Jenny Ware (Hughes, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise in support of the motion and call on the government to support the implementation of the coalition's University Research Commercialisation Action Plan in full and on time. If implemented, this plan will see Australia's universities and businesses partner together to release the currently untapped potential of the excellent Australian tertiary research that is undertaken in our universities. Research is critical to our nation's economic growth and productivity. Australia's research system is world class. Australian universities have established their reputation for research excellence. Despite these efforts, while Australia produces world-leading foundational research, we currently underperform in achieving commercialisation outcomes.

Nelson Mandela said that education is the most powerful weapon we have to change the world. Higher education, amongst other things, promotes and supports research that often leads to critical breakthroughs in science, technology, health and medicine. Australia has excellent tertiary institutions. In a rapidly changing, highly competitive global economy, Australia's future prosperity lies in leveraging the excellence of our research sector through commercialisation that benefits our economy and our society. The former coalition government led the way by promoting access to higher education, increasing funding to our nation's universities by 34 per cent, with total government funding levels increasing to $19.5 billion this year. Commonwealth supported places increased by 11 per cent, allowing 640,000 more students to gain access to some of the world's greatest tertiary education institutions.

The electorate of Hughes is home to the Southern Sydney campus of the University of Wollongong, where students can receive a world-class education in business and nursing without having to leave the Sutherland Shire. Close to the western boundary of the Hughes electorate in the Liverpool CBD, new campuses of Western Sydney University and the University of Wollongong provide options for undergraduates, including many students within the Hughes electorate, as an alternative to travelling to the more established universities which are located within Sydney's CBD. The proliferation and success of these outer Sydney campuses demonstrate the increasing wide-ranging diversity within our tertiary education sector. With Australia's population representing just 0.34 per cent of the total world population, our foundational scientific research output represents 2.7 per cent of the total global output. As a nation, Australia should be proud of the academic expertise held within our universities.

This side of the House knows that we cannot have a strong economy and a successful nation without robust support for education, which includes tertiary education. We invest in education to create a nation of smarter people with smarter ideas to boost productivity, create jobs and establish new industries. The previous government's University Research Commercialisation Action Plan would build upon our robust educational foundations and pay out dividends in the form of these jobs and industries.

Government support for the translation and commercialisation of our strong, foundational scientific research into a greater economic output will bring us in line with other leading nations, such as the United States, Germany, Israel and the United Kingdom. The former government's action plan includes four key reforms: prioritising national manufacturing, prioritising schemes to ramp up commercialisation activity, reforms to university research funding to provide for genuine collaboration with industry, and investing in people who are skilled in university-industry collaboration.

I call upon the government to implement the action plan developed under the former coalition government to fully capitalise on the potential of our tertiary research. This overarching strategy for research commercialisation will create the next generation of great Australian products and companies. If the reform priorities are implemented, it will supercharge the generation and translation of Australian research into new commercial products, providing the basis of the innovative new businesses and jobs of the future. The government must consider this not as a cost but as an innovative long-term investment in our nation's future.

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