Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Finance and Deregulation) Share this | Hansard source

The Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations has provided the following answer to the honourable senator’s question:

(1) The Government understands that Australian firms, especially small to medium size businesses, face a range of challenges in a competitive and continually changing economic environment. The Australian economy is undergoing structural change resulting from the ongoing demand for Australia’s key commodities exports, the sustained high dollar, cautious consumer behaviour since the global financial crisis, and changing patterns of domestic spending, including the shift towards services and a clean energy future. While representing opportunities for many businesses, these changes represent challenges for others. Some particular pressures that businesses are facing include gaining access to global supply chains and major investment projects, obtaining sufficient access to business finance and building the capabilities to adapt and drive change.

(2) The OECD’s review of Australian regulatory practices describes Australia as ‘one of the front-running countries in the OECD in terms of its regulatory reform practices’ and observes that ‘in general the Australian States demonstrate regulatory management practices that are among OECD best practice’. 1In further improving regulatory settings and reducing red-tape, the Government is continuing to implement an ambitious and comprehensive deregulation agenda.

Through COAG, the Commonwealth Government is pursuing a comprehensive deregulation and harmonisation agenda under the National Partnership to Deliver a Seamless National Economy (SNE). Forty-five separate reforms are being progressed under this National Partnership, comprising of 27 deregulation priorities in driving competition, boosting productivity, improving labour mobility, and reducing business compliance costs by removing unnecessary or inconsistent regulation. The Productivity Commission estimates that this comprehensive reform agenda could reduce costs to business of around $4 billion per year.

The Government’s Clean Energy Future Plan will cut pollution and drive investment, helping to ensure Australian businesses can compete and remain prosperous in the future. It will create new opportunities for a range of small entrepreneurs and business owners, across various industries. For example, opportunities will open up for businesses to develop services and products in new clean industries such as renewable energy generation, carbon farming and sustainable design.

No small businesses will have to pay a price on carbon pollution directly or deal with new red tape. Only the biggest polluters, around 300 businesses nation wide, have to directly pay for their carbon pollution. The Household Assistance Package is giving extra assistance to eligible households to help with increased costs. The Government is committed to supporting small business in making the transition to Australia’s low-pollution economy in the future.

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1OECD (2010a), Towards a Seamless National Economy, OECD Reviews of Regulatory Reform: Australia 2010, OECD, Paris.