Budget 2017: R & D spend 'disappointing'

Professor John Raine, AUT's pro vice-chancellor of research and innovation. Photo / File

The Government's $255.6 million increase in spending on science and innovation is disappointing in its amount and scope, says an expert.

Finance Minister Steven Joyce announced the increase when revealing this year's Budget, stating that the additional funds were a bid to help diversify the economy and support more jobs and higher wages.

"It's all about adding more value to our export volumes. Investment in innovation is hugely important for lifting our productivity and providing for our future prosperity," Joyce said.

Professor John Raine, AUT's pro vice-chancellor of research and innovation, said while any investment in science and innovation was welcome, the scope of today's announcement was "disappointing".

"I certainly agree that the country needs to maintain its investment level in things such as Antarctic science, earthquake, volcano and tsunami monitoring - that's all very good. But in areas such as data science and technology or artificial intelligence it's completely silent

"That's such a massively growing, high-rate-of-change area internationally and if New Zealand doesn't invest in that area we'll just be sad technology-takers from other countries," he said.

Raine wished to disclose that he was involved in a national partnership that was seeking funding in these areas.

"But I think even if you were to ask an impartial observer in the technology space, it would be good to see the New Zealand Government providing more of a stimulus in the data, big data, data science technologies, data analytics space and artificial intelligence in particular.

"We're able to be a high-tech economy but to do that we've got to be able to invest for a period of time to build that collateral investment in industry."

The increase - part of the Innovative New Zealand programme - includes the previously announced $74.6m increase for Callaghan Innovation research and development grants.

The government has also earmarked a further $81.9m for the Endeavour Research Fund, which supports mission-led programmes of science.

The extra funds also include $21m for Antarctic Science, and $19.5m to help reduce the risk to life from natural disasters and hazards.

There will also be $6m for the expansion of the Innovative Partnerships Programme to attract multinational companies to New Zealand to undertake R&D activity, as well as $52.5m for high-performing research-based institutions through the Performance-Based Research Fund.

"An innovative New Zealand will use the skills and knowledge delivered by our tertiary system and the high-quality, high-impact science to help innovative Kiwi businesses to be successful on the world stage," said the Minister of Science and Innovation Paul Goldsmith and Simon Bridges, Minister for Economic Development in a joint statement.

University of Auckland Shaun Hendy said it seemed like a "steady as you go" budget for science and innovation, with the government investing more in some of its large funding programmes, particularly those that support economic growth.

New Zealand Association of Scientists president Craig Stevens called it a "mild" budget from the perspective of science, with positive boosts across the full spectrum of the field.

"There is still some way to go to get anywhere near the sorts of investment in science seen in other countries where, for example, we spend roughly half of that spent per capita in Australia."

New Zealand Biological Heritage National Science Challenge director Andrea Byrom said that on the face of it, this was a good budget for science.

"We are still playing catch-up with a historically low spend on R&D relative to other OECD countries, and any new funding is keenly sought after. Nevertheless, it's good to see a new allocation here."

- Additional reporting: BusinessDesk