Annual Report 2015–2016

• the Chief Medical Officer or the Chief Health Officer for each state and territory
• an expert in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health needs
• a person with expertise in consumer issues
• at least six, but no more than 11, members with relevant expertise as outlined in the NHMRC Act.
The biographies of Council members are in Appendix 2.
PRINCIPAL COMMITTEES
NHMRC Principal Committees are established under section 35 of the NHMRC Act. Each Principal
Committee reports to the Council.
For the reporting period 2015–16, NHMRC has the following five Principal Committees:
• Research Committee (required under the NHMRC Act)
• Australian Health Ethics Committee (required under the NHMRC Act)
• Embryo Research Licensing Committee (required under the Research Involving Human
Embryos Act 2002)
• Health Translation Advisory Committee
• Health Innovation Advisory Committee.
The terms of reference for the Principal Committees were gazetted by the Minister for Health on
29 June 2015.
PART 3 operating environment
Research Committee
The Research Committee (RC) covers the spectrum of health and medical research, including public health.
It recommends the award of grants on the basis of scientific quality as judged by peer review across health,
medical and public health research. It also advises on research support through a variety of mechanisms,
including support for individual research projects, broad programs of research, training awards and
fellowships and special research units.
The functions of RC, as set out in section 35 (2) of the NHMRC Act, are:
• to advise and make recommendation to the Council on the application of the Medical Research
Endowment Account (MREA)
• to monitor the use of assistance provided from the MREA
• to advise the Council on matters relating to medical research and public health research, including the
quality and scope of such research in Australia
• such other functions as the Minister from time to time determines in writing after consulting with
the CEO
• any other function conferred on the Committee by the NHMRC Act, the regulation or any other law.
During 2015–16, RC’s major activities included:
• providing advice to the Council on funding expenditure
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