Trump and Russia: Australia's Top Scientist Compares Trump Policies To Stalin's

President Donald Trump's policies on climate change data are similar to the Soviet Union's science censorship, Australia's chief scientist said Monday.

Dr. Alan Finkel made the comparison at a scientific roundtable in the Australian capital of Canberra while encouraging fellow scientists to deliver "frank and fearless" advice in the face of political opposition, the Guardian reported.

“The Trump administration has mandated that scientific data published by the United States Environmental Protection Agency from last week going forward has to undergo review by political appointees before that data can be published on the EPA website or elsewhere,” Finkel said. “It defies logic. It will almost certainly cause long-term harm. It’s reminiscent of the censorship exerted by political officers in the old Soviet Union."

Finkel, who was appointed by Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull in 2015, appeared to be referencing statements made by Doug Ericksen, the head of communications for the Trump administration's EPA transition team. Ericksen said scientists would have their work reviewed "on a case by case basis" before it would be published or disseminated to the public.

"We'll take a look at what's happening so that the voice coming from the EPA is one that's going to reflect the new administration," Ericksen told NPR just days after President Trump's inauguration.

Review of scientific data by political appointees would be a violation of the agency's scientific integrity policy, which "prohibits all EPA employees, including scientists, managers and other Agency leadership, from suppressing, altering or otherwise impeding the timely release of scientific findings or conclusions."

Ericksen's comments came as leaked memos showed that EPA staff were prohibited from issuing press releases or making social media posts. The Trump administration also ordered a temporary freeze on all grants, contracts and other agreements. Some EPA employees began communicating over an encrypted messaging app to avoid detection by Trump administration officials.

However, any limitations placed on communications at the agency did not originate with the Trump administration, White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer said

“That’s nothing that’s coming from the White House,” Spicer said during a press briefing the day after the communications prohibitions were reported. “They haven’t been directed by us to do anything.”