Kim Carr (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Innovation, Industry, Science and Research) Share this | Hansard source

As I indicated yesterday, it is just plain wrong to assume that the biosecurity CRC is the only way in which the government addresses critical national biosecurity issues. Research into Hendra virus has, for some years, primarily been the responsibility of the CSIRO, which is the nation’s premier public research agency. CSIRO currently conducts most of the research into Hendra in Australia. This goes through the Australian Animal Health Laboratory, which attracts competitive grants—not just support from the Australian government but support from the US government through the US National Institutes of Health. The laboratory is a facility which is world class and has the highest possible security rating, allowing for top-level research on highly infectious diseases. The Animal Health Laboratory’s capacity has been strengthened— (Time expired)