NZ science sector ‘under threat like never before’ over job and funding cuts

A new report has catalogued hundreds of millions of dollars in spending cuts in a science sector already under pressure from years of university restructures.

• 350+ science jobs have been cut, with losses likely to increase, impacting the sector deeply.
• Funding cuts include nearly $500 million from planned science infrastructure and $30 million from key research funds.
• The Government faces calls to halt further cuts and boost science funding to 2% of GDP.

More than 350 jobs have just been shed across New Zealand’s small science system – and it could take decades to reverse the damage.

That’s according to a new report cataloguing hundreds of millions of dollars in spending cuts in a sector already under pressure from years of restructures in cash-strapped universities.

The report, by the Save Science Coalition, representing two dozen sector bodies, found that between 349 and 359 specialist science roles had so far been lost or were proposed to go, with that figure likely to climb.

“Make no mistake, right now Aotearoa’s science is under threat like never before,” the coalition’s spokeswoman, New Zealand Association of Scientists co-president Dr Lucy Stewart, said.

“We risk losing our best and brightest scientists and researchers to other countries that really value them, and that will set us back for years.”

While under-investment in science had been a long-term problem, she said, the coalition Government had tightened funding further.

A large chunk of funding, representing about $64 million a year, was drying up with the end of the National Science Challenges.

While the decade-long programme – bringing together thousands of scientists for mission-led science in areas ranging from climate change to high-value food – always had time-bound funding, a sector reform that was proposed to follow it was scrapped by the Government.

The report also noted the cancelling of nearly $500m of spending on science infrastructure in Wellington – planned by the previous Government – along with cuts elsewhere that amounted to the loss of more than $50m.

That included a $20m decrease in geohazard information funding over the next four years and nearly $10m from MBIE’s freshly refocused Endeavour Fund.

“The Government promised evidence-based decisions yet is ploughing ahead with these cuts in the complete absence of a science strategy,” Stewart said.

She pointed out that the recently launched Science System Advisory Group (SSAG), led by former chief scientist Professor Sir Peter Gluckman, had not been completed before the cuts were decided.

“Any changes the group recommends, let alone new funding, will not be available until well after these losses have begun to occur.”

The report recommended the Government halt further cuts and recommit to a long-held target of lifting science investment to 2% of GDP – which would require “urgently introducing” funding to fill some of the biggest gaps.

Science, Innovation and Technology Minister Judith Collins told the Herald she was aware of the issues facing the sector, and the Government was “moving quickly” to ensure it was well placed to deliver “maximum benefits” for people and the economy.

Collins pointed out that there was still a total of $1.2 billion in the science, innovation and technology budget for this year, “but in this fiscal environment it is crucial that our investment is targeted and aligned with Government priorities”.

She also noted that the SSAG would be providing recommendations that would improve the sector’s impact and effectiveness, including how it was funded.

“I will have more to say once I have considered their recommendations.”

Jamie Morton is a specialist in science and environmental reporting. He joined the Herald in 2011 and writes about everything from conservation and climate change to natural hazards and new technology.