Good ideas to promote innovation are needed

The Turnbull Government wants to encourage ideas for greater innovation and entrepreneurship, but they need to be good ideas.

Minister for Industry, Innovation and Science, the Hon Christopher Pyne MP, said driving innovation is vitally important for jobs and growth.

“Innovation and job creation has been and will continue to be a strong focus of the Coalition Government,” Mr Pyne said.

“Innovation has to be more than a political buzzword, it’s the only option for our economy if we are to maintain our current standard of living.

“While Labor appears to have a sudden new found desire to promote innovation in Australia, a better start would be for them to support for the China Free Trade Agreement.

“The Labor Party should work with the Government to help create the jobs for the future and the China Free Trade Agreement is critical for job creation,” he said.

For two years now the Coalition Government has implemented a range of programmes to drive innovation, create jobs and streamline our approach to industry policy. These initiatives are designed to help boost Australia’s innovation and commercialisation outcomes and include:

• The R&D Tax Incentive

• The Entrepreneurs’ Programme ($100 million per annum)

• The Industry Growth Centre Initiative ($225 million)

• Cooperative Research Centres Programme ($584 million)

• The Boosting the Commercial Returns from Research Strategy.

“Over two years we have worked hard to drive innovation, however there is much more to be done and we will have more to say in the months ahead,” Mr Pyne said.