Chris Bowen (McMahon, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Small Business) Share this | Hansard source

I very much welcome this opportunity to debate small business policy in this House. This is my first contribution as minister for small business, and I want to say what a great honour it is to represent small business at the cabinet table. Unfortunately, we just heard the contribution from the Leader of the National Party which was dripping in negativity, in rhetoric. This year was going to be the year of the positive agenda, of the policies being rolled out; 2013 was going to be the year when we saw the alternative government put its plans forward. Day 2 is not going very well so far—more negativity, more rhetoric, not backed up by the facts.

Now the most important thing for small business is a good economy. The most important thing for small business is the economic fundamentals. When an economy goes into recession it is small business which pays the price. If we had followed the advice of those opposite and not stimulated the economy, it would have been small businesses going to the wall. We on this side of the House know that, when there is a downturn, sometimes big businesses can have enough in reserve, can make cuts and they can get through. But small business just does not have that capacity, and when there is a recession it is small business that pays the price, so keeping Australia out of recession meant that small business did not pay that price in Australia—no thanks to the opposition, who opposed the stimulus and whose policies would have seen Australia go into recession.

So we will not be lectured by this opposition when they wanted to see policies put in place that would have seen our country follow the rest of the world into recession. Ask a small business, 'Would you prefer to be operating in the Australian economy today, or in Europe or the United States?', and you will get a very clear answer. You will get a clear answer because of the policies this government has put in place. Our economy is growing solidly, with growth around trend at 3.1 per cent, inflation at 2.2 per cent, unemployment at 5.4 per cent—one of the lowest unemployment rates in the industrialised world. And official interest rates are at three per cent, lower—despite the rhetoric of the Leader of the Nationals—than at any time under the Howard government.

Again, this side of the House understands that small business is usually heavily geared and that interest rates have a huge effect on their capacity to operate. But it is not just about the big picture, as important as the big picture is. The big picture of the strength of the economy is the most important thing for small business, and that is where this government has a very proud record indeed.

But it is also about policies for small businesses. I am delighted to have the opportunity in the House today to contrast those policies—the policies of the government and the policies of the opposition. Let us go first to tax. This government has lifted the tax-free threshold, which means that we have lifted many small businesses out of paying tax—those unincorporated businesses that are below the tax-free threshold. And this government has introduced the loss carry-back, which allows companies which make a profit one year and a loss the next to claim a refund on the tax paid. This is not just something that gives assistance to companies that have made a loss, which is very important; it is something which encourages companies to take risks, to innovate, to improve their productivity. It is something we are very proud of. Of the 110,000 businesses which will benefit from this initiative, most will be small businesses.

And of course we have introduced the instant asset tax write-off, which allows small business to claim a deduction for the full value of each new asset costing up to $6,500 after one year—not only a tax benefit, but a red-tape benefit. The Leader of the Nationals talked about us piling red tape on. This is an initiative which takes red tape away, because instead of depreciating something over a long period of time, it is an instant write-off. I am not sure the opposition understands that: it is an instant write-off, not only reducing the tax burden but reducing the red-tape burden.

Those are some of the positive things the government has done. But the contrast is even greater than that, because this opposition has a policy of scrapping measures that were introduced along with a carbon price and the Minerals Resource Rent Tax—like these measures. This is an opposition that will increase tax on small business by abolishing these measures. This is an opposition that will go to an election with a policy of increasing tax on small business. This is not an opposition that is in any position to lecture the government on the tax burden on small business.

The Leader of the Nationals could have taken the opportunity of using the MPI in this spirit of a positive agenda to explain to the small businesses of Australia why they will abolish the tax breaks that this government has introduced. Perhaps the shadow minister for small business would like to do it in his contribution—explain their policy to Australia's small business people: why will you abolish these tax cuts that have been introduced by this government?

Last year we all saw an extraordinary scene in this House—something I must say I never thought I would see in my time in the House of Representatives. We saw the Liberals and the Nationals walking into this House to vote against a corporate tax cut. And we saw them walk into the other place to vote with the Greens to stop that corporate tax cut! The Leader of the Nationals has the hide to lecture us about the Greens, when he voted with them to stop Australia's business, including incorporated small businesses, getting a tax cut. The shadow minister for small business is in no position to lecture anybody in this House. Nobody on that side is in a position to lecture us about tax on small business when they have a policy of abolishing our tax breaks and opposing a reduction in the corporate tax rate. Instead, they have the hide to continue with this campaign of fear about the carbon price, which has been shown again and again to be based on falsities.

I do want to talk about some of the other key and positive initiatives that this government has introduced in relation to small business. Some would say some of these are symbolic, but I do not think they are. The fact that we have a cabinet minister representing small business is important. The last time it happened was just before John Howard took the small business portfolio out of cabinet in 2001. This Prime Minister has brought small business back into the cabinet—so, when the big decisions are being made around the cabinet table, there is somebody looking out for small business. I hope the shadow minister for small business has some confidence that he would enter cabinet in an Abbott government. I am not sure that he would, but I hope for his sake that he would—in the unfortunate event of an Abbott government.

The first Small Business Commissioner was introduced by the Victorian Labor government in 2003. And this Labor government has introduced a Small Business Commissioner in 2013—an advocate for small business. We see these around the country in different states. My Queensland colleagues would be able to remind the House that we see it in many a state but certainly not in Queensland, where the Newman government abolished the Office of Small Business Commissioner. You dare say that you would be the friends of small business, when a state Liberal National Party government abolishes the advocate for small business in their first year in office.

There are other matters to be discussed in relation to small business. There is one very important one; for me, it is the kicker. It is one of the most positive small business policies that you could think of. It is called the National Broadband Network.

We all know that the Leader of the Opposition had some pretty shocking interviews on the 7.30 Report. There was the one where he said that the only things you can believe are the things he writes down. That was a good one! Then there was the one where he said that he had not read the press release from BHP about a mine closure that he had been talking about all day and he was not sure of his facts. But in the top three is that 7.30 Report interview from the election campaign, where the Leader of the Opposition said that the NBN was all about letting kids download movies more quickly, and therefore it was not a priority. In that one interview he showed that he does not understand the importance of the National Broadband Network for Australia, for our economy and for small business.

The NBN is very popular with small business because they know what the Leader of the Opposition does not: it enables them to grow their markets. You could be a small business anywhere in Australia, in any electorate in Australia, in any town, and you could have all of Australia as your market. Indeed, you could have all of the world as your market.

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