The Labour Party and the Manufacturers and Exporters Association are lonely discordant voices in a chorus of approval for the Government's decision to put $321 million into science, research and development.The money will be in next week's budget and Prim
The Labour Party and the Manufacturers and Exporters Association are lonely discordant voices in a chorus of approval for the Government's decision to put $321 million into science, research and development.
The money will be in next week's budget and Prime Minister John Key announced it yesterday, calling on businesses to use it as an investment in the future.
"This is a budget where there's not a lot of money to go around but we are saying science, and lifting the knowledge of the New Zealand economy, is crucial if we want to earn higher wages and have better jobs," he said.
"The fastest way...is to be at the cutting edge of the knowledge economy and to do that we are giving them this incentive."
The money will be given in grants to support businesses with their research and development (R&D), there will be vouchers for those that don't have strong in-house capability and funding to attract scientists to New Zealand.
Business NZ gave a strong endorsement to the initiative, saying it would lift economic growth and make New Zealand more competitive.
"New Zealand's only sustainable source of competitive advantage is innovation," said chief executive Phil O'Reilly.
"The potential for high-tech manufacturing and services in New Zealand will be boosted."
NZBio, representing biotechnology businesses, said "positive and practical steps" were being taken and several of the recommendations in the Bioeconomy Industry Summit Report had been followed.
It urged the Government to support small companies which were often the major contributors to innovation.
The Royal Society saw the announcement as "hugely empowering for scientists" who were keen to contribute to the economy.
"It is also really pleasing to see the prime minister taking personal ownership of the importance of science's place in industry," the society said.
Even the Green Party acknowledged that "a step in the right direction" had been taken, although it wanted sustainable development to be a priority.
"Any green tech solutions we discover here at home will have a ready market abroad," said co-leader Russel Norman.
"It's about picking winners in the areas we know there will be huge future growth in -- renewable energy, sustainable agriculture, green tech manufacturing and energy efficiency."
Labour rained on the parade, saying National had scrapped R&D incentives introduced by the previous government and the new spending amounted to about half the amount that would have been available.
"This is not a step change. It's John Key scrambling to save face," said research, science and technology spokesman David Shearer.
"The `grant' and `voucher' systems are simply a tax credit in drag...John Key's commitment to innovation should be treated with scepticism."
The Manufacturers and Exporters Association (NZMEA) said the initiative was a pale shadow of the previous R&D tax credits.
"This will help a few and miss the rest," said NZMEA chief executive John Whalley.
Small and medium-sized businesses would only have access to a "cumbersome" voucher system and picking winners from early stage companies was virtually impossible, he said.
"All developed nations support R&D and most, like Australia, have made this work using their tax system. A system that offers support to innovative firms across the board is needed to lift our traded economy."
