Julie Owens (Parramatta, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Today I would like to talk about the appointment of Professor Patrick Tam of the Children's Medical Research Institute, which is located in my electorate, as a fellow of the Royal Society of London. This prestigious society is the oldest scientific academy in continuous existence and has included as fellows the likes of Isaac Newton, Albert Einstein and Charles Darwin.

Professor Tam is a world authority in early mouse embryo development and has received the honour for his outstanding scientific achievements and a career-long contribution to biological science. Professor Tam is best recognised for his pioneering work of 28 years in investigating how the basic body plan of the early mouse embryo takes shape by performing meticulous mapping of the ways cells differentiate and move in concert. His 'fate-maps' reveals how cells are put together to form the essential building blocks for different parts of the body and how that development is controlled by signals and genetic switches. His work has laid the foundation for his ongoing research into the developmental causes of birth defects and cell based therapy. Professor Tam, who is currently deputy director and head of the Embryology Research Unit at the Children's Medical Research Institute, joins 43 other newly elected fellows who are the most eminent scientists, engineers and technologists from the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth.

The Children's Medical Research Institute is an independent organisation working towards unlocking the mysteries of disease. The institute also conducts fundamental genetic research to understand the importance of genes for health and development. Professor Tam's research adds to this noble goal. This is not the first acknowledgement Professor Tam has received. Previous accolades have included the President's Medal of the Australia and New Zealand Society of Cell and Developmental Biology in 2007 as well as fellowships to the Australian Academy of Science in 2008 and the Society of Biology in 2009. This accolade comes on top of the many awards Professor Tam has received throughout his distinguished career, including the Croucher Foundation Fellowship tenable at the University of Oxford and the Symington Memorial Prize of the Anatomical Society of Great Britain and Ireland. There is no doubt that when it comes to developmental biology Professor Tam is an international superstar.

This government understands the importance of research such as this. This year we have again reconfirmed our commitment to health and medical research by maintaining the all-time-high levels of funding—$746.1 million to the National Health and Medical Research Council for health and medical research, an increase of 4.3 per cent on last year's funding.

I congratulate Professor Tam on his achievement, which I note is the highest scientific honour ever achieved by a CMRI scientist in its 52-year history. I wish him and the Children's Medical Research Institute all the best in their continued efforts to unlock the mysteries of disease.