The Labor government is seeking to remove ministerial oversight over which research programs receive taxpayer funding, in a move criticized as “irresponsible” and “undemocratic”.
As things stand, any research undertaken by the Australian Research Council (ARC) is subject to ministerial discretion, and proposals can be rejected if they are deemed to be “not in the national interest”.
But a new bill introduced by Education Minister Jason Clare attempts to eliminate that ministerial oversight and instead allow ARC full independence to award taxpayer dollars to research topics as it sees fit.
Speaking to Daily Mail Australia, Shadow Education Minister Sarah Henderson said Labor runs the risk of “wasteful or questionable projects that may involve inappropriate costs” being funded “without recourse”.
Of the thousands of ARC research projects that have been carried out over the years, the Coalition minister of the day has intervened on only 32 occasions.
Among the projects that were submitted, and subsequently rejected, were investigations into “gender liminality and globalization, transgenderism and transnationalism in contemporary Polynesia” and “dress and second-wave feminism in the Philippines” ( (pictured, a drag queen performing in the Philippines in 2023).
Among the projects that were submitted (and subsequently rejected) were investigations into “the liminality of gender and globalization, transgenderism and transnationalism in contemporary Polynesia” and “dress and second-wave feminism in the Philippines.”
Another was titled “Perverse Corporalities: Self-Transformation and the Sexual Body in Contemporary Queer and Gender Theory”, while the previous Coalition government also rejected a “history of Australian men’s dress” between 1870 and 1970.
Others investigated the communist style in Hollywood before it was blacklisted and love in modern Korea.
Opposition Business Director Paul Fletcher expanded on details of the rejected projects this week, in a bid to allow Australians to “draw their own conclusions” about the risks of removing government oversight.
“These were projects that sought to obtain taxpayer financing,” he said.
‘Queer Tokyo: a cultural history. Beauty and ugliness as persuasive tools for changing gender norms in China.
‘In the financial year 2021-22, almost 600 discovery projects were awarded. Only six of the recommendations made by the chief executive were rejected by the minister on duty.
The former coalition government also rejected a research project into the “history of Australian men’s dress” between 1870 and 1970.
Senator Henderson said: “This is bad policy from a very bad government.”
Recognizing the importance of Australia’s research sector in “driving innovation, advancing our economy and building a globally competitive nation”, Ms Henderson said the government must remain ultimately responsible for “spending taxpayer funds in the national interest.”
“Labour’s proposal to outsource public funding decisions of more than $500 million to an Australian Research Council (ARC) board, which is not accountable to Parliament, is irresponsible,” he said.
“It is also contrary to our system of parliamentary democracy which ensures elected representatives are accountable to the Australian people, not untouchable boards or committees.”
Both Fletcher and Henderson said the government intends to retain the ability to approve grants for other research programs as it sees fit, including centers of excellence and research centres.
Mr Fletcher said: ‘These projects, individually, tend to be of higher monetary value. Is it possible that this is because the Minister wishes to retain discretion over which projects will provide the greatest opportunities for ribbon-cutting or photography?
He also accused the government of “eliminating its responsibility for any decisions to parliament and ultimately to the Australian people” by “outsourcing decisions to a board”.
This financial year, ARC has awarded some $895 million in research grants, supporting 5,900 new and ongoing projects.
Minister Jason Clare said the changes to the proposed legislation were recommended to him through an independent review which concluded “we need to take the politics out of this”.
Minister Jason Clare said the changes to the proposed legislation were recommended to him through an independent review which concluded “we need to take the politics out of this”.
‘In recent times, the CRA has been beset by political interference and ministerial delays.
“(We must) put an end to the days of ministers vetoing things whose titles they didn’t like.”
Under the new legislation, an ARC board appointed by the minister will approve the grants.
The board must include a First Nations representative and a regional, remote or rural representative.
Speaking to Daily Mail Australia, Shadow Education Minister Sarah Henderson said Labor runs the risk of “wasteful or questionable projects that may involve inappropriate costs” being funded “without recourse”.
‘This is one of the critical changes recommended by the review. Under the current law, these decisions are made by the minister,” he said.
‘Every decision. In thousands of grants.
‘Over time, this has allowed political interference to seep into what should be an independent, peer-reviewed process aimed at expanding our nation’s knowledge base.
“Establishing the board as the approving body will take the politics out of this.”
Clare said the minister in charge would have the power to “direct the board not to approve a grant or to cancel funding for a grant… on national security grounds.”
Doing so would require notifying parliament and the Joint Parliamentary Committee on Intelligence and Security.