Kim Carr (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister Assisting the Leader for Science) Share this | Hansard source

My question without notice is to the Minister representing the Prime Minister. I refer to NICTA, the Australian government ICT research organisation, which is a world leader in bringing science and industry together. I draw the minister's attention to the fact that the German Chancellor, Angela Merkel, has used her last morning in Australia to visit NICTA, which has pioneering partnerships with Germany's Fraunhofer and Max Planck institutes. How did the ministers accompanying Chancellor Merkel explain the government's short-sighted budget decision to abandon NICTA by ceasing its funding in 2016?