Susan Templeman (Macquarie, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

2024 will not be a year that small businesses remember as one of their easiest. It won't be a year they say things cruised along, because it's been a hard year for many, in a difficult economic climate. Yet businesses in the Hawkesbury, Blue Mountains and Emu Plains have continued to employ local people. They've continued to support other local businesses, and they've continued to donate to local sporting and community organisations. They've been heroes. While some businesses tell me that the best they've been able to do is hang on and survive, others say they've thrived. Either way, in recent weeks many have celebrated at the Local Business Awards for the Hawkesbury and Blue Mountains, as well as at the ALIBI Awards, and the Women with Altitude awards are still to come. Congratulations to all the nominees, finalists and winners.

In a challenging year, we hope that $350 energy relief and the energy-efficiency grants for small businesses have helped in a small way, but, as someone who was in business for 25 years, I know it's really hard to get your head around the range of support that is available. I want to make it easy, so I have put together a guide for all the support that's available from the federal government, specifically for small businesses, whether that's cybersecurity help, digital marketing training—all free—or grants to expand or help in a crisis.

It's available from my office, it's a no-frills guide, and I want as many small businesses to access that as possible.

Sadly, people sleeping rough in cars or in precarious living situations isn't new. We all know it's not right, and as a government we've prioritised new social and affordable homes, stepping into this space that has been left pretty much vacant for the last decade. Whether it's the Veterans' Acute Housing Program, which has $30 million to support veterans and their families experiencing or at risk of homelessness, or other programs under Labor's Housing Australia Future Fund, we are working with states and community housing providers to deliver thousands of social and affordable homes. In just the first round of these programs, the Albanese government is directly supporting more social and affordable housing than the Liberals and Nationals did in their entire nine years in office.

But there's still a need for services on the ground, and I was very pleased to join volunteers at the Hawkesbury Community Kitchen to celebrate their work and present them with certificates of recognition on behalf of their board. For 33 years, this group has been providing meals and working in teams. I want to congratulate their new board, led by the chair, Stuart Rivas, on their commitment to serving the Hawkesbury community. I thank the Richmond Club and others for their support, too.