Australia's space industry is a critical sovereign capability we need to develop. The announcement of $1.2B in funding for a series of Earth observation satellites will not only sure up Australia's access to this vital data, but develop expertise, manufacturing opportunities and supply chains in Australia for satellite development. 

We also saw $65.7M committed over five years to fast-track Australian launch capability and more the $20M was allocated for coming years to build on other areas in the sector, including international engagement.

In terms of broader science, research funding spending comes primarily through the university commercialisation investment with an increased budget for research translation. There was no increase or initiatives for fundamental science which provides the foundation for translation. This is concerning given the importance of fundamental research and the benefit such an investment has to a nation (as outlined in the Academy of Science budget statement).

Although I welcome previously announced support of Women in STEM programs, including the superstars of STEM and STEM ambassador programs, recognising the importance of attracting and retaining women in the STEM areas.

The Government is doubling the Home Guarantee Scheme to make available 50,000 places per year. Under the guarantee scheme, the government guarantees the borrower loan repayment to banks for up to 15% above 80% loan-to-value which is the cap that does not require lender mortgage insurance.
 
The initiative aims to improve housing affordability and access for young Australians. Borrowers can access loan amounts that enable them to purchase their first home.
 
Currently, many economists predict house prices are about to drop due to interest rate increases. Banks already have started reducing loan amounts following prudential regulations. The provision of limited spots for the government guarantees may create a fear of missing out and may lure young Australians into buying into the market at the peak. The consequence of higher interest rates and lower house prices for borrowers will be higher outgoings (mortgage repayments) and loss of wealth. An increase in mortgage delinquencies and default is possible.

Tonight’s Federal Budget is a starting point, but lacks a long-term holistic strategy essential to safeguard Australia’s economy, society and environment. 

The Government’s election-eve budget presents a vision for a skilled, technology-powered Australia but has missed an opportunity to make a long-term investment in supporting Australia’s technological ambitions, leaving the nation exposed to workforce shortages and an unpredictable future. 

We welcome funding for green energy infrastructure and expanding the science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) workforce. However, this budget does not represent a comprehensive and evidence-based investment to decarbonise, or develop the essential foundational skills required for the aspirational technology-forward economy the government has envisaged. 

As Australia seeks to transform to a net zero emissions economy and evolve traditional industries, applied science is fundamental to actualising the ideas, technologies, systems and processes needed. 

The $12 billion investment in roads is a missed opportunity to fast-track electrification of the transport system and achieve Australia’s emission reduction commitment. 

The expansion of the Patent Box for agricultural innovation is welcome, as is the extension to green energy.

ATSE welcomes $247.1 million over 5 years for low emissions technologies including hydrogen, and support to farmers for biodiversity activities, ATSE is concerned that other energy related announcements are at odds with fast-tracking a net zero future and risk stranded assets. 

ATSE welcomes the $1.2 billion promised for space Earth observation - which will support disaster resilience, primary industries, transportation and more – and $9.9 billion for cyber security capabilities. These investments will create strong demand for a highly skilled STEM workforce, and a skills strategy from kindergarten-to-career is urgently needed. 

Ahead of the federal election, ATSE calls on all parties to articulate a vision for a skilled, thriving, resilient, tech-powered Australia which puts people first.

The 2022–23 Federal Budget contains some welcome measures for science but falls short on the vision needed to support Australia’s economic recovery and protect our future.

The Australian Academy of Science welcomes funding of $5.3m over two years to improve the National Science and Technology Council provision of evidence-based advice to government.

It was pleasing to see that mechanisms that bring science to the service of government will not be lost during or after Australia’s recovery from the pandemic.

This must continue to be an important part of our future preparedness.

The ongoing provision of evidence-based advice to independently inform government decisions was recommended in the Academy’s pre-budget submission.

The Academy also notes the Budget’s focus on space, mRNA manufacturing, medical research and funding for the University Research Commercialisation Fund.
 
Research translation, commercialisation and acceleration will be crucial for keeping Australia safe.
 
But this Budget falls short of the vision needed to put Australia on a strong footing in an uncertain future.  
 
It is disappointing that fundamental science capability is not recognised as the first essential step in the commercialisation effort, and there are no measures to boost basic research investment.
 
This at a time when science is at the heart of every major issue being faced by our nation: the pandemic response; national security, mitigating and adapting to climate change; and recovering from flood and other extreme events.
 
Advanced industrial societies depend on a secure and active science sector to help deliver high-wage jobs and high-value industries to maintain the standard of living for their people and to propel economic growth. Australia is no different.
 
For scientists, the pandemic in Australia has brought about both great purpose and great uncertainty. Too many have been affected by reduced funding, job losses, increased workloads, and declining morale.
 
Despite one-off funding for research and science during the pandemic, in 2021 the Australian Government’s investment in science was 0.56% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) – which is lower than comparable nations – and less than R&D investment in 2010.

The Academy welcomes the following measures announced in this Budget:

• $2b for a Regional Accelerator Program
• $1.3b for Australia’s space sector
• $83.1m for Australia’s circular waste economy
• $66.3m new funding for AIMS
• $50.5m for a virtual Critical Minerals R&D Centre 
• $37.4m for research translation at CSIRO  
• Expansion of the patent box tax concession to low emissions and agricultural technologies
• Continuing support for women in STEM, across the career pipeline.
• Continuing support for the Modern Manufacturing Strategy

Science & Technology Australia welcomes new investments in research commercialisation in the 2022 Budget, while urging deeper investment in discovery science to secure our innovation pipeline for decades and Australia’s long-term safety and prosperity.
 
The extension of the new Patent Box tax discount for Australian companies to manufacture clean energy technologies onshore - powerfully advocated by STA - is great news.
 
A $2 million investment to extend Science & Technology Australia’s Superstars of STEM program for another four years will help to deepen diverse women role models in STEM.
 
The next task is to deepen our nation’s investments in essential discovery and blue sky science - to deliver major research breakthroughs that can catapult Australia’s capabilities.

On the Space sector:

The government's announcement that it will invest 65 million in Australia's space sector is welcome news. This pledge joins other efforts to bolster Australia's space industry through the Australian Space Agency, the Australian Civil Space Strategy, and the new Australian Space Command.

Australia is still playing catch-up with the rest of the world in developing capability in space. Space-based observations of our lands, rivers, and coasts have an economic benefit of more than 5 billion per year (Australian Earth Observation Community Plan 2026). The lack of sovereign capability in space represents a critical risk to Australia's economy, safety, and national security.

On basic research:

It is important to place the government's 65 million commitment to boost Australia's space industry in context. While it is certainly a good thing to support jobs and commercialisation in the rapidly growing space sector, none of this funding goes to basic research. Australia still underinvests in basic space research compared to other developed countries: fundamental space research in Australia receives around 2 million per year, an amount that hasn't increased in a decade.

Fundamental research, driven by discovery, is the launchpad for long-term societal benefit.

The establishment of the National Allergy Centre of Excellence will be a huge leap forward for our understanding of allergies, especially in an Australian context, and will provide a solid evidence-base for initiatives of the National Allergy Council. Together, we will implement the first national allergy registry alongside a live anaphylaxis reporting system, which will facilitate precision medicine and improve consumer safety and prevent anaphylaxis deaths.

Pre-election budgets are usually dominated by vote-buying handouts, with little attention to long-term needs. But even by these low standards, the 2022 budget is a bad one. Looking at the measures included in the budget, it is as if the COVID pandemic never happened and climate change did not exist.

There’s nothing to address the crisis in aged care, and no response to the threat of climate change. The infrastructure policy is dominated by pork-barrel projects. The best Australia can hope for is that this budget is never implemented, and that Labor does not sink quite as low in its response.

It is pleasing to see the Commonwealth Government is responding to Australia’s mental health crisis by allocating more money for youth and general mental health services. But at a time like this it’s important to ensure a coordinated approach for the roll out of these services and funding across the country – from the cities to the regions.
 
The science told us before we went into lockdowns associated with the pandemic that these situations would have a negative impact on mental health of Australians as a result of breakdowns in social interactions, loneliness and a lack of face-to-face treatments.  So now we are seeing horrific numbers in the emergence of mental health conditions, particularly in young people.

COVID-19 has put enormous added pressure on existing services that are already being funded and, in many respects, we are playing catch-up. Thus more than ever its important there is equitable distribution of services and funding so as to address the emerging and acute problems we are now facing – for example young people who cannot get an appointment unless they are already in the system.
 
This is particularly the case in regional areas where services are already stretched beyond capacity and the ever-increasing demand is outpacing the work we are doing. For this reason, it is vital we coordinate our mental health approach on a national scale.

The Australian government has promised it will deliver net-zero emissions by 2050 for the road transport sector. Unless there is a considerable increase in spending on infrastructure to enable the electrification of road transport our recent research has demonstrated that promise could not be achieved by 2050. Australia needs to step up the rate of transition with well targeted spending. Tax breaks that currently favour gas guzzling vehicles will require attention to ensure that electric vehicles are not disadvantaged. Supporting a home grown electric vehicle manufacturing industry could help shield us from vehicle supply problems and provide models that suit Australian conditions. 

Australia has one of the lowest levels of fuel excise in the world and up until recently petrol at the bowser has been cheaper than in many other countries. While the income from fuel excise is not directly pledged to infrastructure such as roads and bridges it is used for that purpose. If there is insufficient income and hence funds available, then the repairs to the infrastructure that has been ruined in the recent floods and bushfires may leave many communities stranded for longer than necessary. Australia needs to prepare itself for a future with increasing frequency and intensity of natural disasters. 

Electrifying our transport system will reduce our reliance on overseas oil (which mainly originates in the Middle East and is refined in Asia). Supply chains could easily be interrupted in a future conflict, and it would keep here in Australia the billions of dollars that flows every year to overseas owned fuel companies, who pay little in the way of taxes, providing more jobs in our own energy sector. It will also reduce the billions spent on subsidies propping up a sunset industry. 

Reducing fuel excise may provide a short-term minor benefit to consumers but there will be long term pain for us all. Transport affects every aspect of our lives, and we need an efficient transport system that is self-reliant. The education sector must ensure we have a well-trained workforce able to deal with an electrified future, and who can make sure the system transitions seamlessly from oil to electric vehicles. Money must be allocated in the budget for that specific purpose.

The Government announced a temporary 50 percent cut to the fuel excise for a period of 6 months. This will see excise on petrol and diesel cut from 44.2 cents per litre to 22.1 cents per litre. 

It is questionable though whether these cuts will reduce petrol prices. In the short term, the impact of these cuts will depend on what happens with global oil prices. The fuel excise tax is a fixed amount per litre regardless of market price. So if the price of oil continues to go up, the 22 cents reduction may be eaten up quickly by the sharp increase in global petrol prices in the coming days or weeks. And if the war is prolonged or escalated, oil prices are expected to reach as high as $US150 a barrel, which would push petrol prices across the nation to nearly $2.50 a litre. There is also no guarantee that any cost reduction in fuel excise will be passed by retailers to consumers.

Another consideration is that the fuel excise cuts will leave a massive hole in the government's federal budget. The fuel excise is essentially money that is meant to be reinvested in transport infrastructure, so the cut would likely mean less funding for transport infrastructure projects. A short-term cut of fuel excise could come with long-term pain! 

Cutting fuel excise will also reduce incentives to transition to net zero. While the cuts may offer some relief at the bowser, they would not serve Australia’s economic interests in the long term particularly energy security. It would prolong our alarming dependence on oil imports and undermine policies to shift the nation away from fossil fuels. The long-term solution should not be cutting fuel excise – rather it should be reducing demand for oil through policies that promote switching to low-carbon and low-emissions vehicles. 

This is also a good time to rethink our transport taxation system and move away from fuel excise taxes and vehicle registration fees towards user-pay road pricing solutions. 

Overall, it does not look like a cost-effective intervention and in the short term the money would have been better spent targeting impacted groups such as those on limited income living in outer suburbs who rely solely on their private vehicles and don’t have access to reliable public transport.

On the ESS:

The budget is a game changer for start-ups. The Employee Share Scheme (ESS) changes finally bring Australia into line with international competition. This will help start-ups attract talent. Ultimately, the ESS changes support long term innovation and economic growth. Far from being an inflationary boondoggle, these changes can spur long run productivity.

On fuel excise:

The reduction in the fuel excise is welcome. The biggest benefit will be indirect and to transport costs. A major inflation driver can be the cost of moving goods. The fuel excise cut will help truckers and trucking companies, and ultimately, this can help consumers with cost of living and inflation pressures.

On growth and inflation: 

The government has been mindful of inflation pressures and the desire to stimulate growth. The budget has largely focused on long term economic growth and productivity and on alleviating cost of living pressures. Key measures to help with the cost of living include expanding the first home guarantee program, cutting the fuel excise, and helping older Australians remain the work force should they want to. Key areas to stimulate growth include the employee share scheme changes, infrastructure spending, and apprentice subsidies.

The budget has been mindful to avoid creating excess inflation pressures. Different spending impacts inflation and growth differently. How the government spends money is more important than the mere fact that it is spending money. It is important for people to not conflate all spending as equally inflationary or contributing equally to a budget deficit. Here, the government has largely directed spending in a way that increases productivity and growth. This helps to off-set the inflationary impact because if productivity increases, then ultimately cost pressures can decrease. For example, a more efficient road can help alleviate cost pressures by enabling people to spend less on fuel and vehicle wear and tear. A fuel excise cut can – despite putting more money into consumers’ pockets – alleviate inflation. It can do this by reducing transport costs, which ultimately feed through into the cost of goods sold in stores.

On tax policy:

The government has fully considered that Australia is already one of the highest taxing countries in the world. The government is ultimately right to cut taxes at the appropriate time. Unfortunately, global uncertainty at present has not enabled such tax cuts. But, as that uncertainty resolves, it will be important for the government to focus on this. Notably, Australia lags countries in the region, such as Hong Kong and China, both of which have lower income tax rates than does Australia.

The budget does virtually nothing for the millions of Australians who are struggling in the insecure private rental market, battling to keep up their mortgage payments or prolonging their stay in the parental home because they cannot afford to move out.

The amount allocated for social housing and homelessness is negligible and will have no impact. There is no endeavour to dampen housing being a major site of speculative investment. Negative gearing and the generous capital gains tax means that investors will continue to view residential property as a primary site for investment and price out people trying to enter the market.

The housing affordability crisis is accentuating and cementing division in Australia. Middle class parents are able to help their children enter into home ownership. For more and more low-income households, home ownership is elusive. A large proportion of low income households now accept that they could be dependent on the insecure and expensive private rental sector for the remainder of their lives. They will never be able to afford to purchase a home and the intense scarcity of social housing means that this option is also not available.

According to a Productivity Commission report in 2019, in 2018 more than 1 million low income households (2.65 million people) rented in the private market and two thirds of these households were having to spend more than 30% of their income on rent.

Housing affordability, the ability of all Australians to have a home, is one of the most pressing challenges facing our country today. It is a pre-COVID crisis accelerated by the pandemic – for renters, for new owners, for young adults, for families, for older people.  

The housing crisis affects us all. When we survey people about their housing aspirations, over 90 per cent of Australians want the basics: safety and security. Most want this via home ownership but renters need security, too. 

It is welcome that the 2022 Federal Budget includes housing – yet unfortunately is a missed opportunity for widespread impact. 

Three key problems exist with the Budget’s focus on the first home owners’ scheme. First, the scheme is capped and targeted in ways that will restrict some first home buyers being able to access the scheme.

Second, it is not only first home owners that need mortgage support – data trends show it is families re-entering the market or keeping up mortgage payments after separation, it is people rightsizing their housing in later life.

Third, extending the First Home Guarantee while failing to address other policy levers that act to increase property prices is likely to have limited impact. We need national conversations about how emerging technologies can fast-track affordable and sustainable supply including after natural disaster, how negative gearing and capital gains tax exemptions can be used to support best housing affordability and access outcomes in cities and regions, and how smart analytics can match people to the housing they need. 

What is required is a coordinated, evidence-based National Housing and Homelessness Policy with a focus on housing all Australians.

This budget has missed the opportunity to build the better economy Australia talked about when COVID first hit and we realised recovery will be long and hard. Pump priming now doesn’t help the shift to industries and jobs with a long term future, nor does it help regions affected by fire, flood or on-going staff shortages.

Too many Australians are dealing with the challenges of finding care for their loved ones, whether because of old age, disability or the high cost and shortage of childcare.  This represents a drag on national productivity, keeping some people away from paid work and making worse labour shortages. 

More could have been done about housing affordability and housing shortages for all parts of Australia – the big cities, rural areas and remote parts of the country. Relying on low interest rates is not enough, especially when land and housing supply is at a breaking point and whole generations are being priced out of the market.

The budget is about Jobs Jobs Jobs, with some cost of living relief and boost to defence spending.

The government is playing to it’s strengths – jobs and national security and just doing enough to fend off cost of living rises at least temporarily.

And back in black? Forget that. Deficit and debt fetishes are gone as the Government knows it had to spend to save Australia from COVID. In short, Keynes was right after all. 

The big opportunity missed is on climate change. I expected more measures to ‘put the green back in the green and gold’.

The Government is investing to build the skills that Australia’s economy needs to thrive in a post COVID-19 world. These include the following over the next four years:

• $52.8 million to deliver an initiative – ReBoot – which will support up to 5,000 disadvantaged Australians develop skills and provide a pathway to employment. 
• $954 million to support a new Australian Apprenticeships Incentive Scheme for priority occupations.
• $557 million for small businesses to deduct an additional 20% of expenses on training courses.
• $1 billion to support small businesses to adopt new digital technology in their processes.
• An extra $589 million to the Australian Signals Directorate as part of a $9.9 billion defence, intelligence and cyber security package which the government says will create 1,900 jobs.

Besides funding more apprenticeships, and implementing reforms and investments in skills, the opening of Australian borders will have an impact on Australia’s entrepreneurial and innovation ecosystem that is driving economic growth. For example, 10,000 partner visas will be reallocated to the skilled visa stream also over the next four years. 

However, given the current low unemployment and the lessons learned over the last two years, throwing money at these problems will need to be supported by more nuanced initiatives and increased collaboration between relevant stakeholders so as to ensure that the new post-COVID and post-election opportunities are effectively exploited to improve the future-proofing of the Australian economy.

Our external environment affects our mental health and wellbeing. We know that contact with nature makes us feel better. So, what happens when this connectedness with our natural environments is disrupted by unprecedented climatic events, that are becoming common occurrences these days? An understanding of our deep connection and symbiotic relationship with nature and its psychological benefits make it personally relevant to protect and conserve our precious natural environments and help build and sustain climate awareness and collective action.

Advocates for the arts have been asking for a national arts plan. Research has shown that in real terms in the past decade federal arts funding in Australia dropped by almost 20 per cent and Australia ranks as 27th of the 33 OCED countries in cultural expenditure. The sector has been outraged by the increase in the last ten years of direct intervention of government in funding decisions and interference in arts grant decisions. Our Edith Cowan University research found the devastating impact of COVID on the arts has compounded the problem. A national arts plan or cultural policy could provide a central platform for a national arts identity.

Unsurprisingly, this budget contains a number of hip-pocket salves sure to please the Coalition’s voting base going into the election. The good news is that a lot of these measures actually make sense for Australia at this moment by supporting needy individual Australians, many of whom have been knocked around badly by the covid policy disaster, rather than just the rent-seeking elites who get a fat feed in every budget (including this one – just look at the eye-watering major infrastructure expenditures, for example).

I was looking for signs that the government has realised the folly of the covid policy era, but unfortunately there is still a money spigot spewing forth for vaccines, PPE, and other items in that suite of failed and expensive kit that will further enrich the elites from whom we buy these things without making any of us healthier, and that have been dragging Australia down for two years. Frydenberg also made a comical attempt to blame cost of living increases on the Ukraine war rather than admitting that the very woes he is styling himself as fixing have been caused, in the main, directly by government actions during the covid era.

I wanted to see spending that can be used to repair the hurt that has been caused by covid policies, and we do see some of that in tonight’s budget, including the investments in essential services, mental health, apprenticeships, local councils, domestic violence support, and tax offsets for low and middle income earners. I would have liked to see the budget figures coupled with a commitment by the government to lift immediately and never re-institute restrictions on movement and other fundamental freedoms of all Australians, and an explicit statement that diversity of views and approaches to problems is something of great value that our society should nurture rather than suppressing. This was not forthcoming – all we got was a bland statement that families know best what is in their best interests (does that include in relation to decisions like whether to get a medical treatment, or whether to travel overseas, Mr Frydenberg?). 

Also going unmentioned, even when Frydenberg announced funding for new medicines and health science R&D, was the hijacking of the Australian health system by the covid project. Turning this around requires restoring the freedom of independent medical professionals by significantly reducing the power of AHPRA, and an abandonment by the government of the shameful role of personal medical advisor that it has been indulging in since the covid vaccines were introduced.