Sue Boyce (Queensland, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

asked the Minister for Innovation, Industry, Science and Research, upon notice, on 22 June 2011:

(1) What is the level of collaboration between small business in Australia and the research sector compared with the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development [OECD] average.

(2) What percentage of the Government's total innovation budget supports the establishment of such collaboration and de-risking of technology.

(3) (a) How many small and medium enterprises have accessed research and development (R&D) through the Researchers in Business Program; and

(3) (b) why is more not being done to encourage greater uptake of publicly funded R&D by small business.

(4) What is the total and the proportion of Enterprise Connect funding that results in 'new to the industry' or 'new to the world' innovation.

Kim Carr (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Innovation, Industry, Science and Research) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The answer to the honourable senator's question is as follows:

(1) Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are defined as those with less than 250 employees for the purposes of comparing with other OECD countries. SME collaboration on innovation with higher education institutions was 3.1 per cent for Australia. This latest figure ranks Australia 13th out of 23 OECD countries in this indicator. SME collaboration on innovation with government institutions was 2.9 per cent for Australia. Based on this latest figure, Australia ranks 9th out of 22 OECD countries. There is no OECD average calculated for collaboration.

(2) The Science, Research and Innovation Budget Tables are the only compilation of the Australian Government's total innovation budget. The document contains a limited amount of data (as specified by OECD requirements for Government Allocation On R&D) from a wide array of portfolios, departments and agencies, covering hundreds of individual programs. That data collection does not require departments to estimate the proportions of programs relating to collaboration or de-risking of technology, and consequently this data is not available.

(3) (a) 78.

(3) (b) The Government's broad range of innovation programs strongly supports R&D by small business.

(4) All Enterprise Connect program funding is directed at increasing innovation in SMEs, whether it supports 'new to industry' or 'new to the world' innovation. Data is not collected to break this down further.