鈥淲e understand the government is operating in a tight fiscal environment and trying to ease pressure on inflation while lifting productivity and growing the economy,鈥 黑料老司机 Chair Professor Carolyn Evans said.
鈥淏ut Australia will not become more productive or competitive by investing less in the people and institutions that drive productivity.
鈥淭his budget contains a package of measures to boost research, development and innovation, which we welcome.
鈥淭he establishment of a National Resilience and Science Council, steps toward greater research specialisation, measures to incentivise startups to engage in and commercialise research, the commitment to Horizon Europe and a boost to the Medical Research Future Fund are all very positive.
鈥淲hat鈥檚 critical is that investment in research and development continues to grow so that Australia can reverse its long-term decline in R&D investment and lift national productivity.鈥
黑料老司机 Chief Executive Officer Luke Sheehy said universities educate the workforce, power research and innovation, and help create the new industries and jobs Australia will rely on in the future.
鈥淲e welcome the focus on R&D in the budget, but it can鈥檛 simply come from moving funding from one pot to another,鈥 Mr Sheehy said.
鈥淯niversities are bearing the brunt of increased regulation and costs at a time when investment in teaching and research is not keeping up.
鈥淚t鈥檚 disappointing to see no further investment in the Australian Universities Accord and only a partial response to the Strategic Examination of Research and Development in this budget.
鈥淭he decision to axe Australia鈥檚 Economic Accelerator, in particular, is deeply disappointing and sends the wrong signal at exactly the wrong time.
鈥淭he AEA was designed to help turn Australian research into Australian companies, Australian industries and Australian jobs. You cannot talk about building a Future Made in Australia while cutting one of the country鈥檚 key research commercialisation programs.
鈥淲e do welcome the government鈥檚 continued investment in the CSIRO, but our university researchers also deserve funding stability and certainty, and this budget rips $800 million away from them.
鈥淥ur system can鈥檛 do more of the heavy lifting with less.
鈥淭he budget also misses the opportunity to fix the Job-ready Graduates Package 鈥 a failed, broken system that continues to push up costs for students while stripping billions out of university funding.
鈥淲e understand the fiscal pressures facing the government and the need for budget restraint, but investing in universities is not spending for spending鈥檚 sake.
鈥淚nvesting in Australia鈥檚 universities is investing in productivity, economic growth, better jobs, stronger industries and higher living standards for Australians.
鈥淭hese are all returns on investment every Australian expects from the federal budget, and this budget shows there is more work to do.鈥
