Jane Prentice (Ryan, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

One of the great privileges of being the member for Ryan is being able to celebrate the achievements of many of our residents. Ryan is full of educated, smart and innovative people. I am frequently amazed at the quality of innovation that comes out of the University of Queensland and other research institutes. Indeed, I have had the pleasure of sharing some of these with parliament on several occasions this year. Now, the latest in a long line of innovators in Ryan is Ethos, a start-up company based in Toowong. Ethos have identified an increasing trend in modern workforces for employees to seek out and stay in jobs that foster positive workplace cultures. They have developed an application called Work-Life-Connect, which supports organisations to develop cultures that promote positive health, wellbeing and social values.

I am pleased to inform the House that Ethos have been successful in securing a grant of more than $209,000 from the Commonwealth government to accelerate the commercialisation of their Work-Life-Connect application. This has been made possible by the government's Entrepreneurs' Program, an initiative by the Minister for Industry and Science, Minister Ian Macfarlane. Since April this year, more than $30 million has been committed through the program to 55 companies from across Australia. I commend the minister for this program. It is very well targeted, because it seeks to directly address the biggest challenge faced by innovators with good ideas: the challenge of commercialisation.

I have spoken on many occasions in this House about the need for governments of all political persuasions to do more to support the commercialisation of good ideas in Australia. We are an educated nation. We are full of thinkers and dreamers and new ideas. But, far too often, our thinkers and dreamers face insurmountable challenges in getting their good ideas to the market. There is a role for government in helping businesses get over this hurdle. Without assistance, businesses—and particularly start-ups such as Ethos—are not playing on a level playing field when it comes to debt financing for commercialisation. Commercial loans are only available at high rates of interest, if at all. Equity financing is perhaps even more difficult to obtain. The venture capital market in Australia is in its infancy and, to the extent that equity financing is available, investors demand a large share of the returns.

When targeted effectively, the Entrepreneurs' Program can provide a capital boost to start-ups and small businesses at the commercialisation stage of product development—at the very time they need it most. For Ethos this grant is exciting news indeed. Through my office, I have been in contact with representatives of the company to congratulate them on their success and to wish them well. With a great idea, a committed team behind it and the support of government through the Entrepreneurs' Program, the team at Ethos have every chance of becoming the latest business success in Ryan. (Time expired)