Craig Kelly (Hughes, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Treasurer. Will the Treasurer explain to the House why it is important to grow and support our hardworking small business sector, and what are the consequences of alternative policies that would make life harder for this important part of our economy?

Josh Frydenberg (Kooyong, Liberal Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Hughes for his question and acknowledge his background as a small-business person, particularly in the furniture sector and in manufacturing before he got to this place. In his electorate of Hughes, more than 14,000 small businesses will be able to access the instant asset write-off. That was extended to businesses with a turnover of up to $50 million, opening the way for more than 20,000 small and medium-sized businesses to access that scheme, and they employ more than one million people.

Small businesses are the backbone of the Australian economy. There are more than three million small businesses, employing more than seven million people. Since coming to government, more than 230,000 additional small businesses have been created, and we're committed to creating more than 250,000 other small businesses. But, in Labor's last year in office, 65,000 small businesses closed their doors. That is the contrast between this government, which creates jobs and small businesses, and the Labor Party, which has seen small businesses close.

The policies that we've put in place include lowering taxes, bringing the tax rate down to 25 per cent for small and medium-sized businesses; extending the instant asset write-off; helping to create a $2 billion securitisation fund to increase access to finance; ensuring that small businesses get paid on time, and that is critically important, obviously, to their cash flow; ensuring that the ABCC is a cop on the beat so those small businesses that work in the construction sector are not hit; and, of course, helping to create more than 80,000 new apprenticeships, which is critical for small businesses.

I'm asked if there are any alternative approaches. We know that Labor's higher taxes were going to hit small businesses right across the economy. The member for Rankin complains that we look at his transcripts too often; we know we must be doing the right thing. So we looked at his application for leadership, otherwise known as his 'light on the hill' speech, and we looked to see how many times he mentioned small business. How many times do you think? Zero. So then we looked at his first major speech as the shadow Treasurer, which was to—

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Leader of the Opposition, on a point of order?

Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

On relevance, Mr Speaker. He wasn't asked—

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Leader of the Opposition will resume his seat. On that point of order, the Treasurer is in order. He was asked about alternative policies.

Josh Frydenberg (Kooyong, Liberal Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The reality is the member for Rankin, who's in the shadow Treasurer position, is a great threat to small businesses across the economy. We have created small businesses; they closed their doors under Labor. If Labor ever got another chance, it would happen again.