With a Great Sweep of Its Collective Hand the Government Publishes Its 15 Broadly Scoped Research Priorities. (June 22, 2013)

Perhaps its because it's the first full day of Winter or a Saturday, or both but in any case they come sans any budgetary commitments.

However, to make certain that the Australian Research Council and the National Health and Medical Research Council don't think this is a subtle leg pull, they have been given until mid-next year to "transition" to the new priorities. And we have all been given to understand that perhaps through some sort of subliminal communication: "This groundwork will be used to inform future advice on policy interventions to support the Strategic Research Priorities, including considering whether there is a need to change the level and balance of investment in priority areas."

The Australian Academy of Science's policy spokesman Professor Bob Williamson (perhaps with relief, tongue in cheek or both) told The Australian's Andrew Trounson: "These priorities are guidelines and aren't specific. They allow the government a great deal of flexibility and the government will have to decide priorities within these priorities if they are to be effective."

On the other hand he wasn't elected a Fellow of the Academy for being a dimwit: "The key question is whether the government is willing to support the priorities at a rate that makes Australia internationally competitive."

As has been stated many, many times previously, politicians tend not to answer the question asked by rather the one they would want to have been asked.

Tertiary Education minister Craig Emerson and Science Minister Don Farrell said in a joint statement: "Better targeted research is crucial to maintaining our competitive advantage and will help Australia meet our objectives under the Australia in the Asian Century White Paper."

"This does not mean that funding should be directed to applied, mission based research to the exclusion of other forms of research. Even in the priority areas, a significant amount of the research will need to be early stage, basic research. The Australian Government will continue to provide support for research through a variety of targeted and untargeted funding mechanisms, including base research funding to universities, competitive research grants and support for the distinctive mission and core activities of publicly funded research agencies."

Oh yes, those 15 carefully crafted priorities:

* Identify vulnerabilities and boundaries to the adaptability of changing natural and human systems
* Manage risk and capture opportunities for sustainable natural and human systems
* Enable societal transformation to enhance sustainability and wellbeing
* Optimise effective delivery of health care and related systems and services
* Maximise social and economic participation in society
* Improve the health and wellbeing of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people
* Optimise food and fibre production using our land and marine resources
* Develop knowledge of the changing distribution, connectivity, transformation and sustainable use of water in the Australian landscape
* Maximise the effectiveness of the production value chain from primary to processed food
* Improve cyber security for all Australians
* Manage the flow of goods, information, money and people across our national and international boundaries
* Understand political, cultural, economic and technological change, particularly in our region
* Deliver skills for the new economy
* Maximise Australia's competitive advantage in critical sectors
* Identify the means by which Australia can lift productivity and economic growth.