Judith Collins. Photo: RNZ / Nick Monro
Changes to a critical science fund are short-sighted and will have negative effects on universities' ability to carry out research in both humanities and social sciences, a senior academic at Victoria University says.
But a business group said the changes to the Marsden Fund were the right move - and would boost productivity, living standards and economic growth.
Science, Innovation and Technology minister Judith Collins on Wednesday announced changes to the fund, which is administered by the Royal Society and provides grants for scientific research. Collins said humanities and social sciences would no longer be supported, and the independent panels that made funding decisions would be disbanded by next year, as part of a "more strategic approach to science funding across the board".
Every application for funding must now describe its potential to generate economic, environmental, or health benefits for New Zealand, and 50 percent of grants from the Marsden Fund each year must have the potential for economic benefit.
Association of Scientists co-president Dr Troy Baisden told Morning Report the move was a "very dangeous problem" that all scientists were worried about.
"This is just ill-informed.
"If we undermine the foundation of everything that we do, the things that everyone wants from science fall down with the foundations, and this is a change that undermines the norms that underly these sort of fundamental research systems throughout the world."
Baisden said New Zealand had an odd system for funding reasearch and the amounts awarded were only enough to get started, not completely fund things.
"This government has a mandate to rebuild the economy and it is critical that we spend taxpayers money on research that can generate real benefit to New Zealand," the minister told RNZ.
"It is also important to note that only 50 percent of funding needs to show economic benefit, the Marsden Fund will continue to support blue-skies research that advances new ideas, innovation and creativity and where the benefit may not be immediately apparent."
Otago University palaeogenetics laboratory director Professor Nic Rawlence told Morning Report his field wasn't affected by the decision, but colleagues he collaborates with were, and that concerned him.
"They do vitally important research we think."
Many of the projects were very collaborative, he said.
He pointed to work on the New Zealand wars, or investigating the barriers to vaccine uptake, or climate mitigation.
"The archaeology example, we are looking at how Māori and Pakeha lived in New Zealand, how their societies functioned and if we don't learn from history were doomed to repeat it, which will have big economic impacts."
Without the Marsden Fund there were no other funding options, Rawlence said.
Victoria University Deputy Vice-Chancellor Margaret Hyland says social sciences and humanities research is necessary for the well-being of society, and the funding changes are a mistake. Photo: Supplied/ Zealandia
"The danger here is with humanities and social sciences funding being scrapped... that could result in a brain drain with people going overseas."
In 2024, the amount of Marsden funding available was approximately $77.7 million.
The Royal Society, which has administered investment of the Marsden Fund on behalf of the New Zealand Government for 30 years, said it would be assessing the broader implications of these changes.
President Dame Jane Harding said it would continue to work to support the social sciences and humanities through a range of mechanisms in addition to funding.
"Increasingly it is understood that research needed to generate benefits for our country will need to be interdisciplinary, integrating knowledge from experts in the social sciences and humanities with science, engineering, and technology.
Surprise and concern
An email sent to all Victoria University staff from the Deputy Vice-Chancellor Margaret Hyland said it had taken the whole sector by surprise.
"We have fundamental concerns about the changes, which we believe are short-sighted and will have significant negative effects on all universities' ability to carry out valuable and critical research in humanities and social sciences."
She said all universities in New Zealand were united in their condemnation of the changes.
"We know that humanities and social sciences research is hugely valuable to us as a university, and necessary for the well-being of society in general.
"We'll be doing everything in our power to ensure such valuable research is supported."
Hyland told RNZ she stood by her statement.
"It was our response to learning about the changes and we wanted our people to know of our level of concern and unwavering support for our researchers."
A statement from Universities New Zealand said the announcement was very concerning.
While investment in science, technology, engineering and mathematics disciplines were important for shorter-term economic benefit, it said, longer-term transformation of innovation and the lifting of productivity required social and culture change also.
"We know that government funding is tight, and we know that government has to be able to defend where taxpayer money is going. But the answer is not to cut out the humanities and social sciences from the Marsden Fund."
'The right move'
BusinessNZ welcomed the change, with advocacy director Catherine Beard calling it "the right move".
"New Zealand continues to languish in the productivity space," she said.
"It's a problem that can be partly solved through innovation.
"Directing the Marsden Fund to focus more narrowly on research that will help to support high-tech, high-productivity, high-value businesses and jobs is the right move."
New Zealand's research and development expenditure is growing, but is still well behind the OECD average, Beard added.
"Setting clear expectations by funding research that can boost New Zealand's economy and living standards is a welcome step toward a better tomorrow."
Labour's research, science and innovation spokesperson Dr Deborah Russell said New Zealand only spent half the OECD average for science, research, and development.
"It's time the government saw research as a priority," Russell said.
"We want to keep talented people here, who contribute to the growth of New Zealand's knowledge base and economy. These cuts leave academics and researchers with fewer options, ... making them more likely to join the thousands of people leaving the country to pursue opportunities elsewhere.
"Critical thinkers are essential to advancing our economy, protecting our environment, and building our cultural identity."
However ACT said the changes would help the funding deliver long-term benefits for New Zealanders.
"Politicians shouldn't decide which specific research projects are funded, but we have a duty to ensure taxpayer money is focused on research that delivers tangible benefits for society and the economy," science, innovation, and technology spokesperson Dr Parmjeet Parmar said.
She said some projects were hard to justify to taxpayers who were struggling to afford the basics.
"Every dollar spent on these grants is a dollar that is not supporting research in the hard sciences, or for that matter, life-saving medicines, essential infrastructure, or tax relief for struggling households."
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