Government departments provide the backdrop to a national approach on innovation. The interaction of programmes, and policy approaches give a landscape within which players can leverage their capabilities, work with industry and commercial interests and deliver innovations to markets.
As the financiers of the public research base, regulators and supporters of industry and cheer leaders of UK base industry they play a positive, and negative role. Within the UK we expect government approaches to support
industry in a impartial fashion, and the advantage that offers to building small companies and a competitive economy is critical to UK success.
We also see how various departments with a focus on regulation and with non-commercial policy objectives can hamper the development of industry in a haphazard and uncoordinated way. The realisation within government that regulation and diktat may be counter productive and that a partnership approach within industry can deliver policy goals more easily. An example is the Waste Electric approach where working with industry has provided a more effective delivery of goals to recycle and reduce hazardous waste.
The subtleties of government effect on the commercial environment may be missed in Government circles but the existence of industry government relations teams and lobbying efforts demonstrates that large companies and industries bodies recognise the importance of the public sector.
Other countries with inefficient or corrupt government demonstrate the importance of incorruptible, evidence based policy and regulation in creating a stable and supportive environment for commercial interests. The correlation between the corruption indices and the creation of small companies as a major driver of innovation is instructive.
The final point is that government has to be seen as more than a provider of funding and more a provider of a supportive environment for the development of successful growth focussed innovative companies.
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