Sydney. Australia's academic community is locked in a bitter conflict with the new conservative Coalition government over plans to cut operating grants to universities by up to 12 per cent, a reduction of up to A 600 million dollar (US 470 million doolar). The universities are complaining that the new government is breaking pre-election promises to sustain basic funding for higher education, and to add extra funds for infrastructure and postgraduate scholarships (see Nature 381,5; 1996).
展开▼
