Carr pledges millions to health research in election promises

If Labor is re-elected to office in NSW on March 22 it will create a new State Minister for Science and Medical Research, and would also set up a new cancer institute, Premier Bob Carr has announced.

The new ministerial post would complement the $AUD68 million BioFirst fund set up in 2001, and would carry responsibility for science and medical research policy. One of the key roles for the new post would be to actively develop a proactive state research strategy that leverages both government and private funding in 'priority' areas.

A spokesperson for the Premier's office pointed out the success of existing initiatives in 'tempting' some of the nation's best minds -- such as the Garvan Institute's Dr Bryce Vissel -- back from overseas to undertake research in Australia.

"We must do everything we can to support science and medical research," said Carr.

The promise of the specialist minister came hot on the heels of the NSW government's proposed plan to set up a new Cancer Institute and Cancer Research Centre as part of a pledged $290 million boost for better cancer care.

According to a spokesperson for NSW Minister for Health Craig Knowles, the exact allocation for research has not yet been decided, but it will be "substantial", and will be largely decided by state clinicians who are "keen to get the ball rolling within a matter of months".

However, reaction to the pledge from within the scientific community has been mixed, with Prof Chris Fell, President of the Federation of Australian Scientific and Technological Societies (FASTS) describing the announcement as merely "reflecting the economic realities of the day".

He noted that NSW was widely perceived as lagging behind other states when it came to the recognition and implementation of science by the government.

"Other states have given science more prominence," he said. "Geoff Gallop is both Premier of WA and Minister for Science. Peter Beattie and Steve Bracks have both pushed their states to the front when it comes to investment in science," he added.

Nonetheless, Nick Pearce, business development manager at the Centenary Institute of Cancer Medicine and Cell Biology in Sydney, was much more positive on the plans.

"I think it is a wonderful idea," he said. "Any input of money into NSW is good. As far as I can see, there will be synergies with the new institute and ourselves that would definitely help us with our research. We look forward to any collaboration -- there will be obvious benefits for all of us."

Knowles' spokesperson said the new institute would seek to establish close links with international research institutes, and that it would set up a series of tie-ups with similar organisations around the world.

"The idea is to make the [new cancer institute] dovetail in with overseas research, for example in the US and Canada. We plan to have it network with them as well as undertake unique work locally," he said.