Drawback to user-pays idea—papers

Press, 9 October 1987, Page 3

Drawback to user-pays idea—papers

By

OLIVER RIDDELL

in Wellington User-pays for D.S.I.R. work has had some adverse consequences, according to briefing papers prepared for the Minister of Science, Mr Tizard. Although the Government supported a level of long-term strategic research through the net funding available to the D.5.1.R., these funds had been decreasing steadily. The reduction had resulted in a drive for- commercial sources of funding which was leading progressively to a different mix between strategic science activity and commercially orientated research. Also, the paper said, the problem of earning shortterm revenue was dominating the thinking within many D.S.I.R. divisions, leading to a loss of efficient research time. Those clients who were Government departments now had fewer funds to pay for the existing level of D.S.I.R. services while the restructuring of industry had also reduced interest in long-term developments. Many D.S.I.R. divisions were maintaining their levels of activity by increasing revenue, but this was becoming increasingly difficult, the papers said. In the long term it would be very important to maintain a viable balance between the strategic research base and

more commercially orientated activity, so that there was no reduction in the new knowledge which would be the foundation of the development of future commercial opportunities. The papers said that in recent years it had been argued that some of the Government’s investment in research and development was being used to undertake work for specific clients — thus constituting a “subsidy.” In this event, it had been reasonable to try to determine how much of this research and development had been undertaken for clients who ought to be paying for it and how much for the public good. An element of self-fund-ing was welcomed by the D.5.1.R., the papers said. Benefits perceived included ensuring the divisions sought work which was relevant to industry and market-led, and thus contributed strongly to planning longer term strategic research; plus allowing for growth in those areas of user need. The D.S.LR. had had to adopt new strategies to deal with the effects on staff of' the rapid and fundamental changes brought about by lower Government funding and user-pays policies. New systems of staff recognition and reward would be needed, the papers said. ,