Nick Sherry (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party, Minister Assisting on Deregulation) Share this | Hansard source

Thank you for the question. Small business obviously is a major part of our economy. It is a vital sector. There are some two million small businesses, employing some 4.8 million Australians and making up 96 per cent of all businesses. The Gillard government appreciates the very important contribution that small business makes to our economic prosperity and supporting jobs.

We have introduced a range of measures over the last three years and will introduce a range of measures over the next three years to support small business. For example, our tax plan for the future provides tax relief and less red tape for small business, instant write-offs for assets of up to $5,000, simpler depreciation rules and an early cut to company tax. There are a range of other initiatives: the business enterprise centres across Australia; the Small Business Support Line, which is assisting small business owners to access information; the referral services on matters such as obtaining finance and hardship counselling; and the Small Business Online program, which is helping small business owners to go online and engage in the digital economy.

We have also recognised the crucial role of skills training in the context of small business. Our introduction of the Apprentice Kickstart directly assists and enables small and medium enterprises to take on apprentices. We have also made dealing with and selling to government easier for small business. We have implemented consistent and simpler procurement processes and an on-time payment guarantee to ensure small business contracts will be paid within 30 days. There will be a report released shortly giving an update on that particular initiative. During the global financial crisis, it was small businesses and the thousands of people that they employed— (Time expired)