Chris Bowen (Prospect, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Assistant Treasurer) Share this | Hansard source

This is almost embarrassing. I almost feel embarrassed for the Minister for Small Business and Tourism. She says, ‘We listen to small business.’ I wonder whether she read the submissions of small business to the Senate inquiry. Did she read the submission of the Coalition for Fair Trading which called for this amendment? Did she read the submission of NARGA—the organisation which represents small grocers—which called for this amendment? Did she read the submission of various small business groups which called for this amendment that she is rejecting? She says, ‘We listen to small business.’ She has not even read the submissions of small businesses to the Senate inquiry. I could go back and check. I could quote more. I do not want to mislead the House. I am not certain of some of the other small business organisations, but the Coalition for Fair Trading, NAGA, I think COSBOA—although I am not 100 per cent sure—and several small businesses groups called for this amendment. She says, ‘We listen to small business.’ No, she does not; she ignores them. I will give the minister the benefit of the doubt. It is possible that she argued for this amendment within government, but she does not have the clout.

That is unlike our side, where the shadow minister for small business and I developed our amendments in close consultation over a period of time. Clearly, on the other side, the Minister for Small Business and Tourism goes in and mounts an argument, the Treasurer slaps her down, and that is the end of the story. That is the end of the story because the government do not care about small business. They hide under the masquerade of consultation when clearly the small business advocate in the ministry has not even read the submissions by small business to the Senate inquiry. It is a disgrace.

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