By Simon Shepherd
New Zealanders like to think they're resourceful and innovative, but it isn't so - according to a new study that reviewed how many patents for new inventions we're filing.
In fact, it seems we lag well behind most developed countries.
"New Zealanders are more focused on selling houses to each other," says New Zealand rocket scientist Peter Beck. "In the international community, it's more about investing in high technology companies and investing in other areas."
Beck is following in some famous Kiwi footsteps, like the father of nuclear physics, Ernest Rutherford, the jetboat-powering Hamilton Jet and even bungee pioneer AJ Hackett.
Sounds impressive, but we're well down the list compared to other countries.
"In New Zealand, over the last 30 years we've filed about one patent per 1000 people," says Shaun Hendy, MacDiarmid Institute for Advanced Materials, "whereas in the OECD, they've filed one per 250, whereas a country like Finland, there's one patent for every 100 people."
In the 1990s, Finland, with a population of 5 million, was facing an economic crisis – but it pumped money into research and development, and turned a wood pulp company the size of Fisher & Paykel into the $40 billion cellphone company Nokia.
"We spend about a third of the OECD average on research and development," says Mr Hendy. "It's both in the public sector, where we are underspending considerably, and in the private sector, where we spend about a quarter of the OECD average."
Others argue that throwing more money around isn't a solution on its own – you need people who can turn inventions into products.
"Unless you've actually got that commercialisation process working, you're going to increase the amount of ideas and inventions there, but you won't necessarily increase the number of international businesses that resolve from those," says Rick Boven, The New Zealand Institute.
There is help for inventors – Grant Ryan invented the YikeBike with the aid of a $500,000 government grant. Time magazine included it in last year's list of top inventions.
"No one ever thinks there is enough research money," says Mr Ryan. "There's a couple of really good government programs at the moment."
But getting businesses to invest in research and development has become a lot harder since the scrapping of tax incentives. The whole sector is being reviewed, and a report will be ready by the time of the next budget.
Inventors are looking for a simpler answer.
"Just put more money into research and development, that's all it takes," says Mr Beck.
The Government has to do something to meet its goal of closing the pay gap with Australia by 2025.
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