David Coleman (Banks, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I take the opportunity this afternoon to thank the small business community in my electorate of Banks for everything that it does for our community. We have more than 13,000 small businesses in Banks, all the way up from sole traders, and that very strong business base enables us to have one of the strongest local economies anywhere in Australia. The unemployment rate in Banks is just 3.8 per cent, according to the latest statistics, which puts Banks in the top 10 electorates in Australia.

I have started small businesses, I have advised small businesses, I have employed people in small businesses and I know that when small business is strong Australia is strong. In the budget, led by the small business minister we have put in place some important and exciting initiatives for small business in my electorate and around the country. The reduction in the company tax rate of 1.5 per cent for small business, or a five per cent reduction for unincorporated businesses, the $20,000 instant asset write-off capacity, the ability to make technical ownership changes without triggering a capital gains tax event, which has historically been a problem for small business, and the fact that you can expense all of your start-up costs immediately have been very well received in my community.

I want to explain a bit more about my small business community and how it has benefited. The hub of the small business community in the Banks electorate is the suburb of Hurstville. Hurstville is one of the largest centres anywhere in Sydney—we have literally hundreds of small businesses based in and around Forest Road, our main street. Those small businesses are very well represented by peak bodies like the Hurstville Chamber of Commerce, led by Lou Konjarsky; and the Southern Region Chinese Business Association, which has many active members in my community.

Recently, I had the Minister for Small Business in Hurstville, and we held a small business forum. One of the largest sectors in the small business community in Hurstville is education. The community of Banks is a community that highly prizes education, and there are a significant number of tuition businesses based in and around the Hurstville area. They employ numerous people. They serve literally hundreds of families in my region, many of them families that make sacrifices to provide additional educational opportunities for their children. At that forum we were hosted by one of those education businesses, Sigi Learners. The good news from Sigi Learners that day was that they will be using the new instant asset write-off policy to purchase more high-tech equipment to assist in the education of their students. That is good news for Sigi Learners; it is good news for the businesses they are going to buy that high-tech equipment from; and it is indeed good news for the families of the students.

Just down the road in Mortdale, we have another important commercial hub. Mortdale has a thriving shopping strip and an industrial area filled with smaller manufacturing and related businesses. The Mortdale shopping area serves numerous suburbs in my electorate, such as Peakhurst, Lugarno, Penshurst and Oatley. One of the best known businesses in Mortdale is BuzzBar Espresso; owner Matt Alderton runs not only the cafe but also a video store and Subway franchise. He is a very busy fellow. Matt recently spoke with the St George Leader about the benefits of the budget for his business. He said:

I have been putting off upgrading our dining chairs and tables, and also purchasing several items of equipment for the cafe, so this initiative will help greatly.

Given that I am starting a new business this week, I am particularly excited by my ability to immediately deduct my start-up costs as well.

So, There has been a really positive response from my community. With low unemployment and an army of 13,000 small businesses, we have a very strong local economy.

I am proud to be part of a government which is delivering for small business. The small business community deserves the support of government, and that is something they can absolutely count on with this government.