Universities issue warning over record low research funding

Australian government spending on research has dropped to its lowest on record, triggering a warning from universities, writes Paul Osborne for Australian Associated Press.

New forecasts show spending is on track to be 0.49% of GDP (gross domestic product) in 2022-23, having never dropped below 0.5% since records began in 1978.

Universities Australia chief Catriona Jackson told the Australian Higher Education Industrial Association’s annual conference in Hobart on Friday 5 May the federal budget is an opportunity fix the nation’s research problem. “In tough fiscal circumstances, we recognise government can’t fund everything,” she said. “Tough decisions must be made at a time that calls for less public spending. But we know that research makes the nation stronger and wealthier.”
Full report on the Australian Associated Press site