Innovation by Australia’s businesses, governments and research institutions has delivered many economic and social achievements. But we need to continually improve and adapt to a fast-changing global environment.

Businesses that operate in open and competitive markets are the key to achieving the most substantial economic and social returns from effective innovation over the medium to long term.

Policies aimed at improving the nation’s innovation system need to have a particular focus on providing the right environment for business innovation in both global and domestic markets. This objective will also require innovation within the public sector.

The BCA welcomes this review of Australia’s innovation system, its consideration of the gaps and weaknesses in the system and the opportunity to develop proposals to address them. This will require a thorough assessment of how the innovation system operates presently and a critical assessment of current policy settings.

Those policies that are working well should be continued and strengthened. Those that are not need to be altered or abandoned. And new measures will need to be introduced where gaps exist or where there is an opportunity to improve the operation of the system as a whole.

Submission to the Review of the National Innovation System