Page 4000 - Week 13 - Tuesday, 25 November 2014
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We have made a number of reforms to our procurement systems to make it easier for small business to compete for ACT government work, including a weighting in favour of local small and medium-sized enterprises from the capital region. We have made a number of legislative reforms to extend the length of business licences and registrations so that small businesses do not need to come back and spend time reapplying every year. We have streamlined a range of approvals associated with access to public space, with a particular focus on outdoor dining, and, of course, we have made decisions to remove the requirements for the display of a number of licences and registration labels for light vehicles and further reforms that have assisted in removing a range of previously longstanding requirements on small business. We are focused on making sure that local businesses can take advantage of this city’s and this region’s natural strengths. We are helping small businesses to grow into larger businesses.
As the shadow treasurer observed—and it was a correct observation—our service economy punches well above its weight. The government are encouraging the support and growth of this sector, particularly local exporters, through our Invest Canberra facilitation and also our global connect programs. The important point to note here—and Mr Smyth made the observation about how we have 1.6 per cent of Australia’s population—is that we now account for nearly 2½ per cent of Australia’s service exports. So 1.6 per cent of the population is generating around 2.38 per cent of Australia’s service exports. We are batting above our weight in relation to service exports, and that has been growing in the order of about eight per cent a year in recent times.
We are seeking to support small businesses to assist each other by linking them with the wonderful research and development and innovation that is occurring in this city through the Canberra innovation network. But there is no doubt that there can be uncertain times when the federal government take decisions like they have in recent times. The decisions of the friends and colleagues of those opposite to cut thousands of jobs out of the ACT economy have to have an impact. That is a very simple man-on-the-street test. You ask people what is causing uncertainty in the ACT economy at the moment and the number one response with a bullet is the decisions of the federal government. That may not be convenient for the Canberra Liberals—that their party has taken an axe to employment in this city—but it is a fact and a fact that we will not allow them to walk away from. If they had a genuine concern for small business in their city, they would be beating a path to the doors of their federal colleagues, including their former colleague the invisible senator for Canberra, Senator Seselja, the bloke who has not been seen since this government was elected federally.
Those opposite would also get behind this government and our campaign to deliver major infrastructure projects for the city to attract new investment into Canberra. Delivering new infrastructure and new capital works programs stimulates our economy. We are already seeing reports of the excitement about the business investment that is being generated by the government’s infrastructure programs, particularly associated with transport infrastructure but also associated with our investments in enabling private sector investment, particularly in the Woden and Tuggeranong town centres and in Belconnen in recent times.
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