Ben Quin
With the current arrangements, entrepreneurs and scientists are spending too much time applying for grants instead of developing new ideas, the supporting bureaucracy is too cumbersome and the rate of successful commercialization of new ideas is too low. Protecting Australian intellectual property remains complex and expensive.
I am renewing my call for an overhaul of Federal innovation support as part of a wider call to invigorate the Research and Development sector in Australia.
I propose a capped, 200% innovation tax incentive, with deductions flowing through to individual investors.
This new approach could replace many elements of the current raft of R&D grants and tax incentives, providing significantly more effective delivery of support for innovation.
The innovation process remains poorly understood in Australia, yet it is one of the single most valuable commodities in the national economy. Innovation is distinct from R&D. The innovation process requires dedicated, flexible support.
The nation is confronted with an increasingly complex array of challenges, including climate change, energy security, water shortages, health, population ageing and biosecurity to name some.
To meet these challenges, Australia must unlock its full potential for innovation and remove all barriers to the speedy uptake of successful new ideas. We need to launch a “Decade of Innovation” and encourage wide involvement.
Under my proposal:
• The majority of support for innovation would flow through the tax system, with minimal intervention and only broad guidelines.
• Every dollar spent on an approved project would attract two dollars tax deduction from the income of the person or corporation making the contribution, in the year that it was contributed.
• The tax rate applied would be the corporate rate of 30%, thus the effective cost to the investor of innovation expenditure would be only 40 cents in the dollar.
• Projects may be audited at any time and the tax deduction withdrawn where guidelines had not been met.
• The scheme would initially be capped to “innovation-stage” project expenditure up to $500,000, to enable the feasibility of the target innovation to be assessed. The project would then be approved to continue or support ceased.
With the current arrangements, entrepreneurs and scientists are spending too much time applying for grants instead of developing new ideas, the supporting bureaucracy is too cumbersome and the rate of successful commercialization of new ideas is too low. Protecting Australian intellectual property remains complex and expensive.
This scheme will make more funds available for innovation and allow support to form up around a new idea in the shortest time with the minimum number of obstacles.
It will allow effective R&D and commercialization processes to be put in place at the earliest stage and free government resources to concentrate on streamlining systems and supporting export marketing initiatives.
As we move to set a carbon cap and adjust to severe drought, the nation has never been in greater need of new ideas. I call on both Federal parties to reinvigorate their support for innovation in Australia.
Ben Quin is Independent Candidate for the seat of Lyons in Tasmania.
