Media Release
Mark Butler MP.
Shadow Minister for Environment
Climate Change and Water
Reports
that Malcolm Turnbull has signed off on hundreds of CSIRO job losses,
and has all but ended climate research at the CSIRO, underscore just how
little has changed since Malcolm Turnbull took over from Tony Abbott.
Malcolm Turnbull is happy to use the CSIRO for a photo-op but his cuts are vandalising a great Australian institution.
The Turnbull Liberal Government is cutting 110 jobs in CSIRO’s Oceans and Atmosphere division, along with jobs in the Manufacturing division, Land and Water division and the newly created Data61.
The Turnbull Liberal Government slashed
CSIRO’s budget by $115 million, resulting in the loss of one in five
jobs – the biggest job losses in the organisation’s history.
This is not agile or innovative from Malcolm Turnbull, this is a disgrace and he should hang his head in shame.
The only people cheering this decision from
Malcolm Turnbull will be the far-right of the Liberal Party who are
calling the shots.
According to Andy Pitman, director of the ARC
Centre of Excellence for Climate System Science, these new job cuts
will result in a “catastrophic reduction in our capacity to assess
present and future climate change”.
They will also have a devastating impact on
CSIRO’s capacity to conduct research into carbon capture and storage and
energy efficiency, and to prepare Australia for the jobs of the future.
Today’s job losses are just another example of Malcolm Turnbull saying one thing and doing another.
Malcolm Turnbull has talked a lot about his
commitment to action on climate change but the reality is Tony Abbott’s
anti-climate science agenda is continuing under the Turnbull Liberal
Government.
Almost 1400 CSIRO employees have been shown the door since the Liberals came to government.
Our thoughts are with CSIRO staff and their families at this difficult time.
Our thoughts are also with Australian
scientists who believed that Malcolm Turnbull’s innovation rhetoric
might actually mean science being taken seriously.
Instead, yet again, the Liberals are fuelling a brain drain from Australian science and undermining manufacturing innovation.
Today’s news highlights the need for the
Turnbull Liberals to review all their cuts to science, research and
innovation, including:
o $107 million from the Cooperative Research Centres (CRC) program
o $75 million from the ARC
o $27.5 million from ANSTO
o $7.8 million from AIMS
o $16.1 million from Geoscience Australia
o $20 million from the Bureau of Meteorology
o $120 million from DSTO
o $174 million from the Research Training Scheme
Since the 2013 election, the Liberals have slashed support for science, research and innovation by more than $3 billion.
It is crucial that Australia understands the
impact of climate change on our economy, environment and society; that
we move to cleaner, more efficient energy sources to reduce emissions;
and that we invest in manufacturing and ICT innovation to support the
jobs of the future.
The work of the CSIRO is integral to
achieving these goals, yet the Liberals continue to white-ant this vital
national science organisation at every turn.
Under the Liberals Australia’s pollution
levels are going up, and Malcolm Turnbull’s answer is to sack the
experts who are working to cut pollution and find the innovations in
renewable energy that will help create the jobs of the future in
Australia.
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