New National Innovation and Science Agenda announcement

The Federal Governmment launched its new $1.1 billion National Innovation and Science Agenda today.

Some key points that are likely to affect medical research:

- New research funding arrangements for universities, with research block grants replaced with two new programs, including:

• a Research Support Scheme that will provide around $885 million in 2017 to Australian universities as a flexible funding stream to support the systemic costs of research.

- A $200 million innovation fund to co-invest in businesses that develop technology from the CSIRO and Australian universities.

- An enhanced permanent visa pathway for international STEM postgraduate research graduates, to be implemented in December 2016.

- A new $250 million Biomedical Translational Fund, funded by reducing capital contributions to the Medical Research Future Fund by $125 million in 2015-16 and 2016-17.

- $520 million for the Australian Synchotron.

- $13 million to support women in STEM

The Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull says Australia is falling behind on measures of commercialisation and collaboration in research, something this initiative will aim to address.

More detail is available at: www.innovation.gov.au. The press release from the Prime Minister's office is available here.

A review of research policy and funding (which helped to inform the new innovation agenda) was released on Friday. Here is the report.