Parkville to receive new infectious disease institute

The Parkville biomedical precinct will soon be home to an Australian Institute of Infectious Disease thanks to $650 million of funding delivered in the Victorian state budget.

The institute will be the largest centre of expertise in the Southern Hemisphere and is intended to accelerate research into the prevention of future pandemics and rapidly developing treatments.

Victorian Health Minister Martin Foley said the facility would be a crucial tool to control pandemics in the future.

“Victorian scientists and researchers are making a huge contribution to fighting this pandemic,” Mr Foley said.

This will give them the world leading facility they need to build on that work and protect us into the future.

The Institute will be designed to deliver everything Victorian researchers need to detect, analyse, manage and treat infectious diseases.

It will include next-generation laboratories and high-containment facilities, including a robotic bio tank facility, that will help researchers improve our understanding of infectious diseases and store specimens in large-scale clinical trials.

Overall the institute is set to deliver 350 jobs during construction, 850 ongoing jobs at the Institute and has the potential to support up to 5000 jobs in the biomedical sector.

Minister for Innovation, Medical Research and the Digital Economy Jaala Pulford said the funding would be a much-needed investment in the infectious disease space.

“This facility will enable us to protect Victoria and the country against future pandemics – that’s why we’re delivering the funding needed to get it off the ground,” Ms Pulford said.

“We’re delivering the world-class facilities Victoria’s medical researchers need in order to do what they do best, as well as creating hundreds of jobs and delivering a boost to the economy.”

The institute will be the new home of the Burnet Institute and will also allow the Doherty Institute to expand its research operations as they will be located next to each other.

The new space will also bring together experts from the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute for Medical Research, the University of Melbourne, the Murdoch Children’s Research Institute and Melbourne-headquartered global biotechnology company CSL.

The investment adds to the $50 million the state government has put towards building mRNA vaccine manufacturing capability in Melbourne – bolstering the state’s capacity for rapid development of coronavirus vaccines.

University of Melbourne Vice-Chancellor Duncan Maskell welcomed the investment into the Parkville precinct and the university.

“The AIID is a critical part of Victoria’s contribution to the national effort in fighting the COVID-19 pandemic and through research excellence, greater collaboration and partnerships, it will help save lives,” Mr Maskell said •