A senate inquiry into CSIRO funding and resourcing has warned Australia’s sovereign research capability is under pressure from job cuts, declining real funding, ageing infrastructure and uncertainty over the national science agency’s strategic direction.
The Senate Economics References Committee report, tabled on 28 April, made six recommendations, including that the federal government clarify whether further funding cuts or job losses are planned, and publicly explain how Australia’s public research capability will be protected.
The inquiry was launched late last year after CSIRO CEO, Doug Hilton, announced plans to cut up to 350 research positions, following the loss of more than 800 roles in the prior 12 months.
The committee’s core recommendations include that the government publicly advise how Australia’s sovereign public research capability will be protected, engage with staff who have raised concerns about inadequate consultation, and respond to the 2024 Strategic Examination of Research and Development Review recommendations.
The report said CSIRO faced “significant threats” to its mission, driven by inadequate and unreliable funding, rising research costs, workforce pressures and ageing infrastructure.
Independent senator, David Pocock, went further, recommending an immediate appropriation uplift of $252.3 million in the 2026-27 budget, ongoing, together with annual indexation sufficient to halt and reverse the real-terms decline in CSIRO funding.
Pocock noted that CSIRO funding is now less than half what it was in the 1980s on a per capita basis, while the cost of research has skyrocketed.
The report also scrutinised CSIRO’s spending on external consultants. Pocock called out payments of almost $2 million to McKinsey & Company, including a 2022 contract worth $742,500 for less than a month of work, with no written report required. He called for full release of all documents produced under those contracts and reform of the agency’s procurement practices.
The Greens dissented from the majority report, calling for all funding and staffing cuts to be reversed and an audit of CSIRO facilities.
Science minister, Tim Ayres, has maintained that CSIRO’s operational decisions are independent of government, and that the agency received a $278 million top-up in December’s mid-year budget update. However, Hilton subsequently confirmed the extra funding would not stop a single proposed job cut.
CSIRO told the inquiry it needed an additional $80-125 million a year for the next decade to keep infrastructure safe and fit-for-purpose, including digital and physical assets, cyber security and disease preparedness capability.
For the food and beverage sector, the report lands weeks after CSIRO announced it was exiting food technology, as part of a broader restructure of its Sustainability and Food program.
The committee heard CSIRO’s Agriculture and Food unit had 638 full-time equivalent roles, with 45-55 positions potentially affected by the November 2025 cuts, equivalent to seven to nine per cent of the unit. It also cited earlier losses of 30 Agriculture and Food roles.
The CSIRO Staff Association said the findings showed “urgent action” was needed, citing 818 announced job losses in the previous 12 months and a further 350 positions flagged for redundancy. It said food-related cuts included research into high-amylose wheat and allergen-free egg white products.
Staff Association secretary, Susan Tonks, said urgent budget action was needed to protect CSIRO’s capacity to deliver public good science and maintain Australia’s global standing.
“That includes immediate funding to prevent job losses, investment in research capacity and long-term support to ensure financial sustainability, as well as improved organisational transparency and accountability,” Tonks said.
Science & Technology Australia welcomed the report but warned the findings pointed to broader STEM workforce risks. Its analysis found one in three STEM professionals were considering leaving the sector, 42 per cent of Australia’s bachelor-qualified STEM workforce was born overseas, and Year 12 STEM participation had fallen 10 per cent over the past decade.
STA CEO, Ryan Winn, said CSIRO sat “at the core of Australia’s science system”.
“This report makes clear that sustained and sustainable funding pressures, especially with the increasing real cost of research, are putting both capability and workforce at risk. You cannot solve long-term national challenges with short-term funding settings,” Winn said.
