Eric Hutchinson (Lyons, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

Science and research are critical right around Australia, particularly in my home state of Tasmania. One of the points that I would like to make about the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation is that the I in CSIRO stands for 'Industrial', and we should never forget that. That is where it was born, that is where it started and that should be the focus, and increasingly that is the focus of this government: to make sure that our scientific and research endeavours are applicable within industry in a practical way.

This is no more evident than in my home state of Tasmania, within the university and with the commitment that this government has shown to Antarctic research. It is critical to our country. In the week when we mourn the passing of our 22nd Prime Minister, Malcolm Fraser, it should be remembered that he moved the Antarctic research division from Melbourne down to Hobart, which was the right thing to do. It is an important part of the Tasmanian economy, and this government's commitment to research and innovation in the Antarctic should not be underestimated. I think, for example, of the $24 million that was committed as an election commitment to the collaborative research centre in respect of Antarctic studies. I think of the fantastic work that is done by the Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies. In terms of infrastructure, I think of the $38 million that was committed to the upgrade of the Hobart International Airport. The primary reason that that happened was the program around the Antarctic Division in Hobart. That is going to be the driver, and I think there is generally broad support for the idea that that will enable Hobart and, indeed, Australia to compete with New Zealand, South America and South Africa as a step-off point for many countries as they look at doing research in the Southern Ocean and in the Antarctic. It will also present opportunities for an important and growing sector within the Tasmanian economy—that is, tourism and the opportunities that flow from that for exports. Not least is the commitment from Minister Hunt to purchase a new icebreaker to replace the Aurora Australis.

These are the sorts of things that are, again, showing this government's commitment. Indeed, industry is the critical part. Investment in science and research must be focused. It should not necessarily be done just for the sake of research but—as there has always been in this country—there should be an opportunity to apply it in a practical way through the innovative people that we have.

That could be no more evident than in the recently announced Innovation and Investment Fund. That is a $13 million fund that was launched in Tasmania, and I was pleased to have Minister Macfarlane in my electorate for a couple of days. There were 137 applications received, and $85 million-worth of private capital was committed. It shows that there is confidence coming back into the economy—that there are green shoots. After three years of having a Labor-Greens government in Hobart and a Labor-Greens government in Canberra, our state is finally finding its feet again. Tasmania, I am so pleased to say, is off the bottom of the tables in terms of unemployment, and we are seeing confidence coming again into business to reinvest in the things that they business does well.

There were 40 successful programs out of those 137 applications. The flip side of that is that there were 100 that missed out. But the feedback from AusIndustry—and the good work that they did—demonstrated that there were another 30 or 40 projects that were of very high quality. This goes to the fact that jobs growth is starting to come again in this country. Even last year, jobs growth in this country was three times as fast as it was in the previous year under the Labor government. So things are starting to move again. Tasmania is certainly, under the Hodgman Liberal government, well and truly open for business—whether it be tourism, aquaculture, or the innovative people that are using the Antarctic Division as a step off. There are so many opportunities in my state and it is a very exciting time to be a Tasmanian.

Debate adjourned.

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