Future prospects good for IRL

IRL Chief Executive Shaun Coffey informed the Education and Science Select Committee that the company was performing well, and had good future prospects provided it maintained its current momentum.

Among responses to committee questions, Shaun Coffey made a number of points.

• Revenue growth for IRL is expected to be about 10% this year. This is a continuation of a four-year trend, and increasingly this growth is from private sector investment.
• Referring to overseas experiences, Coffey suggested that oversight on direction and strategy needed to be kept at a whole-of-government level, and involve industry and the community.
• To increase commitment it is important that business, industry and the community join with government to agree on national strategies.
• Industry is starting to invest more in R&D with IRL and, given the right incentives and policy setting, IRL could lift the industry proportion of investment in its activities to 50% over a 5- to 10-year period. Current revenue growth suggests this is feasible.

There is still a way to go, and the key task ahead is to grow further private sector investment in research and development and innovation.