Scott Morrison (Cook, Liberal Party, Treasurer) Share this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Mackellar for his question. As a former small business owner himself, he will know and welcome the national accounts results that we saw yesterday. The national accounts, if you look at them over a period of time, show that since the end of the mine investment boom wages and company profits have been in very tough territory. Prior to yesterday's results, which were heavily influenced by the improved mining profits from the spike in commodity prices towards the end of last year, there has been a real challenge in the area of profits and wages over the last five years. In fact, in the three years prior to the December quarter's result, on average company profits had been falling by 0.2 per cent every quarter. For 12 successive quarters, private new investment had also been in decline. In those circumstances, when you have businesses under such strain and pressure, is it any wonder that that wage growth has also been subdued? Over the same period the growth in the compensation of employees shown in the national accounts was very modest, but it was positive and growing at 0.7 per cent per quarter.

The government understands that small and medium-sized businesses have been carrying an enormous burden in our economy. They have been putting their hands in their own pockets for years now in a tough environment—

Dr Leigh interjecting—

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