George Brandis (Queensland, Liberal Party, Minister for the Arts and Sport) Share this | Hansard source

The government does not support the amendment because it loses sight of the fact that the particular purpose of part IVA of the Trade Practices Act is to provide a code of protection for small businesses. If there is no ceiling on the value of transactions to which the unconscionable conduct provisions of the act apply, it entirely loses its character as a set of provisions which are particularly concerned with the problems of small business and dealing with issues like inequality of bargaining power and so on. As Senator Murray has rightly pointed out, the government senators did recommend, and the government has adopted the recommendation, that the ceiling be lifted very substantially, to $10 million. You can always have a debate about how high a ceiling should be, but this is not that debate. This debate is about the proposition that the provisions of part IVA of the act ought to be of general application, whether it is to the biggest multinational company in the world, trading in Australia, or the local garage. We think that loses sight of the purpose of the provision; therefore we do not support it.

Question negatived.