Lifting productivity needs more than R&D tax incentives

Lifting productivity needs more than R&D tax incentives
Nikki Mandow
By Nikki Mandow Oct. 3 (BusinessDesk) - Research and development tax credits are a “weak lever” for improving New Zealand’s poor levels of productivity and innovation, according to local experts, including at the Productivity Commission. The government today announced its R&D tax incentive plan, which will allow firms to get a 15 percent credit for annual spending over $50,000 on certain “eligible” R&D. The tax credits are the lynchpin of the government’s stated objective of creating a “more productive economy”, and the newly-announced...