Submission to the Senate Education and Employment Legislation Committee
On 19 January 2024 Australia’s Learned Academies made a joint submission to the Senate Education and Employment Legislation Committee inquiry into provisions of the Australian Research Council Amendment (Review Response) Bill 2023.
The Learned Academies endorse the proposed amendments in the Bill, which address six of the recommendations made in Trusting Australia’s Ability: Review of the Australian Research Council (ARC) Act 2001. These changes are consistent with our submissions to the Review consultation and will set a
strong foundation for the ARC to better support Australia’s world-class research effort.
The submission makes four recommendations to further strengthen the Bill:
- Recommendation 1: Clarify the structure, purpose and function of the Minister-appointed ARC Advisory Committee if it remains in the legislation.
- Recommendation 2: Clarify criteria for considering major research programs as “designated research programs”.
- Recommendation 3: Clarify the definition of “international relations” and how it is different to “national security” and “defence”.
- Recommendation 4: Increase funding allocation to the ARC, commensurate with the expanded scope and responsibilities and ensure the grant budget is protected.
Click ”download” to read the submission in full.
