Remarkable Journeys with Jess Fox: Conversations with our clients, people and community. Listen now.
30 Oct 2020 3 min read
When you look at the data in our ‘Federal Budget: A 10 year retrospective’ you will see that the big Budget blip in 2012 and 2013 is basically the NBN. GDP contribution has been rising, as both a percentage and financial contribution, but Australia is not a global player and we don’t make it into the OECD’s top ten world exporters of ICT services. That top spot goes to Ireland, which has actively positioned themselves as a technology hub for Europe.
COVID has precipitated an exciting acceleration of the already fast paced tech sector. And policymakers are finally coming to grips with the potential of technology to drive growth for businesses and are taking clear steps to mitigate the risk of cybercrime with the significant $1.67b 2020 Cyber Security Strategy. This acted as a nice precursor to the $4.5b in funding for NBN upgrades to roll out fibre to Australian homes.
It’s clear we need more equitable access to early stage funding in Australia. We need to encourage investment and commercialisation in Australia – taking things to the next level without having to go offshore to do so, and this involves readily available capital, the right infrastructure to facilitate innovation and growth, and better incentives for R&D. If the Government doesn’t do anything meaningful for the technology industry then they’ve dropped the ball. In our report we cover:
We were initially writing the ‘Federal Budget: A 10 year retrospective’ report before COVID-19 as an advocacy piece for more industry investment and support. Of course, the way the year started is not the way the year is ending. Many sectors that had been left to their own devices are now key for our recovery. Sovereign capability. Jobs. Digital economy. Modern manufacturing. Renewable future. Deregulation. Innovation. These are the terms we will use as we settle into COVID-normal.
Our report looks retrospectively at 13 different industries, the investment made into them by Government and their contribution to GDP. This is then overlaid with the opportunity we see for industry in this new normal based on recent Government announcements.
With the Australian economy the weakest it has been in 23 years, Labor has handed down its third Federal Budget delivering its second consecutive surplus, and setting the Government’s agenda as we head into an election cycle.
AI, big data, machine learning, the Internet of Things – all things that were “coming” in the years leading up to the COVID-19 pandemic and are now staring us in the face.
There is a whole economy on the dark web built upon your stolen data – with an economic cost of approximately US$5t worldwide and US$1b in Australia alone.
There is an overlooked economic opportunity in Australia’s mid-sized businesses – with the right incentives and tax policies in place, they can grow in size, scale and reach. They can employ more people, collaborate with other Australian businesses, and better contribute to Australia’s bottom line.
