EDITOR'S BRIEF

It's vitally important that Government shows its mettle to deal with current circumstances and delivers on the policies needed to promote and protect the innovators, writes Michael McAleer.

OUR ECONOMIC woes have been well-documented in the media over the last few weeks.

Predictions of a recession and warning about the return to emigration quickly led to comparisons with the dark days of the 1980s. The pendulum of public opinion - and media reaction - has swung erratically in recent weeks and months.

It was hardly an auspicious occasion for the Government to launch its Innovation Policy Statement. This identifies 10 "key policy areas" that underpins the Government's approach to innovation in support of that old buzzword, the "knowledge economy".

Most of the policy areas will be well known to anyone who has ever read an official report on this topic before. They include proposals on managing intellectual property, promoting entrepreneurship and supporting lifelong learning.

One key area is identified as "building a world class research system". Such a goal is to be commended, but the difficulty in implementing this - at third level at least - is outlined in an opinion article in this edition from Dr Tony Killard, senior research fellow at Dublin City University.

He states that contrary to the spin surrounding research activity in Ireland, "increasingly, the research output of the Irish economy is being driven by an underclass of highly educated individuals . . . One of the key goals of the Government's Strategy for Science, Technology and Innovation is to double the numbers of PhD graduates by 2013. This may seem like a positive aspiration. However, many researchers would not strongly encourage young people into higher degrees if they aspired to a good quality career." He paints a less than rosy picture of one of the critical areas for our economic future.

Small businesses, researchers and entrepreneurs are having to ride the waves of this current economic storm. Even the big financial institutions are suffering. In turn credit lines are tightening. It's vitally important that the Government shows its mettle to deal with these circumstances and delivers on the policies needed to promote and protect the innovators who will help get the country's economy back on track.