Review of Research Policy and Funding Arrangements for Higher Education: Response to the Issues Paper

This submission responds to the Issues Paper of the Review of Research Policy and Funding Arrangements for Higher Education, answering selected questions. Research Australia maintains that the creation of knowledge must remain the primary focus of research funding, with excellence as the main assessment criterion, and that programmes aimed at applying knowledge should be clearly distinguished from those aimed at creating it. It stresses that in health and medical research the ‘industry’ includes the whole health system, and that evidence-based practice and public health are paths to impact alongside commercialisation. It contends that Research Block Grants do not adequately meet the indirect costs of research and proposes simplifying them into two streams: indirect cost funding based on research revenue, and funding based on research student numbers. It recommends more funding for Australian Research Council and National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) competitive grants as success rates fall. It proposes expanding NHMRC Development Grants, citing a 2012 evaluation of 40 completed grants in which 85% reached full or partial proof of concept and 80% secured a commercial partner, while noting that only 26 of 142 applications were funded in 2014, worth about $15 million or 2.1% of NHMRC funding. It suggests near-automatic follow-on funding for successful research with commercial potential, specific support for researchers moving from industry and clinical practice, and equalising university payments for Honours and Masters by Research degrees.