Putting small business on the agenda

My office has mapped out an ambitious program for 2018, to elevate small business issues on the national policy agenda.

We’re going to be doing work on government procurement and access to justice, and we will continue to work on payment times, red-tape reduction and simplified workplace relations.

We are also keeping a close eye on the Royal Commission into Misconduct in the Banking, Superannuation and Financial Services Industry, to ensure past cases where small businesses have been unfairly treated are properly examined.

Our Small Business Loans Inquiry last year heard cases that showed banks employed systematic poor and unreasonable behaviour to default some small business loans. The power imbalance meant small businesses were often denied access to justice.

In Australia, about $100 billion is spent annually on procurement by federal, state and local government. The percentage of small businesses securing these contracts has been steadily declining over the past three years and we need to do something about that. Read more