Some Fallout from Dr Nelson's Crusade to Bring the ARC to Heel Comes to Light. (29 March 2006)

    The Australian's Dorothy Illing and Michael McKinnon have performed a significant service for Australian research, particularly university research, by obtaining documents through use of the Freedom of Information act demonstrating the effect of Brendan Nelson's appointment last year to the ARC's quality and scrutiny committee of three layman, Quadrant editor, Paddy McGuinness, former Channel-7 news anchor Ross Symonds and former High Court judge Daryl Dawson.

Ostensibly under a newly introduced "community function" determined by Dr Nelson the committee would assess whether projects routinely judged eligible for funding by the ARC's established college of experts could "deliver national benefit", but as Illing and McKinnon point out, "it would give Nelson the opportunity to use his lay appointees to sift out politically sensitive research projects before they reached his desk for signing off."

The extensive article by The Australian staffers should be read in full to appreciate the ructions that transpired (Dust-up down at the ARC). Some excerpts:

Not only did the three lay committee members - McGuinness, media personality Ross Symonds and former High Court judge Daryl Dawson - not agree, but McGuinness became increasingly isolated from the other committee members.

 

"The views reflected in Mr McGuinness's comments are not shared by the rest of the committee," the quality and scrutiny committee said in a report to the ARC board in October.

 

It referred to comments by McGuinness explaining his bid to have Nelson reject first 27, then 26, grants the college of experts had earmarked for funding.

 

It was an extraordinary period for ARC staff, many of whom were caught in the crossfire. Humanities and creative arts executive director Mandy Thomas, who had carriage of much of the correspondence between the protagonists, was one of them.

 

At the height of the kerfuffle ARC's CEO Peter Hoj sent an email to Thomas urging her to "stay strong". "I am sorry you have to endure all this," he said.

 

The ARC has refused to release the names of the 26 grants and McGuinness's comments. It has also refused to reveal any information that could identify the seven projects Nelson vetoed.

 

It argues that releasing this information would adversely affect the ARC's operations.

 

Ms Bishop last week told the HES she would not be appointing lay people to the quality and scrutiny committee.

 

She also foreshadowed a much less interventionist role in the grants process than her predecessor. And she expressed strong support for the ARC and peer review.

Has some good come from Dr Nelson's politically self-serving attack on the ARC?

Probably yes. So far Julie Bishop has shown a significantly more rational approach in exercising her responsibilities than her processor. May it be allowed to continue.

But she will be sorely tested when it comes to dealing with another of Dr Nelson's legacies --  the RQF (Research Quality Framework).