Luddite government does not care?
Given the fundamentalist religious tendency of this government they would probably be quite happy to stop funding any science in Australia and are likely to give that a go to see if they can get away with it.
There are faint hints that the Australia's federal government might reconsider the policy that ties future research funds to its attempt to deregulate university fees. At the same time, the Chief Scientist Ian Chubb has gone on the record to call the policy a serious problem for research. The faint scent of a change in policy …
"Chubb also reiterated his long-standing call for Australia to sort out its research priorities so as to settle what research areas it sees as important to fund in the future" -> Which children do you really want to live? Which ones do you think will contribute most to the bottom line in the future?