Towards the bio-economy

The effects of the election of a new government in November 2007, with a different ideology from the last, is yet to be determined, but more should be known at the end of the year.

Australian biotech is hugely reliant on commercialising R&D from public sector bodies, such as the universities, medical research institutes and the CSIRO. It is also hugely - some would say overly - reliant on start-up grants such as the previous government's Biotechnology Industry Fund (BIF) and Commercial Ready and Commercial Ready Plus grants system, which the new Labor Government has axed.

The new government has promised nothing new until after its wide-ranging National Innovation Review is completed at the end of the year. The new Minister for Innovation, Industry, Science and Research, Senator Kim Carr, has appointed innovation specialist Dr Terry Cutler to head up the review, which will examine all aspects of the national innovation system and in particular whether Australia's national innovation priorities are aligned with research priorities.

The government is looking hard at streamlining the multitude of federal and state industry funding programs, of which there are 169, some affecting the biotech sector. It is also very keen to encourage more private investment, not only in biotech but in the public research agencies as well.

Carr told ALS that he wants to encourage not just new collaborations within the public sector, in particular on an interdisciplinary basis, but also between the public and private sectors. He is also intent on developing international relationships and has moved to allow international students more access to Australian educational offerings.

Lyndal Thorburn sees the Innovation Review as a real opportunity to make some changes to the innovation system but points out that the panel will be getting a lot of advice from a lot of different people. "The review is very focused on the big picture and looking far ahead, which is a good thing," she says.

That future could be the bio-economy, the long-mooted evolution in which biotechnology is the next big thing after information technology in having an effect on every sector in the economy.

"A lot of the work we have been doing in the last couple of years is looking at tracking that - the incursion of biotechnology processes and products into traditional sectors like manufacturing, waste management, textiles, agricultural industries - beef and dairy in particular - water and climate change," Thorburn says. "I certainly think there is a match there."

So, are we seeing the long-vaunted maturation of the Australian biotech industry? "It has taken 15 or 20 years to build the industry and at this stage a lot of the ground work has been done," Hopper says. "We sense that there is a trend towards smaller licensing deals rather than start-up companies, and we think there is a lot of research that is being held back [in the universities] at the moment or it is being licensed. But the research is still pumping through and is looking as good as ever."