Michaelia Cash (WA, Liberal Party, Deputy Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Hansard source

I thank Senator Small for the question and acknowledge that, obviously, as a small business owner, Senator Small, like those of us on the government side of the chamber, knows that governments put in place economic frameworks that can assist business in prospering and growing and creating more jobs for Australians, and certainly Senator Small has been successful in employing a number of Australians back at home in Western Australia.

In terms of the economic framework to assist businesses to prosper, to grow and to create more jobs, that is exactly how the Morrison government approached the recent 2021-22 budget, with the Minister for Finance, the Treasurer and the Prime Minister delivering a budget that puts in place the policies that well and truly back Australia's 3.5 million small and family businesses. Our economic measures are all about giving businesses the confidence to invest and to take on a new staff member but also to get back to doing what they do best if they've been affected by COVID-19. We're investing $7.2 million to improve and maintain a new Employment Contract Tool, making it easier for small businesses to take on that new staff member but, at the same time, meet all of their obligations. We're also expanding Digital Solutions with an investment of $12.7 million, which will support an additional 10,000 businesses to improve their digital capability and further encourage uptake of digital technology in small businesses, because what has COVID-19 in particular taught us? It's that businesses do need to have that digital capability. Of course, on the government side of the chamber, we understand that red tape strangles business, and that's why we are continuing to back in our deregulation agenda with $134.6 million being invested to make measures easier, to make it easier to employ people, and to reduce the regulatory burden for businesses of interacting with the government.