Nick Evans
Friday, 14 August 2009
THREE months after announcing the formation of the Commonwealth Commercialisation Institute the federal government has finally called for industry and public input on how the institute should operate.
The government announced in the May budget that it would form the new body to “support research commercialisation and early-stage company development by small and medium-sized enterprises” – but aside from that statement, and an initial grant of $196 million over four years, little detail was released of how the CCI would work.
Industry figures who attended the budget lock-in – including AusBiotech chief executive Dr Anna Lavelle – said at the time it appeared the goal was to look at ways that public funding could be leveraged with private money to advance research commercialisation.
BTN understands that the federal Department of Innovation, Industry, Science and Research has been working on proposals since that date, and last month a group of life science industry figures floated proposals on how such a body would ideally work.
The department’s work has led to the formation of a government committee, lead by iQ Capital Group founder Dr Laurie Hammond, to guide the development of the institute.
The committee will include representatives from the departments of Finance, Treasury, Education, Climate Change, Resources – as well as the National Health and Medical Research Council and NICTA, the national ICT centre of excellence.
Public comment call
This morning Innovation Minister Senator Kim Carr called for public comment to help “inform the development and operation of the Commonwealth Commercialisation Institute”.
He said the public comment period would be part of a broader consultation process with stakeholders.
“This institute represents a new approach by government to assisting Australia’s universities, public sector research organisations and innovative firms to commercialise their ideas,” he said.
“It will help address the difficulties faced by our talented researchers and entrepreneurs in accessing the knowledge, skills and capital they need to convert ideas into successful commercial ventures.”
Public comment will be open for only two weeks, with submissions closing on August 28.
BTN understands the government will hold stakeholder meetings next week, with invited participants – including industry groups, state and territory governments, venture capital groups and service providers.
Once the public comment period is closed, the committee will make recommendations direct to government – BTN understands their report will not necessarily be made public, and there will be no second comment period on the recommendations.
For further information, the Commonwealth Commercialisation Institute Team can be contacted at [email protected] or through Donna Valenti on (02) 6213 7611.
A direct link to a public comment form will also be available on the Department of Innovation’s website from this afternoon.
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