Page 973 - Week 03 - Wednesday, 21 March 2012
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So what of the future, Mr Speaker? Preparation of a business development strategy that supports private sector development is well underway. Members would be no doubt aware of the extensive consultation that has been undertaken to inform the strategy. A discussion paper on a range of issues was released in December last year and the community have been invited to comment on these issues and raise other ideas and views that are relevant to the ACT government’s role in building a robust local economy.
Recognising the vital role of Canberra’s 25½ thousand small businesses to our economy and recognising some of the challenges that face small and family businesses, we have tailored our consultation process to hear specifically from them without placing a burden on them. Last September the government undertook an in-depth sector-based approach to obtain small business views. Groups of 10 to 12 participants representing small business owners across 10 industry sectors came together to discuss what works and what does not when running a small business in Canberra.
I am pleased to advise that more than 100 small business owners participated in the discussion groups representing business across ICT, the arts, health, education and scientific, professional, retail, building and construction, growth businesses, administration and support services, and food and accommodation. What is interesting is that the participants across the 10 small business focus groups all raised very similar issues. The issues concerned both the constraints they have experienced as business owners in Canberra and the benefits of doing business in the city.
They spoke of their optimism for Canberra and the opportunity our city offers in the future. A common theme across the groups was about accessing business information—not that it was lacking, but in fact being overwhelmed by it. Small business owners—indeed, many family businesses—are time poor and do not have the resources or capacity to expend on searching for information. The cost and time involved in finding the right information was raised as a key concern. Similar issues were raised in regard to compliance. In general, business wants to comply with regulations but often lacks the capacity to know how.
The government has listened to these views and we are about making improvements and doing things better. What these groups highlighted is that there is obviously a need for a better interface between government and small business to ensure accessibility of business information through coordinated business information services. There is always more that can be done to ease the burden of regulation at all levels of government. I have certainly heard the business community’s concern for regulation creep and the disproportionate cost that smaller firms pay in regulatory compliance. It is now time to act and the government will be releasing our BDS policy very soon.
In the motion this morning, Mr Smyth has called on me to write to federal ministers responsible for small business and associated policy areas to ensure that family businesses are accommodated in business policy development. I would like to assure the Assembly that I have already taken up that suggestion. It was a very welcome addition—
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