Trump's war on innovation is a golden opportunity for Australia, if we're smart enough to take it
Jump-starting Australian innovation would give us a chance to break out of this uninspiring position and provide a path to a more prosperous future.
Frustratingly, we're on track to squander this opportunity. While competing destinations have launched ambitious programs like the Choose Europe for Science Initiative, backed by €500 million ($881 million), Australia has dragged its feet. A recent proposal to tax unrealised capital gains has spooked start-ups and their investors, and Labor's ongoing desire to cap foreign student numbers actively harms our chances.
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To reverse course and win the war for global talent, we require a bold, coordinated, 'big push' strategy to ensure that Australia offers the most compelling alternative to the US as a place to discover scientific breakthroughs, develop technologies and build companies.
Our big push strategy should target the four key types of individuals that define the best innovation ecosystems: world-class researchers; risk-taking entrepreneurs; high-skilled technical workers and promising young students.
We can target each talent category with two types of policy levers.
First, make it as easy as possible to choose Australia. For top talent and their families, getting an Australian visa should be a fast and seamless experience. Labor's National Innovation Visa is a good start but is too restrictive; it could be significantly expanded, for example by removing the 'invitation only' requirement and introducing a fast track for affected Harvard scholars. Supply-side housing action to address the ongoing crisis, such as zoning reform, is long overdue to make Australia welcoming to new migrants. Select new arrivals could merit limited financial support to smooth the transition, and for top professors who bring research affiliates in tow – think of the benefits we have seen from international researchers like Professor Michelle Simmons basing their careers in Australia – tailored incentive packages would provide excellent bang for the public buck.
Second, invest in the success of Australian-based innovators. For scientists, that means aggressively reversing the decline in R&D funding that Robyn Denholm, chair of the ongoing National R&D Review, has called a 'national emergency'. Opportunities to fund 'shovel-ready' research projects cut by the US are plentiful. For entrepreneurs and high-skilled workers, selective support for companies in high-potential or strategic sectors such as public offtake agreements, can support the growth of new products and businesses.
These policies can be targeted at places where Aussie innovators have already proved their strength. Hubs such as Melbourne's biotech district, Sydney's SaaS (Software as a Service) scene, or the Gold Coast's growing space industry provide natural focal points for new talent to coalesce and amplify.
Labor's historic election victory has given them a rare licence to invest in a better, more exciting future. For Albanese and Chalmers, who have publicly committed to solve our productivity crisis, this opportunity to boost innovation in Australia couldn't have come at a better time. They should seize the chance to do so.
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