Exporters tipped to benefit as Gillard flags innovation, skills, training policies to capture benefits of boom

Prime Minister Julia Gillard has flagged policies to bridge the gap in Australia’s two-speed economy, with new innovation, skills and training policies expected to be announced over the next few months.

Gillard has told The Australian that Australia needs to rethink how it views the economy, as it shifts to a low-carbon future and deals with different growth rates across the regions. “It requires us to think about things differently than we have in the past,” she told the paper.

Gillard also said the resources boom presents Australia with a “fantastic opportunity” to “fundamentally change the way opportunity works in this country.”

“This window in our history means we can reshape how we distribute opportunity in this society, and we should and we can, and I believe we will,” Gillard said.

“For me, it’s how you seize the moment and say: ‘Well, what do we want all of these changes to add up to, what do we want them to mean?’”

She also flagged a greater focus on addressing the “benefit of work to people who have been locked out of it, where we can change our culture about work, where we change our education system, we change our perception that poor kids get left at the back of the class and no one can fix that.”

A source has also told the paper that the appointment of a new boss at the Department of Industry, Science and Research – Don Russell – would likely prompt a greater focus on developing a more sustainable non-resource sector, with tax incentives for research, less regulation, and a greater say for industry in training tipped.

Ian Murray, executive director of the Australian Institute of Export, welcomes the comments on support for non-resource businesses.

According to Murray, exporters are probably facing their most difficult time in 20 years and are in dire need of encouragement and assistance.

“Positive programs are what industry is crying out for,” Murray told SmartCompany this morning.

“Nobody’s looking for subsidies; everybody’s looking for means to be able to market their businesses overseas given the currency and financial situations.”

Murray’s wish-list includes assistance to companies for skills development, and more time from the Government for business across all sectors.