OPINION: Will the Australian government make the same mistakes with biotechnology that it has with information technology? All too likely, I'm afraid.

It's time to face facts: Australia will never have a world-class IT industry. Not that there's anything particularly wrong with the place; we have the ability, the brains, the education, and the infrastructure.

There's no shortage of innovative ideas either. And, it's not just that successive Australian governments have failed to recognise the importance of IT. Many would argue that it's easier to develop an industry successfully without any government assistance.

Australian innovators have failed to commercialise their ideas, and with the number of stumbling blocks put in the way by successive Australian governments, it's no surprise.

Legislation has been cast with more of an eye to political expediency than to developing an industry--think Internet censorship, online gambling, and datacasting just for starters. Onerous restrictions have been placed on attracting foreign venture capital. Tax breaks? In our dreams. In this environment, it's no wonder many Australian IT pioneers have struggled.

I recently caught up with Dr Orna Berry, former Chief Scientist of Israel. Dr Berry detailed the steps taken by the Israeli Government to encourage the development of its IT industry, from the formation of the Office of the Chief Scientist in the early 70s, to the establishment and funding of research foundations, tax breaks for foreign investment, and the provision of venture capital. However, it wasn't until the late 90s that these measures really started to bear fruit, according to Dr Berry.

If it actually takes that long, anything the Australian Government does now to encourage the development of a local IT industry is simply too little, too late.

The best thing to do is probably to give up on IT and focus on areas where Australia still has the potential to develop world-leading industries, such as telecommunications, medical equipment, and biotechnology.

At least these industries are undergoing revolutionary change--it's hard to view IT development in the future as anything but evolutionary, no matter how much Microsoft hypes up Web services. Is it any surprise the Howard Government is currently fixing to do to Australia's nascent biotech industry what it's been busy doing to IT for the last six years?

As this article went to print, the Government was expected to announce a policy ruling out all forms of embryonic stem cell research, a field that shows great promise in developing treatments for conditions such as Parkinson's Disease, spinal damage, liver disease, and diabetes.

Yes, there are grave moral issues relating to the use of human embryos for scientific research, but is the Government supposed to be making moral decisions on behalf of its citizens? Sounds to me like the same old pattern of political point-scoring first, welfare of the country a long way second.

A recent feature on the ZDNet Australia Web site discussed how immigrants with IT skills are driving taxis and cleaning floors because they can't find IT jobs.

Following the collapse of the Soviet Union, Israel absorbed more than a million immigrants over about 10 years--a population increase of around 20 percent. But unlike Australia, Israel is reaping the benefits of their skills and knowledge.

Part of this success was due to the fact that scientific research in the Soviet Union did not follow the same paths as in the West, according to Dr Berry.

Israel placed some of these ex-Soviet scientists in incubators with their Western-trained Israeli counterparts, resulting in some out-there esoteric research ideas that are beginning to produce amazing results.

For instance, their work on materials science led to the development of a wound dressing for diabetics--who are especially susceptible to gangrene--which improved the rate of successful treatment (i.e. avoiding amputation) by 85 percent.

Perhaps it's an unfair comparison. Israel has developed its technology industries out of necessity--both in terms of military needs and because it has no other resources to rely on--whereas Australia has a wealth of natural resources, yadda yadda. Nor are all the Israeli government's policies currently enjoying a great deal of worldwide support.

IT companies constantly reinvent themselves; consider all the current manoeuvring around Web services and security as a prime example. Unless Australia also reinvents itself, it will be consigned to the scrap heap of technology history, along with the Amiga and the Apple Newton.

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