2018-12-18
Australian Greens Education Spokesperson, Senator Mehreen Faruqi, has condemned the Liberal Government’s punitive $328.5m cuts to University Block Grants.
Senator Faruqi said:
“The Liberal Government has continued their war on universities with the $328.5m cut to Research Block Grants announced in the Mid Year Economic and Fiscal Outlook.
“These punitive cuts demonstrate the Liberal government’s disrespect for the higher education sector and the vital research work conducted in our universities.
“The cuts are more than double the amount previously announced. The government doesn’t even have the courtesy to consult or even let universities know how much money they are cutting.
“The principle here is simple. We cannot be an innovative country without properly funding universities to undertake world class research.
“The Liberals hostility towards universities is clear. They’ve politically interfered in ARC grant approvals, introduced a tax on unis with their Cost Recovery bill and have now confirmed they are gutting research funding,” she concluded.