Is $10,000 per week cheap or expensive?

It has emerged that Dr Terry Cutler, who is heading the review of Australia's National Innovation System as part of the input into Innovation Policy is earning $10,000 per week, or $2,000 per day for the period of the review. The opposition, through Senator Abetz has challenged this by comparison with the $572 per day that Steve Bracks is being paid to review the automotive industry (see media release here).

It's interesting that with multiple reviews going that there is only going to be more scrutiny about how much people should be paid to conduct these reviews, whether they are "merely" facilitating or conducting a review, or whether they are acting as consultants in generating new policy options, beyond those available to the government through their own sources, or the public service.

Putting aside our gripe that although Dr Cutler is not only the leader of the Review, and the R&D Tax Working Group, he did not attend recent consultations with advisory firms in Sydney and Brisbane who work extensively in this area, what really matters here is value.

If the Review is well conducted, can identify the positive aspects of Australia's current Innovation System, identify aspects that are no longer needed or relevant and imagine future changes that will stimulate further innovation, investment and outcomes (in that order) then the costs of the Review will pale into insignificance when contrasted with the economic benefits derived.

If the Review fails to achieve those aims, or focuses exclusively on generating "new, fresh" approaches to the exclusion of what is (and has been) working, then that is a failure and a very expensive process.

Any other views?