Ross Vasta (Bonner, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

As a former small businessman, I know that small businesses are the engine room of Australia’s $1.1 trillion economy. The coalition government knows that the key to small business success is being able to plan for the future with confidence and certainty. A fair and flexible workplace, less government regulation, continued economic stability and consumer confidence are all crucial. The Australian economy is now in the longest period of continuous growth ever recorded. Inflation remains low and the budget is in surplus, which keeps pressure off small business interest rates. There is no doubt that this would all be put at risk if we were to return to union dominated workplaces. The government’s new workplace system which was introduced in March last year, is giving small businesses the freedom to employ more staff and to grow their operations. The facts speak for themselves: 358,700 new jobs have been created, real wages have increased, more than 375,000 new AWAs have been lodged since March 2006 and the unemployment rate is now just 4.2 per cent—the lowest level in 33 years.

I am pleased to report that the unemployment rate in Bonner is now lower than the national rate at just four per cent. This is a significant change from 6.7 per cent in 1996. As I come into contact with more businesses throughout the electorate, I am increasingly confident about the range of employment opportunities that now exist. I have received positive feedback from small business men and women alike, who now, more than ever, are able to employ the staff they need to begin to expand and develop their businesses. The certainty created by the government’s responsible economic management has helped to increase the number of small businesses from 1.79 million in June 2003 to 1.88 million in June 2006. Interestingly, the number of working days lost through industrial disputes per 1,000 employees has fallen from 104.6 in December 1992 to just 0.8 in March 2007.

All of these things have not happened by accident. The government’s economic discipline has ensured that the needs of small business and Australians are paramount. Most importantly, the government is also helping small businesses turn good ideas and innovations into successful commercial products through the Commercial Ready Plus program. Recently, an innovative company in the bayside area of Bonner received $64,000 in funding through this program to take its clever eMedia Campaigns software suite to market. Emedia Campaigns in Wynnum has developed a cost-effective event management and e-ticketing software application system that could potentially revolutionise the way tickets and merchandise are sold to patrons of music festivals, concerts, cinemas, sporting events, seminars and exhibitions.

The company’s ‘do-it-yourself’ online e-ticketing system allows event managers or promoters to build a valuable database of customers by doing the ticketing themselves, thereby effectively reducing their costs by more targeted marketing and by eliminating ticketing agent fees. I commend the company on its outstanding success, and I will remain committed to helping businesses like eMedia Campaigns take the important steps that turn bright ideas into great commercial products. eMedia’s project is a good example of a clever Australian idea that just needs some extra help from the government to make it to the marketplace. This support is important to the local economy because innovative companies, like eMedia and the products and services they develop, hold the key to future jobs, exports and economic growth.

I will continue to work with small businesses throughout Bonner to ensure that they are supported in accessing the great wealth of resources and assistance that has been made available by the coalition government.