It is good that the cabinet is investing in the economy in the short, medium and long term. The members of the Innovation Platform support the cabinet’s recession package. Various proposals of the Innovation Platform made in Stronger after the Storm have been adopted. Wiebe Draijer says: ‘The heart of Stronger after the Storm is to use the recession in order to tackle the weaknesses of the Dutch economy and make ourselves stronger. The cabinet is also opting for this line. However, we do advise making a number of even more focused choices. For example, opting to strengthen the key areas, the strong economic sectors which are the motor of Dutch competitive strength. The cabinet can formulate these choices even better’. The Innovation Platform considers that the attention devoted to energy and sustainability is positive and comprehensible. Energy had already been mentioned as an axis of innovation by the Innovation Platform in 2004.

The members of the Innovation Platform applaud the choices for targeted investments in education, knowledge, innovation and enterprise, but do advise making these choices in an even more focused and specific way. Extending the reduction in contribution of the WBSO is a good measure, as is strengthening the knowledge infrastructure with the temporary use of information workers. Both these measures were advocated by the Innovation Platform. The cabinet is opting to raise the development of education, innovation and knowledge to the level of the OECD average in the long term. Reference is made to the summer when Economic Affairs and Education, Culture and Science aim to make additional communications in the Budget Memorandum. Robbert Dijkgraaf says: ‘Sometimes we question this as members of the Innovation platform. Which OECD average can you use as a reference point? For some aspects of education we are at or even above the OECD average. For Development and Research (R&D) we are not, as the Innovation platform has also noted. For the public and private expenditure on research and development, this would mean that it would have to increase by 4 billion EUR per year. It is more sensible to compare the Netherlands with our direct competitors. They are speeding up at a much greater rate than we are. If we are to maintain and strengthen our prosperity, they serve as a yardstick and therefore we will have to speed up even more.’ Dijkgraaf refers to the analysis which the Innovation platform has drawn up about the state of the Netherlands as a country of knowledge. This reveals that both the public and private investments in knowledge, innovation and enterprise are significantly behind countries with powerful economies that the Netherlands is competing with. According to the Knowledge Investment Agenda of the Innovation Platform, the public investments in knowledge and innovation will have to increase in this respect by 1.2% of the GNP compared to 2006 (the KIA estimates a structural increase of 3.5 to 6 billion euros per year up to 2016 for this purpose). This agenda will have to be carried out at an accelerated rate if the competitive strength of the Netherlands is to remain up to standard. According to the members of the Innovation platform, the Knowledge Investment Agenda is a better yardstick than the OECD averages. Furthermore, the Innovation Platform would like to consult with the ministers on the implementation of this package.

The cabinet is allocating a total of € 900 million to stimulate the innovative strength of the Netherlands. The members of the Innovation platform argue for using these millions in an even more targeted way. Draijer says: “We are happy with the money for Wind at Sea and hope that the funds of the FES are really ‘new’ funds. It is particularly important at the moment, if we are to emerge from the recession stronger, to implement a sustainable industrial policy and make very targeted investments. In our opinion, the cabinet could improve further in this respect. The Innovation platform is arguing for more foreign investments, amongst other things. With a targeted and coordinated effort on the part of the state, other governments and industry, the number of important foreign establishments coming in can be increased to 50 in three years.
It has been calculated that an additional government investment of 10 million euros per year, in combination with a number of improvements in the climate for establishing businesses, could lead to an increase in the GNP of 0.5 to 1.0%. There are extra opportunities for the key areas precisely at the moment. In addition to the current programmes which have to be carried out, there are approximately 300 million for innovation projects and programmes which should be set up. This is also possible by organizing more innovation campuses for those key areas. The funds from local governments referred to in the policy agreement of the cabinet should be used for this.
According to Dijkgraaf and Draijer: ‘The policy agreement is therefore a step in the right direction, but tightening up the key areas and making targeted investments, which don’t even have to cost much money, in knowledge and innovation could have an even bigger impact in the longer term.’

For further measures see Stronger after the Storm, and the report of the 2009 Knowledge Investment Agenda which can be found on www.innovatieplatform.nl

For further information on this press release and the Innovation Platform :

Maria Henneman, +31 6 11376550, mh@innovatieplatform.nl