Budget binds Australia’s green economic future to R&D

Government plans for a low-carbon economy require a revitalised research sector, sooner rather than later

The key detail for the research community in Australian treasurer Jim Chalmers’s budget on 14 May was the announcement of a “strategic review” of research funding. Cue groans from some observers at the prospect of another review hot on the heels of the Universities Accord, a higher education reform review that started in 2022.

Nonetheless, sector groups expressed relief that research was finally getting more focus. To understand the likely direction of travel of the research review, look no further than the wider policy context in which it sits—the government’s Future Made in Australia plan.