The Australian Greens have today released a comprehensive Innovation Policy to back startup enterprises, support STEM education and boost innovation funding.

The policy was launched in Melbourne today with Innovation spokesperson Nick McKim, Industry and Science spokesperson Adam Bandt and Greens candidate for Higgins Jason Ball.

“The Australian Greens will reinvigorate the minds of Australian entrepreneurs by reinvesting the funding to the Entrepreneur’s Infrastructure Program,” Senator McKim said.

Greens Industry spokesperson Adam Bandt MP today said the Australian auto industry has crashed because Labor and the Liberals have been asleep at the wheel. In February last year the Greens proposed a plan to allow new carmakers and component manufacturers to access the existing hundreds of millions of dollars allocated in the Automative Transformation Scheme if they were manufacturing vehicles or parts for electric or alternative fuel vehicles, or parts for renewables.  Neither Labor nor the Liberals supported the move.

The Greens broadly welcome the Turnbull Government’s Innovation Statement, however it does not repair the huge damage done to the science and research and development sectors by the Liberals’ funding cuts in recent years.

Greens Innovation spokesperson Senator Nick McKim said: “The focus on innovation and the attached funding are welcome, but it does not come close make up for the Liberals’ massive cuts to science, higher education and research and development.”

With the government’s higher education bill set to fail in the Senate this week, the Australian Greens have called on Tony Abbott to withdraw his government’s higher education Bill and pull Education Minister Christopher Pyne into line and confirm funding for Australian research infrastructure.

“Support for fee deregulation is crumbling. The Senate crossbench looks set to join university students, staff, and the community who have already rejected these reforms,” said Greens higher education spokesperson Senator Lee Rhiannon.

The government’s Higher Education reforms are destined to fail in the Senate, with Labor, the Greens and most of the crossbench opposing fee deregulation in any form.

Senator Lee Rhiannon is calling on the government to scrap the Bill and open up a national dialogue about higher education.

Greens Deputy Leader and science, research and innovation spokesperson Adam Bandt MP today said that world-class research facilities around the country and about 1700 jobs face the axe from June 30 this year under Education Minister Christopher Pyne’s desperate attempt to pass his Higher Education bill by blackmailing the Senate.

“Education Minister Christopher Pyne is blackmailing the Parliament, saying that unless the Parliament passes his plan to increase university fees, he’ll take the axe to science and research facilities in this country,” Mr Bandt said.