Margaret May (McPherson, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is addressed to the Minister for Small Business and Tourism. Would the minister inform the House how the government’s workplace relations system is benefiting Australian small business? How have small businesses reacted to suggestions that these policies should change?

Fran Bailey (McEwen, Liberal Party, Minister for Small Business and Tourism) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for McPherson for her question and her strong support for small businesses on the Gold Coast. I can advise the House that Australia’s 1.2 million small businesses, and the 3.3 million Australians that they employ, have thrived and prospered under the strong economic management of this government. Building on that, because of the workplace relations reform, Australia’s small businesses now have greater certainty and greater flexibility. This is borne out in the latest Sensis business index, which was released in May. It showed very strong support by Australia’s small businesses for government policies. In fact, it is the second highest level of support ever recorded in the history of the survey. Let me tell the House what the survey found. It said:

Once again, the Federal Government’s industrial relations policies were by far the main reason that SMEs gave for believing that the Federal Government was trying to support small business.

I am also asked about how small business has reacted to suggestions that there may be policy changes. I can tell the House that small business has reacted very angrily to the Leader of the Opposition stating that he will bring back unfair dismissal and he will abolish AWAs. In fact, this House should realise what small business people are saying at the grassroots level. Small business people like Con and Marie de Groot, newsagents, use AWAs and have told me there would be people who would not be able to be employed—

Opposition Members:

Opposition members interjecting—

Fran Bailey (McEwen, Liberal Party, Minister for Small Business and Tourism) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I will just repeat that in case members missed it. These are small business people at the grassroots, and they have said that there would be people who would not be able to be employed if we did not have AWAs. It is little wonder that small business has reacted angrily to the Leader of the Opposition’s proposal. It knows that the Leader of the Opposition does not stand for small business. He in fact has said:

We have never pretended to be a small business party, the Labor Party. We have never pretended that.

Small business certainly knows that.