Trent Zimmerman (North Sydney, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Industry, Science and Technology. Will the minister please outline to the House how the Morrison government is backing innovative businesses to commercialise new products as we continue to recover from the COVID pandemic? How does this support our government's plan to build a stronger Australia?

Karen Andrews (McPherson, Liberal Party, Minister for Industry) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for his question. Our government understands that science and technology are key enablers of industry growth, and that is particularly important through new technologies that are going to give our industry a cutting edge on the global stage, that will boost competitiveness, create jobs and take our economy forward. That's why we've made a record investment in innovation, science and research in the budget. That's why our $1.5 billion Modern Manufacturing Strategy focuses on harnessing science and research collaboration to deliver the real practical results that we, as a government, are very focused on delivering. Our government has always backed innovative businesses, by getting the economic conditions right, as well as through a range of very practical support programs—for example, our Accelerating Commercialisation program, which has a tremendous track record of helping Australian entrepreneurs take their products to the world. There's a whole range of different products that we have supported as a government. It includes a nasal spray that can help treat dementia. It includes self-driving smart wheels that can be clipped onto manual wheelchairs. It includes long-life milk or fresh milk that can be made to remain on the shelves for up to 60 days.

And just yesterday I was delighted to announce a further $4.2 million in matched funding in the latest round of the Accelerating Commercialisation grants. This includes $1 million for agricultural science company Sea Forest. Sea Forest will use that funding to increase supplies of their seaweed additive for livestock feed. This reduces livestock methane emissions, and it improves herd health. So it is a win for the environment and it is a big win for our farmers. Over the last five years, Sea Forest has worked very closely with the CSIRO to test and refine its product, and this is exactly what the Morrison government is all about: doing all that we can to facilitate industry and researcher engagement, because, as we harness that, we know that our businesses will be able to grow.

As a government we are very committed to making sure that our small businesses grow into medium enterprises and our medium enterprises grow into large businesses. One of the ways that we're going to do that is by harnessing the technology and making sure that we are using technology and not taxes.