Pat Conaghan (Cowper, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Small and medium businesses are certainly the backbone of the Australian economy. Those businesses in my electorate have rolled with the punches over the last 12 months. We've had drought, fires and floods and now the coronavirus. It has hit them hard. Now more than ever they need the help of all levels of government. It pleases me to see that many of those local businesses are accessing the government's support packages and payments through these difficult times. I recently undertook a random survey of 402 businesses in my electorate to establish their needs and to better understand what they want working out of this health and economic pandemic. Among the survey's major conclusions were that half of all businesses surveyed were impacted by the drought, 70 per cent were affected by the summer's bushfires and 80 per cent, unsurprisingly, have been affected by COVID. The major impacts of COVID-19 included reduced employee hours, staffing levels and falling income. Significantly, social distancing, staff working from home and mental health concerns were also frequently mentioned.

Two in five businesses had adapted their operating models and tried to find new sources of revenue. This included 73 per cent of hospitality businesses. Seeking more localised suppliers was a commonly cited example. There was also a greater trend to use online and social marketing. Two in five respondents had considered future changes to combat tough trading conditions, while half of the businesses surveyed said the government could make it easier for them to pursue additional business opportunities. There was a clear appetite for decentralisation, both of government and offices of larger corporates.

We asked the businesses what new industries might thrive on the Mid North Coast. A number of common themes did emerge—new manufacturing, logistics and transport, aviation, back offices for major metro based corporates, a greater focus on ecotourism, more sports tourism, and innovation and R&D that would make us less dependent on China. Finally, but importantly, there was a consistent theme throughout the research: a growing importance in embracing the power of locals—more local customers, more local suppliers and a generally greater awareness and appreciation for locals supporting locals. The trend towards hyperlocalism should be encouraged wherever it makes financial sense and helps businesses become more resilient. I will continue to work with those hardworking business owners across my electorate to help them achieve their goals in the future.