Science and technology statement 1987-88 : a statement on the Commonwealth Government sector / prepared by the Department of Industry, Technology and Commerce.

  • Australia. Department of Industry, Technology, and Commerce
Date:
1988
Catalogue details

Licence: In copyright

Credit: Science and technology statement 1987-88 : a statement on the Commonwealth Government sector / prepared by the Department of Industry, Technology and Commerce. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    PREFACE The 1987-88 Science and Technology Statement provides evidence of the Government’s continuing commitment to the support of Australia’s scientific and technological activities, particularly research and development. This support is now even more critical to Australia’s economic health. The rapid deterioration in our terms of trade over recent years has exposed a number of long-standing weaknesses in Australia’s economic infrastructure. Our industrial and social structure was based on the naive assumption that to continue being one of the world’s richest countries, we need only continue producing raw materials from our abundant natural resources, and these materials would continue to demand premium prices on the world market. Not enough consideration was paid to the development of internationally competitive manufacturing and services industries - these were only tools to be supported in the domestic market to help maintain high levels of employment. We have had a rude awakening. With our primary products in agriculture and mining earning less revenue as prices and demand fall, and with our balance of trade in technology-based products falling increasingly behind, we must redirect our efforts towards developing strong, export-oriented manufacturing and services industries. These industries must be able to compete in a global market-place, and hence must be internationally competitive in all facets of development, production, marketing and delivery. The Government has adopted a broad range of measures to achieve this. A primary aim of our policy is to improve Australia’s economic and technological linkages with the world economy. Recent developments in world stockmarkets have shown that it is essential to build a very firm base for the revitalisation of existing industries and the development of New eineustrics ee scictice and technology are atthe core of this base, whose essential components include a strong R&D effort in industry, government and higher education, effective technology transfer to Australia, and an appropriately trained workforce. In the R&D field, our efforts have been in two phases. The Government’s first priority was to increase the performance of R&D by business enterprises. Without such activity, companies are not only unable to develop new, potentially significant ideas, but they are seriously impaired in their capacity to improve on existing products and processes, or adopt innovations from other countries. The introduction of the 150% tax incentive scheme for industry R&D, the establishment of the Management and Investment Companies Licensing Scheme, and the creation of the Grants for Industry Research and Development Scheme, have been significant features in improving the innovatory capacity of Australian companies. Part of the schemes’ success Mayebcescem 1% the dramatic incrcase in business enterprise R&D expenditure over the last five years. Our second priority has becn to censure that Australia’s substantial public investment in government and higher cducation R&D is managed efficiently, and is more attuned to the country’s economic and social well-being. Accordingly, the Government recently instituted a number of measures to achieve these aims. ill
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