MYEFO allocates $103 million to research funding

The Australian Government’s 2013-14 Mid-year Economic and Fiscal Outlook (MYEFO), released yesterday, redirected $103 million to funding research which, according to Minister for Education Christopher Pyne, will help researchers deliver outcomes that will have significant benefit to the nation through the Australian Research Council (ARC).

Pyne says MYEFO fulfils a Coalition election commitment by allocating $35 million over five years to Australian scientists and medical researchers looking for a cure for type 1 diabetes. The funding will go to the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation Clinical Research Network to help find a cure for type 1 diabetes and also take a coordinated nationwide approach to diabetes research, he said.

The remaining $68 million of the MYEFO decision will be redirected towards research in the fields of dementia and tropical diseases, delivering on another Coalition commitment.

“Investing and supporting medical research is one of the best long-term investments in health that a government can make,” Pyne said.

“Diabetes and dementia in particular are among the biggest killers of Australians so we must continue to fight these looming public health challenges by bringing our brightest and best minds to bear.”

MYEFO 2013-2014 can be viewed here.