EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
Issued by the authority of the Minister for Industry, Science and Technology
Industry Research and Development Act 1986
Industry Research and Development (Boosting Female Founders Initiative Program) Instrument 2020
Purpose and Operation
Section 33 of the Industry Research and Development Act 1986 (the IR&D Act) provides a mechanism for the Minister to prescribe programs, by disallowable legislative instrument, in relation to industry, innovation, science or research, including in relation to the expenditure of Commonwealth money under such programs.
The statutory framework provided by section 33 of the IR&D Act enables a level of flexibility to provide authority for Commonwealth spending activities in relation to industry, innovation, science and research programs. This allows the Government to respond quickly and appropriately to the need to implement innovative ideas and pilot programs on an ongoing basis and as opportunities arise. Prescribing programs in legislative instruments provides transparency and parliamentary oversight of Government programs and spending activities, whilst reducing administrative burden on the Commonwealth.
Once a program is prescribed by the Minister under section 33, subsection 34(1) allows the Commonwealth to make, vary or administer arrangements in relation to activities under the prescribed program. Arrangements may include contracts, funding agreements or other arrangements, and may provide for money to be payable by the Commonwealth to one or more third parties. The power conferred on the Commonwealth by subsection 34(1) may be exercised on behalf of the Commonwealth by a Minister or an accountable authority of a non-corporate entity, or by their delegate (under section 36).
The purpose of the Industry Research and Development (Boosting Female Founders Initiative Program) Instrument 2020 (the Legislative Instrument) is to prescribe the Boosting Female Founders Initiative Program (the Program). The Program was announced in 2018 as a measure under the first Women’s Economic Security Statement. Funding was secured through the Department of Industry, Science, Energy and Resources (the Department) 2018‑19 Budget. Additional funding has been secured through the 2020–21 Budget to expand the Program to provide additional grant funding and reflect the importance of expert mentoring and advice.
The Program provides $54 million in funding from financial year 2020–21 to 2024–25, as part of the Australian Government’s commitment to:
- reduce discrimination against, and promote equal opportunity for, women in innovative entrepreneurship;
- stimulate private sector investments into innovative startups led by women;
- enable women founders to expand their businesses into domestic and global markets;
- improve women’s earning potential through entrepreneurship; and
- boost the economy through increasing the diversity of startup founders.
The Program will be delivered through a combination of co-funded grants to women-owned and led startup businesses to undertake projects that scale the business, and procurements which provide women entrepreneurs with access to expert mentoring and advice. The Program supports women entrepreneurs to overcome disadvantages they face in getting access to finance and support to grow their startups. Funding under the competitive, co-funded grants element of the Program will be available to successful businesses to undertake eligible projects which support and grow their women-owned and led startups, including activities that launch and scale them into domestic and global markets.
Funding authorised by this Legislative Instrument comes from Programs 1 and 3, Outcome 1, as set out in the Portfolio Additional Estimates Statements 2018-19, Budget Related Paper No. 1.13A, Industry, Innovation and Science Portfolio (www.industry.gov.au/sites/default/files/2019-02/2018-19-department-of-industry-innovation-and-science-paes.pdf) at page 14, and Program 1.1, Outcome 1 as set out in the Portfolio Budget Statements 2020-2021 Budget Related Paper No. 1.9, Industry, Science, Energy and Resources Portfolio (https://www.industry.gov.au/sites/default/files/2020-10/2020-21-department-of-industry-science-enery-and-resources-pbs.pdf).
The Program will be administered by the Department and delivered by the Department’s Business Grants Hub, which is a specialised design, management and delivery body with extensive expertise and capability in delivering similar programs.
The Program is a competitive, merits based grants program administered in accordance with the Commonwealth Grant Rules and Guidelines 2017 (https://www.finance.gov.au/sites/default/files/2019-11/commonwealth-grants-rules-and-guidelines.pdf). Eligibility and merit criteria are outlined in the Program Guidelines (Boosting Female Founders Initiative, Grant Opportunity Guidelines), available at https://business.gov.au/Grants-and-Programs/Boosting-Female-Founders.
Spending decisions will be made by the Program Delegate who is the AusIndustry General Manager responsible for administering the Program, taking into account the recommendations of an independent assessment committee.
Grants will be a minimum of $25,000 up to a maximum of $480,000. The grant amount will be up to 50 per cent of the total eligible project expenditure. Applicants that meet additional requirements as set out in the Program guidelines may be eligible for a higher grant percentage. The Program Guidelines include a cap on the proportion of the balance of project expenditure that can be sourced from State, Territory or local government grants.
The Program involves the allocation of finite resources between competing applicants. In addition, there is a robust and extensive assessment process, an enquiry and feedback process, and an existing complaints mechanism for affected applicants. Therefore, external merits review does not apply to decisions about the provision of grants or services under the Program.
Applications will be assessed against the eligibility criteria and merit criteria set out in the Program Guidelines. Grant applications will be assessed for merit based on weighting given to assessment criterion. This will include comparing the applications and scoring each application out of 100.
Applications must address the eligibility and merit criteria set out in the Program Guidelines, and provide relevant supporting information. The amount of detail and supporting evidence should be relative to the project size, complexity and funding amount requested. Larger and more complex projects should include more detailed evidence. To be competitive, applications must score highly against each merit criterion.
After considering the applications, the independent assessment committee will make recommendations to the Program Delegate regarding those applications suitable for grant funding and mentorship services.
The committee may comprise representatives from the Australian Government, selected State and Territory governments, and other independent technical experts. The independent assessment committee may seek input from independent experts to inform their assessments.
The Program Delegate will make the final decision about which grants to approve, taking into consideration the independent assessment committee’s recommendations, and the availability of grant funds. The Program Delegate will not approve funding if there are insufficient Program funds available across relevant financial years for the Program.
Both successful and unsuccessful applicants will be informed in writing. Unsuccessful applicants have an opportunity to discuss the outcome with the Department, and can submit a new application for the same or similar project in future funding rounds. Where this occurs, applicants should include new or more information to address the weaknesses identified in their previous application.
Persons who are otherwise affected by decisions or who have complaints about the Program will also have recourse to the Department. The Department investigates any complaints about the Program in accordance with its complaints policy and procedures. If a person is not satisfied with the way the Department handles the complaint, they may lodge a complaint with the Commonwealth Ombudsman.
Mentorship element
The Program will provide expert mentoring and advice to meritorious applicants, including those that are unsuccessful in receiving grants. Eligible applicants will be offered a fixed number of hours of mentorship to support access to entrepreneurial knowledge that will assist them in growing their businesses.
A procurement process will be used to establish a panel of mentors to provide mentorship and to fund the provision of mentorship services by panel members to eligible applicants. This approach will be used because funding will be provided for specific opportunities delivered by a specialist entity or entities. Spending decisions will be made having regard to whether the opportunity represents value for money and alignment with Program objectives. All procurements will be conducted in accordance with the Public Governance Performance and Accountability Act 2013.
Trade and commerce power
The Legislative Instrument specifies that one legislative power in respect of which it is made is the Commonwealth trade and commerce power (s 51(i) of the Constitution). Section 51(i) of the Constitution empowers the Parliament to make laws with respect to ‘trade and commerce with other countries, and among the states’.
In that regard, the Program prescribed by the Legislative Instrument is aimed at fostering and facilitating the development of innovative women-founded startups to assist them to trade interstate and/or internationally, and increase their chances of success in interstate and/or international markets.
External affairs power
The Legislative Instrument specifies that one legislative power in respect of which it is made is the external affairs power (s 51(xxix) of the Constitution). The external affairs power supports Commonwealth legislation implementing Australia’s obligations under treaties to which it is a party.
Articles 2, 3 and 11(1) of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women, which condemns discrimination against women in all its forms, relevantly state that signatories agree to pursue a policy of eliminating discrimination against women, take all appropriate measures to ensure the full development and advancement of women, and take all appropriate measures to eliminate discrimination against women in the field of employment. In that regard, funding provided under the Legislative Instrument will assist the advancement of women entrepreneurs, and support women’s access to employment and economic security. The Program will thereby assist women entrepreneurs to overcome discrimination and will promote equal opportunity in innovative entrepreneurship.
Authority
Section 33 of the Industry Research and Development Act 1986 provides authority for the Legislative Instrument.
Consultation
A national public consultation process was undertaken between August and October 2019 to inform the design of the Initiative (https://consult.industry.gov.au/science-commercialisation/bff-design/).
In accordance with section 17 of the Legislation Act 2003, the Attorney-General’s Department has been consulted on this Legislative Instrument.
Regulatory Impact
It is estimated that the Program will have minimal regulatory impact (OBPR reference number: 24066).
Details of the Industry Research and Development (Boosting Female Founders Initiative Program) Instrument 2020
Section 1 – Name of Instrument
This section specifies the name of the Legislative Instrument as the Industry Research and Development (Boosting Female Founders Initiative Program) Instrument 2020.
Section 2 – Commencement
This section provides that the Legislative Instrument commences on the day after registration on the Federal Register of Legislation.
Section 3 – Authority
This section specifies the provision of the Industry, Research and Development Act 1986 (the Act) under which the Legislative Instrument is made.
Section 4 – Definitions
This item provides for definitions of terms used in the Legislative Instrument.
The use of the term ‘women’ in the definition of female founded startup is intended to include people that identify as women.
Section 5 – Prescribed Program
This section prescribes the Boosting Female Founders Initiative Program (the Program) for the purposes of section 33 of the Act.
The Program provides co-funded grants to women-owned and led startup businesses, and facilitates access to expert mentoring and advice. It is intended to support women entrepreneurs overcome the disadvantages they face in getting access to finance and support to scale their businesses into domestic and global markets.
Funding is available to successful businesses to undertake eligible projects which support and grow their women-owned and led startups, including activities that launch and scale them into domestic and global markets. The Program will also provide tailored mentoring and advice to eligible applicants to ensure women entrepreneurs have access to the knowledge they need to continue to succeed and grow.
Section 6 – Specified Legislative Power
This section specifies that the legislative powers in respect of which the Legislative Instrument is made are the powers of the Parliament to make laws with respect to trade and commerce with other countries, and among the States (paragraph 51(i) of the Constitution) and external affairs (paragraph 51(xxix) of the Constitution).
Statement of Compatibility with Human Rights
Prepared in accordance with Part 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011
Industry Research and Development (Boosting Female Founders Initiative Program) Instrument 2020
This Legislative Instrument is compatible with the human rights and freedoms recognised or declared in the international instruments listed in section 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011.
Overview of the Legislative Instrument
This Legislative Instrument is intended to prescribe the Boosting Female Founders Initiative Program (the Program). The Program provides co-funded grants to women-owned and led startup businesses as well as facilitate access to expert mentoring and advice. It is intended to support women entrepreneurs overcome the disadvantages they face in getting access to finance and support to scale their businesses into domestic and global markets.
Funding is available to successful businesses to undertake eligible projects which support and grow their women-owned and led startups, including activities that launch and scale them into domestic and global markets.
The Program provides $54 million in funding over five years, on competitive merit based assessment, as part of the Australian Government’s commitment to:
- to reduce discrimination against, and promote equal opportunity for, women in innovative entrepreneurship;
- stimulate private sector investments into innovative startups led by women;
- enable women founders to expand their businesses into domestic and global markets, and become self-sufficient; and
- boost the economy through increasing the diversity of startup founders.
Human rights implications
This Legislative Instrument has a positive effect on the applicable rights or freedoms. The Program upholds Articles 2, 3 and 11(1) of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women as it will assist the development and advancement of women, and support women’s access to employment and economic security. The Program will thereby assist women to overcome discrimination. The Program also upholds Articles 2, 16 and 26 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights as applicants who identify as women will be eligible for funding under the Program.
Conclusion
This Legislative Instrument is compatible with human rights.
The Hon Karen Andrews MP
Minister for Industry, Science and Technology