Australian scientists and independent MP Monique Ryan are urging Labor to speed up funding for cutting-edge Australian medical innovation, taking advantage of the growing vacuum caused by Donald Trump’s gutting of government-funded research in the US.

Ryan, the Kooyong MP and paediatric neurologist, is urging the Albanese government to release more of the earnings from the $20bn Medical Research Future Fund, above the annual disbursement amount of $650m.

Research by the Parliamentary Budget Office shows the total value of the MRFF will grow at least $30.1bn within a decade, even if $1bn is released for research funding each year.

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The fund’s average annual rate of return has easily outperformed its benchmark since being created by the Turnbull governm

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