Chris Evans (WA, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Hansard source

As I understand it, Mr Emerson’s consultations were very broad and I am sure they included lots of small businesses as part of that process. I think it is fair to say that Mr Emerson is very much engaged with the sector, but if you are really asking me who influenced the policy decision—and, I suspect, trying to make some case in that regard—I think it was fair to say it was a policy decision by government. There were those consultations conducted by Mr Emerson and it was determined by government to deal with it in that other way. I would argue that Mr Emerson and the government consulted widely, but I think you are almost asking me to tell you which was the submission that had the most impact on the government’s thinking. I have described the process and the decision for you.