Bruce Billson (Dunkley, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Small Business, Competition Policy and Consumer Affairs) Share this | Hansard source

Apparently it's south of Adelaide—a bit like the earlier question when we were talking about Whyalla.

The Assistant Treasurer said, 'The cost increase in electricity from the carbon tax would be only 0.2 per cent of overall expenditure of a typical small business, based on Treasury modelling.' What is this 'typical business'? We have not been able to find one. You might have noticed that we have visited quite a few lately, and we are trying to work out what this typical business is that has been subject to the invisible Treasury modelling that has not been released; it has probably been taken by Captain Emad on his travels. We do not know where that is, so we are saying, 'If that is the basis of your claim, produce some facts so that the small business community can actually see what's going on'.

What has not been produced is the evidence that the government has appreciated that its carbon tax will push up the price of electricity, gas, refrigeration, rents, produce and supplier costs. It builds, it compounds, it increases all the way through—and the small business men and women will have to face the customers who have had a diet of nonsense from the government about how only the top few hundred will be paying this tax and explain to them, 'No that is not right; we are all paying this tax'. That is why these publications are so important. I commend them to you, Madam Deputy Speaker, if you would like some of them to be circulated in your own electorate.

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