Ian Macdonald (Queensland, Liberal Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Northern Australia) Share this | Hansard source

Senator Carr has accepted that there are now two gaps in the program in his department, but the minister would be aware that the Export Market Development Grants Scheme, for which he has responsibility in this chamber, also encourages investment in innovation. Will the minister guarantee that the government will not further harm Australia’s investment in innovation by axing the Export Market Development Grants Scheme—like it did to the Commercial Ready program? Further, will the Minister for Trade, Simon Crean, in his major statement scheduled for this week, be responding to the Mortimer report on the EMDG Scheme, which is so vital to innovation investment?