This was an election commitment that we took to the Australian people prior to the 2007 election. The federal government will be providing $844 million over the next five years as a part of this. This will fund some 1,000 mid-career research fellowships, which is very important for providing academics every opportunity to contribute to this nation’s knowledge.

In 2008 the federal government announced that the ARC Advisory Council would enhance the ARC’s independence, and I think that is a very lofty and important aspiration. This will include indexation adjustments and additional forward estimates for existing schemes within the National Competitive Grants Program. The federal government will also provide $239 million over five years. This will be used for 75 laureate fellowships. This is an important reform for this nation. Institutes will be able to apply for funding under the National Competitive Grants Program.

It is pleasing to note that this non-controversial bill, as I understand it, has the support of both sides of the parliament. It is not often that the federal government has been able to rely upon the support of the coalition, and I am very pleased that we have been able to do so on this very important matter. This bill will allow the ARC to continue to support high-quality research in Australia, and that is good news for Australia. This government has put in place many very important educational reforms, and I believe the ARC will play a very important role in the future of this nation’s educational research. We also know that the National Competitive Grants Program is an important part of this, and it will apply to a diverse area of research training through national competition.

I want to put on record again my great support for Deakin University. Deakin University continues to play a very important role in my electorate of Corangamite and right throughout the Geelong community. Indeed, Deakin University is our largest employer and plays a fundamental role in assisting the Geelong economy to diversify and in providing opportunities for bright people to contribute to this nation’s future. It is with pleasure that I commend the bill to the House.

Kate Ellis (Adelaide, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Employment Participation and Childcare) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

in reply—It is my great pleasure to sum up this important piece of legislation and thank all members who have participated in the debate on the Australian Research Council Amendment Bill 2010. As we have heard, this bill will support the ongoing operations of the Australian Research Council and three specific initiatives that will build Australia’s research capacity and promote excellence in our research. The bill updates the special appropriation amount administered by the Australian Research Council to include new funding for research in bionic vision science and technology, new funding for the Super Science Fellowships scheme, continued funding for National ICT Australia and an additional out-year and indexation of existing appropriation amounts in the Australian Research Council Act 2001.

The invention of a bionic eye will not only give and restore sight to tens of thousands of people around the world; it will also generate know-how that can be applied in many other areas. The 100 three-year Super Science Fellowships will support the next generation of researchers in our country. They will also complement our Australian Laureate Fellowships for established researchers, future fellowships for mid-career researchers and continued funding for National ICT Australia, the largest information and communications technology research organisation in Australia. This is absolutely essential to ensuring that Australia maintains its first-class reputation for research, training and commercialisation in this vital area.

Importantly this bill will see spending increase by approximately $889.6 million over the next four years. The proposed amendments change only the administered special appropriation; they do not alter the substance of the act or increase departmental funds. This is important legislation which will support the research our country needs to remain at the forefront of tackling global problems and also maintain Australian living standards. I commend the legislation to the House.

Question agreed to.

Bill read a second time.

Message from the Governor-General recommending appropriation announced.

Ordered that this bill be reported to the House without amendment.