News

Clare O’Neill on R&D tax incentive

Industry policy is at its lowest ebb in years and federal Labor is urging government to re-examine the Turnbull-era Innovation and Science Australia 2030 report for its recommendations on...

DTA loses the plot over ID for porn

The Digital Transformation Agency’s plan to use its digital identity for age verification in accessing porn is an “own goal” that “hurts the credibility” of the program, according to...

Focus must be on private research

Government should provide more support for industry-led research rather than just focusing on university grants and incentives, according to the winner of the Prime Minister’s Prize for New Innovators....

In 2019, we’re a banana republic

In 1986, then Treasurer Paul Keating said that Australia risked becoming a third-rate economy – a ‘banana republic’ – if it allowed the sophisticated industrial side of the country...

CSIRO staff seek Fair Work relief

The implementation of the government’s staffing cap at Australia’s national science agency will be tested as part of a Fair Work Commission challenge lodged by the CSIRO staff association....

Health data share plan is too broad

The federal government’s proposed Medicare data-matching scheme is too broad and would bring with it a range of privacy risks, according to the NSW Council for Civil Liberties. The...

Three factor is key to digital ID

The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) recently confirmed the first version of a framework for a new federated identity credential known as ‘TrustID’ has been completed. It will be...

WTO must step up on digital: Treasurer

The World Trade Organisation must player a stronger role on issues of e-commerce and the digital economy, with Australia facing “significant challenges” as part of the transformation of the...

SheStarts founder program at risk

Australia’s tech accelerator focused entirely on women entrepreneurs SheStarts will almost certainly be wound-up once its third cohort complete their pitches to program’s Showcase event on schedule on November...

Govt AI ethics ignore our laws

The government should focus on enforcing existing laws and strengthening regulations to govern the use of artificial intelligence, rather than its “fluffy” ethics framework, according to Deakin University senior...

Digital ID gets a poor focus reception

Two-thirds of Australlians won’t use the federal government’s digital identity unless there is a significant public awareness campaign, and more needs to be done to improve security and privacy,...

Visa tender has cost $80m ‘so far’

The federal government had “utterly failed” to justify its decision to outsource the visa tech processing system, a project which has cost $80 million even before a winning bidder...

Medicare data plan a privacy risk

The government’s proposed Medicare data-sharing scheme will put the privacy of all Australians at “serious risk”, a data privacy expert has said. The Coalition unveiled draft legislation for the...

Telecoms is fuel for economic growth

A new report highlighting the importance of the telecommunications industry to the Australian economy should act as a reminder to the federal government when developing policy, according to Communications...