A FEDERAL Government-backed review that details the state of innovation and research and development spend in Australia has finally been delivered to Innovation Minister Kim Carr.
The review, led by CSIRO director Terry Cutler, was conducted to develop a set of national innovation priorities to complement national research priorities. Dr Cutler was also tasked with identifying regulatory barriers to innovation. After failing to meet its initial deadline last month due to an overwhelming response to a call for submissions, Senator Carr extended the July 30 deadline to August 29. In total, Dr Cutler and his panel of experts received more than 700 submissions from a wide range of applicants, including government, research bodies and industry. Speaking to The Australian earlier this month, Dr Cutler said many of the submissions focused on the Rudd Government's emphasis on sustainability, particularly in the area of climate change. A spokesperson for Senator Carr confirmed receipt of the innovation review and said it would be released to the public “shortly”. The spokesperson could not offer a firm timeline for the review’s public distribution, nor could they offer a date for when the Government’s white paper response would be ready. The Government has previously stated that the whitepaper response would be delivered before the end of the year.
Source: The Australian IT, www.australianit.news.com.au/
Story by Mitchell Bingemann