Luke Howarth (Petrie, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I want to quickly talk about the 3,000-plus small businesses that operate within the federal seat of Petrie. I want to thank them for the staff they employ and for their valued contribution to our national economy. Last month there was a national campaign in relation to shopping small this Christmas. I am wearing one of the badges for the Shop Small campaign. The Shop Small campaign is all about local people supporting small businesses in the lead-up to Christmas this year.

On the weekend I went out to the Margate Festival at Margate, which was put on by Commerce and Industry Redcliffe Peninsula, the local chamber. There are four to six local chambers operating within the Petrie electorate: two in Redcliffe, one at North Lakes and one at Deception Bay, and then another few over in Sandgate and North Brisbane. I would say to all those local chambers of commerce: we support the small businesses and we certainly want to see you prosper and do well this Christmas.

When I was at the Margate Festival, a number of small businesses I spoke to told me that they are continuing to invest in their staff and that they are also continuing to invest in their customers. Whether they are a retail store or a service industry, they thank their customers very much for shopping at the local store. They are continuing to contact their customers so that their customers know what valuable services and products they offer. Their local staff are great salespeople for them. When they are out at the local shops or talking to friends about where they work, they let them know about the small business in which they are employed and the services they offer. I say to all the small businesses and the 150,000 people that live in my electorate that this Christmas you can support small business by buying vouchers for local restaurants, cafes, retail stores, shops that provide artwork, pet shops, shoe shops, clothes shops, local tradies—all of these people can be supported this Christmas.

The federal coalition government appreciate every small business. We thank you for your company tax, for the taxes that you pay, and we will continue to make sure that your taxes are spent wisely. We are cutting red tape to small business. We are getting the country's finances back on track after Labor's debt and deficit disaster of the last six years. Businesses should be confident, as we sign up to more free trade agreements too, that there are more opportunities for them to sell.

Finally, to everyone in my electorate: this Christmas, shop small and support the local businesses that operate in your area.