Included in the Greens' package is $750 million to be shared between the primary funding bodies including the Australia Research Council and the National Health and Medical Research Council.

Indirect costs associated with health and medical research would also be covered to the tune of $141 million, while researchers would be able to work under extended grant periods of five years. The average lifespan of a grant is three years, which scientists and researchers argue fosters uncertainty and limits opportunities to co-operate with industry.

The science and research package was launched at the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute for Medical Research in Parkville by Greens deputy leader Adam Bandt, in the federal seat of Melbourne.

Mr Bandt, who holds the innovation, science and research portfolios, is under pressure to hold on to the lower house seat he took from Labor in 2010 with a margin of 5.9 per cent.

Considered a hotbed of research and innovation, the Parkville precinct – which includes Melbourne University, the Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health and the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute – accounts for about 27 per cent of National Health and Medical Research Council funding.