By Liam Mannix
Australia’s scientists and universities have for the first time united in a call to the government to establish an independent research misconduct body to protect taxpayers’ dollars from fraudulent or dodgy science.
It marks a major position shift from the body representing Australia’s universities, who have previously been ambivalent about such a proposal. Research integrity campaigners have long accused them of standing in the way of serious efforts at transparency and accountability.
“Times have changed,” said Ian Chubb, secretary for science policy at the Australian Academy of Science and a former Australian chief scientist.
“People put to us: why would this be one area of public expenditure without effective oversight?”
Professor Ian Chubb at the Academy of Science’s Shine Dome in Canberra on Friday.Credit: Alex Ellinghausen
“They do it with police, the banking system, the security services. When public money, public subsidies are involved, there is this overarching body that reassures that things are being done appropriately.”
Research misconduct campaigners have long warned of a sickness at the heart of science, caused by strong incentives to do the wrong thing and a lack of safeguards.
And when things do go wrong, universities and research institutes are equally incentivised to cover it up, they say.
Professor Mark Smyth, the former head of immunology in cancer at the QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute.
Australian and global science have seen a string of scandals in the last few years – in particular the stunning downfall of Professor Mark Smyth, who went from one of the country’s top cancer researchers to being referred to corruption authorities by his own institute.
Just this week, venerable journal Nature retracted a high-profile paper that claimed to have discovered a room-temperature superconductor due to questions about data integrity.
A new report by the Australia Institute, released on Sunday, found more than 500 Australian research papers had been retracted in the last 20 years.
“I was surprised by how often it happens – and how easy it is [to do the wrong thing],” said lead author Dr Kristen Scicluna, herself a former medical researcher. “And how some institutions are almost complicit. It’s shocking.”
Science integrity campaigner Professor David Vaux.
Under Australia’s existing arrangements universities conduct their own internal investigations into allegations of research misconduct, which must be kept confidential.
“That allows research institutions to keep things under wraps, probably to save their reputations,” said Scicluna.
After a consultation process, the academy is proposing an independent national oversight body. Universities would still carry out investigations into alleged wrongdoing, but the body would have direct oversight.
Scicluna called the proposal an “improvement”, but said allowing institutions to continue conducting investigations “undermines their impartiality and independence”.
A spokeswoman for Universities Australia, the peak body for 39 universities, this week pointed The Age to a government submission the body made in September, which says it “would welcome the resourcing and strengthening of an appropriate independent research integrity body that would have the capacity for investigation and review to protect the integrity of the entire Australian research system”.
A source confirmed the new position “certainly marks a shift” for the organisation.
“It is great to see that universities also recognise that the current ‘self-regulation’ system leads to conflicts of interest, and serves no one, neither the whistleblowers, those accused, the institutions, or the funders or the research,” long-time integrity campaigner Professor David Vaux said.
Federal Education Minister Jason Clare noted he had committed to implementing recommendations from the review of the Australian Research Council, including giving the council a legislated research integrity role.
“These reforms will ensure the ARC is set up to meet current and future needs and maintain the trust and confidence of the research sector,” he said.
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clarification
This article has been updated to give Dr Scicluna her correct honorific.