Julian Leeser (Berowra, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

The coalition government has sought to turn the tide of economic mismanagement under successive Labor governments. We have cut red tape and taxes on small businesses, which are the lifeblood of the Australian economy. Since the coalition was returned to government in 2013, 467,100 new jobs have been created. Jobs growth has been running at 10 times the rate that we inherited from the previous government. Consumer confidence has risen. Real or nominal growth has increased. This is what comes from responsible economic management.

My electorate of Berowra is home to over 15,000 small businesses. We have one of the largest number of small businesses of any part of Australia. And Berowra businesses want tax relief. They want tax relief so they can invest more in their businesses. They want tax relief so they can employ more people. They want tax relief so governments can get out of their way and help turn their small businesses into bigger businesses. They want tax relief because Berowra businesses know that they can spend their own money so much better than any government can. That is why, during the election campaign and afterwards, small businesses in my electorate have told me how much they like the government's Enterprise Tax Plan.

Berowra small business people know that there is a difference between revenue and profit. They know that businesses that have a $2.1 million turnover are not just small businesses; they are microbusinesses. It is why, during the election campaign and after, Berowra small businesses kept asking me, 'Why don't the Labor Party support the government's Enterprise Tax Plan to reduce company tax all the way to 25 per cent?' It is because Labor are playing the politics of envy. They do not want small businesses to become larger business; they do not believe in jobs and growth; and they have given up the economic reform mantle of the Hawke-Keating years—a period in government which was an anomaly in Labor's history.

This was not always the case. The Leader of the Opposition used to support company tax reform. As Assistant Treasurer, on 6 April 2011, he said:

The Government's tax reform agenda has a strong focus on ensuring that Australia remains an attractive place to invest.

…   …   …

Cutting the company tax rate is an important step along this road.

This recognises the benefits to investment and growth—

I repeat that: 'the benefits to investment and growth'—

from lower company tax rates and a trend to lower rates across the OECD over … 30 years.

As Minister for Financial Services and Superannuation, on 13 March 2012, he said:

Any student of Australian business and economic history since the mid-80s knows that part of Australia's success was derived through the reduction in the company tax rate …

… We need to be able to make life easier for Australian business, which employs two in every three Australians.

And as Assistant Treasurer, in 2011, he said:

Cutting the company income tax rate increases domestic productivity and domestic investment. More capital means higher productivity and economic growth and leads to more jobs and higher wages.

It is time Labor backed small businesses in Berowra and elsewhere. It is time Labor acknowledged that a business with a turnover of $2.1 million is not a big business. It is time Labor supported the government's Enterprise Tax Plan.

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