Visas to lure savvy start-ups under Labor plan

TWO new visa categories for digitally savvy entrepreneurs capable of establishing innovative start-ups could be introduced, as both major political parties compete to outdo each other in an innovation policy race.

Labor has pledged to open the doors to 2000 start-up entrepreneurs from around the globe who can prove they’ve got access to about $200,000 capital and have plans to create the next Uber or Airbnb.

With Malcolm Turnbull’s ascension to the Prime Ministership, the government and the Opposition have sharpened the focus on innovation and the opportunities of the digital economy, marking it out as a key battleground ahead of the next election.

Opposition leader Bill Shorten has pledged to introduce a new ‘Startup Entrepreneurial Visa’ if Labor wins power, which could see 2000 budding business developers from across the globe come to Australia for three years if they can prove they have access to venture capital to establish their project.

Another 2000 university graduates with genuine business ideas will have the opportunity to stay in Australia for an extra year after graduation to pursue their own start-up.

“We need to be in the global competition for the smartest minds on the planet,” Mr Shorten said.

Newly minted Innovation Minister Christopher Pyne welcomed the idea yesterday, and said the Turnbull government would work to encourage innovation and entrepreneurship.

“Innovation has to be more than a political buzzword; it’s the only option for our economy if we are to maintain our current standard of living,” he said.

Tim Mazzarol, the president of the Small Enterprise Association of Australia, said it was “about time” the light was shone on innovation.

“We have to do this, it is essential — Australia’s role in this space is not bad, but we have been slipping a bit and we are recognised in the global innovation index as an inefficient innovation country,” Professor Mazzarol said.

“We invest a lot, but we don’t commercialise as much as we could or should and there is evidence that shows that there is a positive correlation between the amount of patents that are produced and economic growth and productivity.”