RESEARCH DEVELOPMENT:THE INNOVATION Taskforce report argues strongly for a continued heavy investment in scientific research as a way to help pull Ireland out of recession. It also highlights the need to commercialise research discoveries as a way to create jobs and wealth through the "smart economy" paradigm.
The report’s authors saw fit to rank these two issues – investment in research and the exploitation of resultant intellectual property (IP) – as their first and second agenda items. They arise under the section headings: “Strengthening the Knowledge Base” and “Transferring Knowledge”.
Its first “key” recommendation therefore is to deliver on the longstanding goal of achieving annual research investment equal to 3 per cent of GDP. It wants this to be achieved in the run-up to 2020 and matches goals already set by the EU for member states.
This level of research spending should be pursued despite the country’s economic difficulties, the report’s authors believe. They also say that reaching this level of investment – at least two-thirds of which would be expected to come from the private sector – would require “greater co-ordination of the public research investment” and also the leveraging of more private investment.
This target has been part of both Irish Government and EU policy, however, since at least 2002. The 3 per cent of GDP goal arose within the “Lisbon Strategy” agreed at the Lisbon summit. When originally enunciated the target was to achieve this by 2010, but little progress was made in reaching this high level of research spending.
Ireland revised the figure downwards to 2.5 per cent to be reached by 2013, both set within the Strategy for Science, Technology and Innovation 2006-2013. It was again raised to 3 per cent after the coalition partners recently renegotiated their Programme for Government, but the taskforce now recommends this be achieved in the period 2013-2020. It is in line with the latest manifestation of the Lisbon Strategy, issued only last week by EU President José Barroso, which also targets 2020.
The report points out that Ireland spent about 1.66 per cent of GNP on research in 2008, worth about €1.68 billion and double the spend in 2000.
“Nonetheless we strongly believe that it is only by investing financial resources in this agenda, in particular in human capital and the technology that supports it, that the Irish economy will recover to provide levels of growth and employment which will in turn sustain the level of public services desired by the Irish population,” the authors state.
“We do not see an alternative path to recovery other than one driven by innovation.”
The report also calls for the reform of the many bodies that channel funding into research. They report to a range of departments, and in keeping with an announcement in Budget 2010, the report also asks for the consolidation of the related funding streams and more co-ordination between research agencies.
Knowledge transfer and the protection of IP provide the report’s second key area of concern. It wants better systems to encourage higher education researchers to commercialise their research.
It also wants a more effective way to link researchers and business people and clear procedures governing the protection of IP.
The knowledge transfer theme described in the report is again very well aligned with current thinking within Government. Both the Taoiseach and the Tánaiste have consistently repeated in statements over the past months the need for knowledge and discoveries to transfer from the lab and into industry.
The taskforce wants the gross return to the economy and not the return to the universities to be the “key principal” when commercialising IP. With this in mind and again reflecting Government thinking, it wants to position Ireland as a location within the EU where there is a “clear and consistent national policy and rules” for IP ownership and exploitation.
It calls for the publication of a national “IP protocol” and wants to see an expert group formed including industry, the venture capital sector, higher education, legal expertise and the public sector, to consider the issues and deliver technology transfer recommendations by September.
Delivering on research and IP will help make Ireland an innovation island, the authors argue.
