The Independent Review of Commonwealth funding for strategic policy work, conducted and authored by Peter Varghese is now published. It almost sparkles in places, but overall, it disappoints. Sadly, it delivers what was minimally anticipated.
To recall: A media statement of 5 February 2024 — at various levels innocuous, anodyne and ambiguous — advised that the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet had launched an independent review of Commonwealth funding for national security strategic policy work.

The scope of the review would include all Commonwealth funding to non-government organisations — essentially, think tanks and the universities — to conduct national security-related research, education and engagement activities.

While these programs were held, on the one hand, to provide contestability, deepen public discussion, strengthen partnerships, and inform policy debates on national security matters, the review’s purpose was, on the other hand, to ensure that they remained appropriately aligned to Australia’s national interests and strategic circumstances.

A distinguished former public servant with extensive experience in foreign policy and national security, and current vice-chancellor of the University of Queensland, Peter Varghese, was selected to lead the review.

Reducing the terms of reference to what the government ultimately required, three “core outputs” were identified. One related to a “stocktake of relevant activities”, and another to recommendations to improve the delivery of the relevant activities.

Specifically and exclusively in the context of the universities, though, the third — “performance evaluation” — aroused considerable interest, the reason being that it highlighted the need to report on, inter alia, “accountability, probity and transparency”.

Specifically, it raised a disconcerting question: Why (especially in relation to probity)? Was this merely a pro forma inquiry, or were there suspicions in the government funding agencies that demand it be undertaken?

If that was the case, then the questions of research integrity in general, and the universities’ codes of academic/intellectual integrity were immediately in play.

Nine months ago,........

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