Melissa McIntosh (Lindsay, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Women) Share this | Hansard source

If Hollywood made a sequel to How to Lose a Guy in 10 DaysI love that movie—it wouldn't be a romantic comedy; it would be a disaster movie called 'How to Lose a Small Business in 10 Days', written and directed by and starring the Albanese Labor government. The hero up against it all would be Australian small businesses—hardworking tradies, transport operators, family businesses. They get up before dawn and keep our communities going. And the villain in this story? I'll give you a hint. He had the top billing in question time today. But, as with any good blockbuster, we need a story, so let's walk through the plot.

Day one: make fuel so expensive that running a small business becomes a gamble. In Western Sydney, fuel isn't optional; it is the engine of the economy. Tradies rely on it. Transport companies rely on it. Small businesses rely on it. Families rely on it. When fuel prices spike, everything else follows. The groceries on supermarket shelves cost more to transport. Building materials for homes become more expensive. The price of a plumber turning up at your door goes up. In my electorate of Lindsay I spoke with Aaron, a local plumber who runs three trucks across our region. Like many small trades, his business used to offer free call-outs and investigations, because he wants to help his customers. But he simply can't afford to do that anymore. Fuel costs have forced him to take one of those trucks off the road. When the price at the bowser rises, the service van disappears. When the service van disappears, the customer pays more. And that's just day one.

Fast-forward to day three: let fuel supply uncertainty creep into the system, because the problem isn't just price; it is supply. Despite claims that there is plenty of fuel in the country, we are hearing reports of wholesalers rationing petrol and diesel. Transport operators are being told they cannot access their normal bulk fuel supplies. Some have been forced to buy fuel at retail prices instead. Regional petrol stations, relied upon by transporters and farmers, have reportedly run dry in recent days.

In Western Sydney, I've heard from a local transport company operating around 20 trucks, 12 hours per day, on major infrastructure projects right across Sydney. Their fuel supplier has introduced rationing. If they need 10,000 litres of diesel, they may be able to access only two. Imagine trying to run a fleet of trucks when you don't know whether you'll have the fuel needed to keep them on the road. How can you run major infrastructure projects when there is so much uncertainty? No fuel means no deliveries, and no deliveries means no business, and no business means no jobs.

Day five: add an hour to every job, because traffic is crawling and fuel stations are running dry. Time is money, and, for small businesses, every extra kilometre driven and every extra minute spent on the road adds to the cost of doing business.

In my electorate of Lindsay, Gina runs Nepean Regional Security with a fleet of 14 patrol vehicles. Around 70 per cent of her services depend on those vehicles being on the road, responding to alarms, patrolling public amenities and recreational spaces, and protecting businesses across the community. When fuel prices spike and supply becomes uncertain, the pressure compounds. Drivers spend longer on the road, navigating congestion, detouring between service stations and trying to secure fuel to keep their patrols running. What should be a quick response to an alarm call-out becomes a longer, more expensive trip. When you multiply that across 14 vehicles, operating night after night, the costs and the delays add up quickly. For businesses like Gina's, that lost time means higher operating costs, tighter margins and harder choices about how many vehicles can remain on the road. When fuel becomes expensive and difficult to secure, every extra hour on the road becomes another hit to the bottom line.

Day seven: crush margins, until small businesses have nowhere left to turn. When fuel costs surge businesses try to absorb the shock, but they can only absorb so much. Suppliers start passing on higher delivery costs. One local supplier doubled its delivery fee overnight from $15 to $30. Materials become more expensive.

And, by day 10, the ending writes itself. You've lost another small business—not because they lacked grit, not because they lacked customers and not because they lacked determination, but because they were trying to operate in an environment where prices are so volatile, supply is uncertain and government leadership is missing.

That is why fuel security matters. And it stops with the Albanese government. Western Sydney businesses do not need another disaster movie. They need a government that understands that fuel is not just about transport; it's about tradies getting to work, it's about trucks delivering materials and it's about families. It keeps our economy moving. And, right now, too many businesses in Lindsay feel like the government has left them completely stranded at the bowser.

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