Craig Emerson (Rankin, Australian Labor Party, Minister Assisting the Finance Minister on Deregulation) Share this | Hansard source

Are there any threats! I thank the member for Parramatta for her question and acknowledge that the member for Parramatta ran a successful small business and we will be meeting with the Parramatta Chamber of Commerce to discuss small-business issues in the local area in the very near future. The government supported Australia’s small businesses and our tradies during the global economic recession and we will support them again during the economic recovery. The instant write-off of assets valued at up to $5,000 will allow small businesses and tradies to immediately write off the full value of equipment and tools, like laptop computers, office equipment, welding equipment, ride-on lawnmowers, Makita table saws, Gentech electric generators, display cabinets for retailers, coffee-making machines for cafes, double-door fridges and industrial dishwashers for restaurants and, I am advised, 300-millimetre Birko meat slicers—that reminds me of the opposition leader, really. The instant write-off measures will improve cash flow and profitability for Australia’s 2.4 million small businesses and our tradies. Australia’s 720,000 small-business companies will benefit from an early start in the reduction in the company tax rate from 30c to 28c. That will start for small businesses on 1 July 2012.

I was asked by the member for Parramatta whether there are any threats to these wonderful initiatives, to these tax breaks for small businesses. I have to report that there are threats in the form of the Leader of the Opposition. The small-business tax benefits are to be funded by the resource superprofits tax, but the Leader of the Opposition has said that he will attempt to use the coalition numbers in the Senate to block the passage of the resource superprofits tax. Of course, if the opposition leader succeeds in his attempts to block the resource superprofits tax, he will deny a tax break to every small business in this country. What has the coalition got against small business when we supported them through the economic downturn? Those opposite opposed the stimulus and opposed the support that we provided during the economic downturn, and when we want to give small business some credit for the way they managed the economic downturn and give them a tax break to invest in productive assets during the economic recovery, what does the opposition leader say? ‘No—deny them those benefits.’ He will do everything he possibly can to achieve that outcome by blocking the resource superprofits tax.

The opposition leader must explain tonight, in his budget reply, why he would abandon small businesses and tradies. He must detail his spending cuts and explain his treachery to Australia’s tradies and small businesses. This is a man who supports the New Zealand model of economic recession by telling Australian small businesses that a good old-fashioned recession will be great for them—a little bit of discipline, a little bit of leanness and a little bit of meanness in the tough world out there in the marketplace. This is what this right-wing extremist describes as tough love. The right-wing extremist sitting opposite describes this as tough love. My advice to small business is this: watch out if the opposition leader tries to embrace you with his tough love, because he will squeeze the life out of you and expect you to thank him for it in the morning.

I have drafted some words for the opposition leader’s budget reply speech tonight that he might find useful. I offer them in a spirit of generosity. He should say: ‘Tonight I will explain why I intend to deny a much deserved tax break to every small business and tradie in Australia.’ Mr Speaker, as you know, as I know and as everyone here knows, the Rudd government is the best friend small business has ever had.

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