Editorial - 15-6

Will they or won't they? That seems to be the question of the moment for the predicted June release of the much-anticipated Industry Canada White Paper on innovation. After a long period without any substantive science and technology policy documents, many are hoping that the White Paper will outline the federal government's plans to push the economy into the 21st Century (see page 4).

The trouble is, the planning and policy formulation that such a exercise requires is still underway, leading to speculation that the document can't be completed before the summer break. At least it can't be completed in a way that will make it a truly meaningful and useful tool for future decision-making.

Industry Canada officials aren't saying much about it and neither are any of the relevant ministers. So where does that leave the host of announced and pending innovation measures that are supposed to transform the national economy and Canadian society?

Observers have long argued that Canada could benefit from a technology foresight capability that would help shift the disparate pieces of the innovation system into a coherent, workable pattern. A prescriptive document like an innovation White Paper would be a good start. But if the project languishes, or is downgraded into a framework document, Canada could squander a precious period in its evolution.

That could lead to a perpetuation of the inter-departmental feuding that has marred previous attempts to develop a workable S&T strategy, and that would be a shame.