House debates Questions without Notice

Small Business

Monday, 12 October 2026 House of Representatives

Anne Aly

Anne Aly Cowan, Australian Labor Party, Minister for International Development

2:41 pm

I thank the member for Moncrieff for her question. We on this side of the House understand how important small businesses are for our economy and for our communities. Just last week, I was out in regional Queensland, in the member for Maranoa's seat, meeting with small businesses there. I had a roundtable with small businesses at the local cafe there, speaking to them about the issues that matter to them. Shortly after, I went up to Darwin and met with small businesses in Darwin as well.

Every time I meet with small businesses, I ask them about their challenges and their opportunities. Now, there's no doubt that small businesses are doing it tough. The costs of doing business are getting higher, margins are getting thinner, and businesses are struggling through. But that's why this government, in the last budget, dedicated $3.8 billion to assist small businesses. That's why this government has made permanent the $20,000 instant asset write-off, and businesses right across Australia have been using the instant asset write-off to ensure that they have cash flow, to ensure that—

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