Anne Aly (Cowan, Australian Labor Party, Minister for International Development) Share this | Hansard source

I actually welcome those opposite finally focusing on something important to Australia and to Australian communities and to the Australian economy, and that is small businesses. I can't help but wonder though, given the shadow minister's recent performance, whether it was a job interview or perhaps all of this is just another distraction from the chaos, discord and infighting that we're seeing over the other side. I do welcome them actually asking a question about small business and focusing on something other than themselves for once. So I will take this opportunity to talk about small business.

First of all, though, I want to thank the many small businesses I have visited, whether in the member for Wills's electorate, the member for Moore's electorate or the member for Aston's electorate, who have taken the time to sit down with me and to go through some of the issues that they're experiencing. I can't tell you how valuable their feedback and their input is into the work that we are doing here as a government—real work that is built on Australia's very first National Small Business Strategy, a strategy that those opposite didn't have in the whole time that they were in government—and into things that we take to the small business ministers meetings, meetings that those opposite didn't convene once when they were in government. Since we've been in government, we've had seven small business ministers meetings, and I'm really pleased to say that I've convened two of them. The previous minister had convened five before that. How do you work with small businesses and deliver for small businesses if you don't talk to the states and territories, if you don't bring together small business ministers meetings, if you don't go out and talk to small businesses and listen to them?

Before I continue, I want to address a piece of misinformation. I hope that it is not purposeful, though I doubt that it isn't purposeful. I think that perhaps the shadow minister was being very purposeful in his selective use of the statistics and the figures around the number of insolvencies. I want to clarify the number of insolvencies and address specifically the point that the shadow minister made, because he is correct that the number of corporate insolvencies has increased compared to the previous 12 months; however—and here's the important bit—the level of corporate insolvencies as a proportion of total companies was 0.41 per cent. That is lower than the long-term historical average for insolvencies. So it is quite disingenuous of the shadow minister to stand here and say it's the highest number of insolvencies ever and to yell and scream like a banshee, banging on the table about the number of insolvencies when he should know how to read statistics. And if he doesn't know how to read statistics, there's a 'Statistics 101' course that he can take.

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