Department for Innovation and Skills, $382,416,000

Administered Items for the Department for Innovation and Skills, $13,365,000

Membership:

Ms Hood substituted for Ms Hutchesson.

Hon. D.J. Spiers substituted for Ms Pratt.

Minister:

Hon. A. Michaels, Minister for Small and Family Business, Minister for Consumer and Business Affairs, Minister for Arts.

Departmental Advisers:

Mr A. Reid, Chief Executive, Department for Innovation and Skills.

Mr A. Dunbar, Executive Director, Innovation and Science, Department for Innovation and Skills.

Ms P Chau, Executive Director, Performance and Business Operations, Department for Innovation and Skills.

Mr M. Smith, Director, Financial and Business Services, Department for Innovation and Skills.

Ms C. Mealor, Chief Executive, Attorney-General’s Department.

Mr A. Swanson, Chief Financial Officer, Attorney-General’s Department.

Ms N. Kilvert, Acting Small Business Commissioner.

Ms A. King, Manager, Business Services, Office of the Small Business Commissioner.

The CHAIR: Welcome to today's hearing for Estimates Committee B. I respectfully acknowledge the traditional owners of the land upon which the committee meets today and the custodians of the sacred lands of our state.

The estimates committees are a relatively informal procedure and, as such, there is no need to stand to ask or answer questions. I understand the minister and the lead speaker for the opposition have agreed an approximate time for the consideration of proposed payments, which will facilitate a change of departmental advisers. Can the minister and the lead speaker for the opposition confirm that the timetable for today's proceedings previously distributed is accurate?

The Hon. D.J. SPEIRS: Yes.

The Hon. A. MICHAELS: I believe so, yes.

The CHAIR: Changes to committee membership will be notified as they occur. Members should ensure the Chair is provided with a completed request to be discharged form. If the minister undertakes to supply information at a later date, it must be submitted to the Clerk Assistant via the answer to questions mailbox no later than Friday 2 September 2022.

I propose to allow both the minister and the lead speaker for the opposition, if they so wish, to make opening statements of up to 10 minutes. There will be a flexible approach to giving the call for asking questions. A member who is not on the committee may ask a question at the discretion of the Chair.

All questions are to be directed to the minister, not to the minister's advisers. The minister may refer questions to advisers for a response. Questions must be based on lines of expenditure in the budget papers and must be identifiable and referenced. Members unable to complete their questions during the proceedings may submit them as questions on notice for inclusion in the assembly Notice Paper. I remind members that the rules of debate in the house apply in the committee. Consistent with the rules of the house, photography by members from the chamber floor is not permitted while the committee is sitting.

Ministers and members may not table documents before the committee; however, documents can be supplied to the Chair for distribution. The incorporation of material in Hansard is permitted on the same basis as applies in the house; that is, that it is purely statistical and limited to one page in length.

The committee's examination will be broadcast in the same manner as sittings of the house are broadcast, through the IPTV system within Parliament House via the webstream link to the internet and the Parliament of South Australia video-on-demand broadcast system.

I will now proceed to open the following lines for examination. The portfolio is Office of the Small Business Commissioner. The minister appearing is the Minister for Small and Family Business. I declare the proposed payments open for examination. I call on the minister to make a statement, if the minister wishes, and also for the minister to introduce the advisers. I call on the Leader of the Opposition, who I assume will be the lead speaker—

The Hon. D.J. SPEIRS: Yes.

The CHAIR: —to also make a statement, if he so wishes. I call on members for questions.

The Hon. A. MICHAELS: Thank you, Mr Chairman. With me today for the small business component of this estimates committee we have, on my left, Nerissa Kilvert, Acting Small Business Commissioner. On my right are Mr Adam Reid, Chief Executive of DIS, and Andrew Dunbar, Executive Director, Innovation and Science, DIS. Behind me, because it is a combination of departments, we have Caroline Mealor, Chief Executive of AGD; Andrew Swanson, CFO of AGD; Phuong Chau, Executive Director, Performance and Business Operations at DIS; Martin Smith, Director, Financial and Business Services, DIS; and Ashlee King, Manager, Business Services, Office of the Small Business Commissioner. Thank you all for being here today.

I do not propose to make an opening statement, other than to say that I am very pleased to be the small and family business minister and to have that focus around the cabinet table. We are looking forward to seeing some very exciting things in this space, really listening to what the small business community wants and being able to fulfil those needs as best we can.

The Hon. D.J. SPEIRS: I would like to make just a quick opening statement. I would like to thank the minister and, in particular, the public servants for the work that has occurred in the lead-up to today. It is an important part of the process. Having been on both sides of it, I know there is a huge volume of work, much of which will not be used today, but it still forms an important part of the rigour of analysing public expenditure. As such, it is a healthy thing.

I decided to appoint myself as the shadow minister for small and family business because, firstly, the leader can appoint who they want to where they want and, secondly and more importantly, I saw this as an incredibly important portfolio for the development of South Australia, for the level of employment that it contributes towards South Australian employment figures and for the opportunity for growth and innovation to support businesses to survive and thrive in this state.

I think the minister and I probably have very similar goals as to how we would like to see small businesses supported and created in a way that sees them becoming a major employing force in this state. They are that already, but we can always take that to the next level. It is a great pleasure to be the shadow minister for small and family business in South Australia, and I hope that together we can work on some very interesting and innovative policy measures.

I am happy to begin my questioning, Mr Chair, starting in the Agency Statements, Budget Paper 4, page 176. Does the minister feel that the 2022-23 budget does enough for small business in South Australia?

The Hon. A. MICHAELS: I thank the member for the question. Yes, obviously small business has had a challenge over COVID, and we are now in a post-COVID world, so there is a substantial amount of work being done as to which services and information are best provided by the state government to support small business. I am really proud about the Women in Business program. Just to be clear, that funding does not sit in the DIS budget line; it sits in AGD through the Small Business Commissioner but will be rolled out by DIS. So that is an extra $4 million that you are not seeing on that page.

There are also a number of other policy areas I want to develop, one of which is actually to have a small business strategy that we can roll out. You have seen the start of that with the Support Small Business program that was launched on Sunday. You might have seen it on your TV and on social media. I have been having a number of conversations with different industry associations and businesses themselves.

Obviously, I have a long-term history of dealing with small business in South Australia, so being able to understand what it is that small business wants and being able to implement that within the budget I think is very achievable. Making it easier for business to deal with state government is something we can achieve. The procurement policy that we went to the election with and being able to actually increase the money that is going straight into the pockets of small business owners in South Australia, to the tune of $425 million, is something that we are really keen to roll out. I have already met with the Industry Advocate, and I think I have a meeting with him again next week, to be able to roll that out.

Brand SA is an important part of the component of how we can support small and family businesses; in fact, a lot of our larger businesses in South Australia are still family businesses. We are looking forward to ways to be able to support them within South Australia but also interstate and overseas through programs like Brand SA.

Then we have what sorts of services we can provide small business. What I am hoping to do is be able to make improvements to what is referred to as the SA Business Information Hub, to improve those systems and processes to be able to work with industry associations to get some, I would say, basic business fundamental information out there to small business owners who might not have time to be able to enrol in a full financial literacy course or something like that. We will be able to get them some services that will be useful for them to run their businesses. Yes, I think we can do a lot with that budget.

The Hon. D.J. SPEIRS: I want to work through various programs that are in the budget. Sometimes I think in these estimates it can be seen that, if I ask questions about a particular program, I am critical of that program or I do not like it for some reason. I think there is a bit of stigma around these estimates, so I want to preface all these questions with the fact that, just because I am asking questions about the programs, it is about understanding them and getting a better grasp of how they are being administered, not because I have something against them. I think that is very important to clarify.

On budget measures paper 5, page 14, there is the allocation for women in small business. The government has allocated $1 million per annum over four years for this program. My first question is: how many female-owned and operated businesses are there in South Australia?

The Hon. A. MICHAELS: I can tell you that is a difficult stat to get.

The Hon. D.J. SPEIRS: I am not trying to catch you out. It is all part of exploring the budget.

The Hon. A. MICHAELS: I have that struggle. I also have a struggle with getting stats on family businesses in South Australia. We can take that on notice. We only have total numbers, not female specific, but getting that data around family businesses and women-led businesses is something that is on my question list.

The Hon. D.J. SPEIRS: How many businesses do you expect to be assisted in this program annually?

The Hon. A. MICHAELS: We are working through that. I have given the department some guidance as to where I think best value is for this program. It will be run in two streams. One is at that micro startup level for women starting a business or running a microbusiness with some of the business basic fundamentals, some mentoring and networking skills, financial literacy and business planning. Some of those basic skills will be focused at that level. That obviously will have a significant number of businesses, but they are typically sole traders or very small businesses.

A second part of this program will be targeted to existing established businesses that are female-led and want to grow. There are a number of those throughout South Australia. I was at Edible Blooms on Friday with Kelly Baker Jamieson looking at where their business might go forward. There is an element of this that will be targeted to those larger female-owned businesses to help them to grow, to help them to get equity or capital invested into their businesses, advisory boards and things that might help them grow their businesses.

The Hon. D.J. SPEIRS: You have given a couple of focus areas. Do you expect any of those to have grants associated with them?

The Hon. A. MICHAELS: Grants directly to the businesses?

The Hon. D.J. SPEIRS: Grants to the businesses, yes.

The Hon. A. MICHAELS: I am waiting for that proposal to come back from the department, but what I see is that there are a number of organisations that do that work very well, various industry associations and other organisations that do that part of supporting women in business very well. I suspect what we will do is go to them and say, 'Can you run these programs for us?' I think that would be the best bang for buck, quite frankly.

The Hon. D.J. SPEIRS: How many full-time equivalent staff do you expect to administer the women in small business program?

The Hon. A. MICHAELS: We are delivering it within existing resources.

The Hon. D.J. SPEIRS: How many executives are responsible for that area?

The Hon. A. MICHAELS: We will have that in the Director of Small Business.

The Hon. D.J. SPEIRS: It would sit under a director?

The Hon. A. MICHAELS: Yes.

The Hon. D.J. SPEIRS: So you plan to have it sitting under the Director of Small Business?

The Hon. A. MICHAELS: Yes.

The Hon. D.J. SPEIRS: Admittedly, $1 million over the life of the program is not a lot. Again, that is not a criticism.

The Hon. A. MICHAELS: Sorry, it is $4 million over the life of the program.

The Hon. D.J. SPEIRS: Sorry, that is what I meant. If this program was proving successful, would you look at potentially expanding that or extending the life of it?

The Hon. A. MICHAELS: I hope it will be successful. Absolutely, I hope it will be successful and I hope it will be a focus for the government going forward. At the moment, we have $4 million in the budget, and I am really proud that we have been able to give that focus to female-led business owners.

The Hon. D.J. SPEIRS: Moving on to another item now: Budget Measures Statement, Budget Paper 5, page 98 talks about the marketing campaign to support South Australian small business. The state government has allocated $500,000 over two years for this campaign. What will the duration of the campaign be? Will it last for the two years or will there be focused periods of intense marketing at strategic points along the way?

The Hon. A. MICHAELS: I think the budget line you are referring to is sitting within DPC. I am happy to answer the question but it is, I will say, not DIS money. I expect it will be intense. We are having a five-week program run now. I expect it will be that sort of level of intensity at various points where we think we need to support small business and send the message through to South Australians to support their local-owned small and family businesses.

The Hon. D.J. SPEIRS: It is $500,000 over two years, so do you expect a tranche of that now and then there will be a tranche next year?

The Hon. A. MICHAELS: I would say so, yes.

The Hon. D.J. SPEIRS: I know this sits within DPC, but I think you still have policy responsibility for it. What firm has been awarded the design and implementation of the campaign?

The Hon. A. MICHAELS: We will have to take that on notice. I will have to ask someone in DPC.

The Hon. D.J. SPEIRS: Okay, thank you. Will this campaign be subject to the GCAC rules and procedures within DPC?

The Hon. A. MICHAELS: I will have to clarify that with DPC. I assume so, but I will clarify.

The Hon. D.J. SPEIRS: Will the minister ensure that South Australian small businesses will be involved in the design of this campaign and the process to evaluate it in the future?

The Hon. A. MICHAELS: Our election commitment was to use South Australian advertising companies.

The CHAIR: If the minister is happy answering the questions that is fine, but this line is not open because it is within Premier and Cabinet. But if the minister is happy, the Chair does not have a problem.

The Hon. A. MICHAELS: I will get back to you with some of that detail but, yes, they will be. You will see from the ads that are going on at the moment that there are some iconic businesses being involved in it front and centre, and they are very excited about that.

The Hon. D.J. SPEIRS: I refer to Agency Statements, Budget Paper 4, Volume 3, page 176. One of the targets there under support services is:

Support the growth and capability of small and family businesses through a range of support services and programs, including continued case management services.

On the back of rising inflation and cost-of-living pressures, which are obviously also cost of doing business pressures, is the government ready for the possibility of a greater demand for small business to access financial support services, and does the 2022-23 budget reflect the potential for growing demand?

The Hon. A. MICHAELS: In terms of that sort of one-on-one case management service, we do hope to grow it within the budgets you are seeing there. The purpose is not necessarily to be giving the financial advice to support those businesses but to direct them into the right place. I think that can be done. I am hoping we do not see that increase in financial pressure. In terms of insolvencies, obviously there are some sectors that are feeling it more than others, but I am hoping that does not eventuate.

In terms of the case management, we are hoping to grow that support, but it will be pointing people in the right direction to be able to get that advice rather than having people sitting within DIS who are financial counsellors or anything like that. Mr Reid was just saying, obviously, as I said earlier, we will be partnering with organisations to provide that advice in terms of pointing them in the right direction and partnering with those organisations to be able to provide those supports.

The Hon. D.J. SPEIRS: Have you or the department done any research to understand better what type of support services would be needed in times of rising cost of living and rising inflation?

The Hon. A. MICHAELS: Research has been done within DIS of what stakeholders are telling the department they need in terms of the advice that they are looking for. I am doing round tables and meeting with businesses and consulting with industry associations as well, to make sure we are providing the services they need. That work is being done, yes.

The Hon. D.J. SPEIRS: I refer to Agency Statements, Budget Paper 4, Volume 3, page 176, government procurement opportunities. One of the targets there is to ensure that small and family businesses have greater access to government procurement opportunities. What will the government be doing to encourage a greater uptake of South Australian small businesses over their interstate competitors in the forthcoming financial year?

The Hon. A. MICHAELS: Thank you for that question. There is a number of things that need to happen. I have said there needs to be within the department, within the agencies, a bit of a cultural shift in terms of how they deal with procurement. Some of the measurables that we would be able to implement include having the Auditor-General have a look at agency spending procurement and reporting on South Australian versus non South Australian goods and services.

Contractor invoices will be required to be paid within 15 days. Anyone who has run a small business knows that cash flow is one of the key pressure points, so that would assist them. We are intending to have a minimum of 90 per cent of labour hours on major infrastructure projects that will also lead to a flow-through in contracting and subcontracting with South Australian businesses.

I am looking with the Industry Advocate at ways in which the contracting and procurement tender process is able to be done in a way that makes it easier for small business to engage with the government. You hear that all the time. It is sometimes just too hard to even tender for something, so we are looking at ways we can make those improvements.

Other things like using local suppliers for uniforms and PPE, local architects, local designers and surveyors, and using South Australian manufactured products on public housing construction, all of those things and a range of other measures are what will make sure that we are committing more money flowing through to South Australian businesses.

The Hon. D.J. SPEIRS: Does the minister think there is merit in reviewing the South Australian Industry Participation Policy to promote a greater uptake of South Australian small businesses over interstate competitors?

The Hon. A. MICHAELS: The policy itself does not sit with me, it sits with Treasury. I will declare that I am a former member of the State Procurement Board, so I have some idea of what is in there. I am not sure it is the policy itself that is causing some of these sticking points. I think there are things we can do which will help.

The Hon. D.J. SPEIRS: Just for my clarity, does the Industry Participation Advocate sit with you or with Treasury?

The Hon. A. MICHAELS: Treasury. I just think it is important for me to have a say on how this progresses.

The Hon. D.J. SPEIRS: Yes, of course. That makes sense, does it not.

Mr TELFER: Does the minister believe, when we are talking about government procurement opportunities—I commend the move to—

Ms HOOD: Point of order: are you referring to the same budget paper?

Mr TELFER: Yes, sorry. I am continuing on that same line of questioning around the government procurement opportunities. Does the minister believe there is a need for greater protections for small businesses that are involved in complicated government processes, not necessarily direct contractors but subcontractors? We have seen situations where there have been government projects where a tier 2 contractor has become insolvent and then the flow-on effect of accountability is not there because the oversight is not direct from government. Are there greater protections that are needed to be developed by government to ensure that their major projects have more protections for small business?

The Hon. A. MICHAELS: I definitely think that risk allocation is something that is part of that cultural piece in terms of pushing risk out to subcontractors. I think there are some things that we can do on that. We committed at the election to set aside 1 per cent of government project funding for subcontractors in a support fund to enable the government to pay subcontractors directly. That will help with that. I think risk allocation is actually a key piece of that, between government and contractors, and therefore subcontractors.

Mr TELFER: Does the minister believe there need to be greater reporting mechanisms in place through that process so there is that greater oversight from government on their projects that they sub out to tier 2 contractors?

The Hon. A. MICHAELS: I am not sure it is the reporting. I am sure there is lots of reporting that is required, probably to the point where it might not necessarily mean the most efficient process.

Mr TELFER: Accountability to the reporting then, perhaps?

The Hon. A. MICHAELS: Perhaps.

Mr TELFER: The oversight of that reporting.

The Hon. A. MICHAELS: Yes. I think that a lot of that information does come through. I think it is a question of risk allocation. What I would like to see, and I know what I have spoken to the Industry Advocate about, is to be able to go to small businesses and get them to collaborate. It might be that one small business on its own might not be able to tender for something, but a collaborative effort between a number of small businesses and being able to guide them to work in that new business model will actually help them do things slightly differently than what has been done before.

The Hon. D.J. SPEIRS: In Agency Statement, Budget Paper 4, Volume 3, page 176, the portfolio description is described as:

To support sustainable small and family business growth, providing information, services and resources to help South Australians successfully start, operate and grow their small and family business…

What strategy has the government put in place to ensure that public sector employees return to work in their CBD offices?

The Hon. A. MICHAELS: That might be one for the Attorney-General with industrial relations, in terms of those public sector strategies.

The Hon. D.J. SPEIRS: I was more thinking of it from a small business minister point of view because the fewer public servants working in the CBD has an impact on small businesses in the city. It is whether you want to provide general comment on that or not, I suppose.

Ms HOOD: Point of order: I would say that was more of a matter for the chief executive of the department rather than the minister.

The Hon. D.J. SPEIRS: No, it is a policy matter. Ministers can certainly provide their desire to see more people work from CBD offices.

The Hon. A. MICHAELS: Absolutely I support that, yes. I support public sector employees coming back to their offices. I think that has been stated by Ms Ranieri as well and that direction has gone out.

The Hon. D.J. SPEIRS: Do you know how many employees within the Department for Innovation and Skills are currently working from home?

The Hon. A. MICHAELS: I think that is something we can take on notice for the chief executive to come back to us.

The Hon. D.J. SPEIRS: Can I ask the same question for the Attorney-General's Department?

The Hon. A. MICHAELS: Yes, I can take that on notice as well.

The Hon. D.J. SPEIRS: And specifically within that, the Office for Small Business.

The Hon. A. MICHAELS: Small Business Commissioner and Attorney-General's? Yes. I will take that on notice.

The Hon. D.J. SPEIRS: Has the minister received any feedback from small businesses in the central business district regarding the state of their trading conditions?

The Hon. A. MICHAELS: Yes. I was at the Central Market last Friday afternoon talking to the owners of Lucia's. They are quite positive about how the market is going at the moment and return back in. I went out to do a business tour visit with Josh from Part Time Lover. He was quite positive. He has a number of businesses around the place. He is quite positive.

I think there are certain pockets, I would say, of the CBD that are still struggling, but I think the Adelaide City Council, in combination with state government, is working really hard—the member for Adelaide, of course, is sitting here—to be able to bring people back to the city.

A lot of our festivals and arts events, which I am also the minister for, bring people into the city. We have Illuminate coming, starting in July, and that will hopefully bring a significant number of people into the city, across not only North Terrace but we have seen down Rundle Road an installation going in.

There is The Lab at Light Square and I met those owners on Tuesday morning, Nick and Sophie. So there is a lot going to happen throughout the CBD through winter, leading into the Adelaide 500 and then through to the March festivals next year, which I think will be very positive for the city.

The Hon. D.J. SPEIRS: One policy area that could provide support for small business in the CBD is rent relief. Is the state government looking at any policy options or levers around this that might be used to support CBD businesses that are doing it tough?

The Hon. A. MICHAELS: I think the former government actually let that lapse through the COVID emergency measures in—I cannot remember when it was—January, maybe, in terms of that relief. The Small Business Commissioner is responsible for retail and commercial leases. There is nothing. That lapsed in the former government.

The Hon. D.J. SPEIRS: So that is not something you are currently looking at?

The Hon. A. MICHAELS: No.

The Hon. D.J. SPEIRS: On the same budget line—I am going to move through a few policy issues that sit under the support to small business budget line—which is Budget Paper 4, Volume 3, page 176. One of the challenges facing many small businesses in the regions is the availability of regional housing. Has the minister met with the Minister for Housing to develop strategies for small businesses in regional areas to identify solutions to alleviate regional housing shortages for workers who are in critical short supply?

The Hon. A. MICHAELS: I was the shadow for housing, so I worked very closely with the now Minister for Human Services to talk about some of those issues around regional housing. It is a real pressure point for them; we heard that when we went to Mount Gambier for country cabinet. It is a significant barrier to bringing people into the regions to work if they cannot find housing to live in.

However, it is really a responsibility for the housing minister, and the entire cabinet heard that message loud and clear at country cabinet and through all our regional tours. I am heading out to Port Augusta next week. I am sure there are a number of regional areas where that is an issue and a real pressure point for small business to be able to bring people in.

I can say that the department is actively engaged with that, and Mr Reid has a meeting tomorrow with the DPC to talk about that very issue.

The Hon. D.J. SPEIRS: A number of these do sit across other portfolios, but I think it is the nature of the small business portfolio that it is one of those sort of central policy areas that has reach across multiple parts of government. On the same budget line, I am looking at another challenge that small business faces, which is skills shortages. Can the minister advise of the specific skills shortages she is hearing businesses are experiencing in the regions, by occupation?

The Hon. A. MICHAELS: In the regions it is both skilled and unskilled, quite frankly. It is people—hospitality, chefs. There is a range of shortages out in the regions, as well as skilled labour. Again, it is an issue we are well aware of. We obviously have a significant focus on skills development through the Minister for Education taking that on board. That is part of what Mr Reid currently has at the moment but it will be moving, and he informs me he still has workforce development.

Yes, it is a key issue for the regions, but what I am hearing is both skilled and unskilled, and just a general lack of people in terms of employment, and South Australia is not alone in that; it is around the country.

The Hon. D.J. SPEIRS: Are you or are members from your team within the Public Service involved in developing strategies with other ministers or departments to address the shortage of labour, particularly in regional South Australia?

The Hon. A. MICHAELS: Yes, and Mr Reid might want to speak to that.

Mr REID: Thank you, minister. Yes, the department is actively involved, and in part through the responsibilities that we had for the training and skills portfolio, which is moving to the Department for Education, but also under the Deputy Premier's portfolio, which still has responsibility for workforce development.

We have supported on-the-ground officers through the regional development associations in multiple regions, in which our workforce coordinators engage directly with businesses to mobilise labour into those workforces. So that is one initiative in the regions. We are working with GTOs, training providers and industry in those regions as well to ensure that there are pathways for young people, and labour, into jobs in the regions. So we are actively involved in that.

The Hon. D.J. SPEIRS: Under the same budget line: what specific measures has the government implemented or does it plan to implement in order to reduce red tape for small businesses in the coming budget year?

The Hon. A. MICHAELS: That is a question I am posing in a lot of the meetings I am having with businesses. The question I ask is, 'Come to me with three ideas for red tape reduction,' actual red tape reduction ideas, rather than saying, 'We want red tape reduction.' A number of them then get stuck with actual ideas unfortunately! But it is something that we will be consulting on more broadly. There are some ideas that are coming through Business SA, and in their pre-election pitch, so we are looking at those ideas through our consultation process over the next few months.

The Hon. D.J. SPEIRS: Are there any specific items or policies you can refer to as things you are actively exploring or trying to advance? Are there any specific items of red tape reduction?

The Hon. A. MICHAELS: For example, I mentioned earlier the way that procurement processes occur in government. I think there could be a streamlining of those for small businesses.

The Hon. D.J. SPEIRS: Another challenge facing small business, and family business of course, is family succession. With the ageing population, what strategies has your government or your ministry put in place or plans to put in place to deal with the complex issue of small business family succession?

The Hon. A. MICHAELS: You have hit on one of my favourite topics. I am an accredited family business adviser and have in the past done a significant amount of work in family business succession planning. One of the greatest problems in family businesses at that end is an unwillingness to have the difficult conversations.

From a state government perspective, I think the best thing we can do is to encourage those conversations to occur and be able to promote some of the services available, including from groups like Family Business Australia, which provides that link into accredited advisers, accountants, lawyers, etc., who can have those conversations. Psychologists as well are often involved in that conversation piece to deal with the transition between generations.

Often the children would like to have control of businesses, and I think some of the older generation do not necessarily want to let go, so there are a number of challenges in that space, and from our perspective as a state government it is really linking people into the right services to have those conversations. But I can tell you, from the coalface, that the greatest problem is the reluctance to even try to get to that step of having the conversations and engaging in appropriate advisers.

The Hon. D.J. SPEIRS: Has the minister any plans, or her government any plans, for reductions in stamp duty on business transfer between family members?

The Hon. A. MICHAELS: That is a question for the Treasurer. There is family farming; the member for MacKillop might be well aware of family farming intergenerational stamp duty exemptions, section 71CC I can tell you. Can I also add that we abolished stamp duty on business transfers, so a number of business reorganisations going to next generations are now exempt from stamp duty anyway within or outside of business, which makes it a lot easier for those conversations to occur.

The Hon. D.J. SPEIRS: I am going to ask the member for Flinders to read the omnibus questions and, depending on how quick he is, we might have another question at the end.

Mr TELFER: The omnibus questions are:

1. For each department and agency reporting to the minister, what is the total cost of machinery of government changes incurred between 22 March 2022 and 30 June 2022?

2. For each department and agency reporting to the minister, which administrative units were created, abolished or transferred to another department or agency between 22 March 2022 and 30 June 2022 and what was the cost or saving in each case?

3. For each department and agency reporting to the minister, how many executive appointments have been made since 22 March 2022 and what is the annual salary and total employment cost for each position?

4. For each department and agency reporting to the minister, how many executive positions have been abolished since 22 March 2022 and what was the annual salary and total employment cost for each position?

5. For each department and agency reporting to the minister, what has been the total cost of executive position terminations since 22 March 2022?

6. For each department and agency reporting to the minister, will the minister provide a breakdown of expenditure on consultants and contractors with a total estimated cost above $10,000 engaged between 22 March 2022 and 30 June 2022, listing the name of the consultant, contractor or service supplier, the method of appointment, the reason for the engagement and the estimated total cost of the work?

7. For each department and agency reporting to the minister, will the minister provide an estimate of the total cost to be incurred in 2022-23 for consultants and contractors, and for each case in which a consultant or contractor has already been engaged at a total estimated cost above $10,000, the name of the consultant or contractor, the method of appointment, the reason for the engagement and the total estimated cost?

8. For each department and agency reporting to the minister, will the minister advise whether it will be subject to the 1.7 per cent efficiency dividend for 2022-23 to which the government has committed and, if so, the budgeted dollar amount to be contributed in each case and how the saving will be achieved?

9. For each department or agency reporting to the minister, how many surplus employees were there at 30 June 2022, and for each surplus employee, what is the title or classification of the position and the total annual employment cost?

10. For each department and agency reporting to the minister, what is the number of executive staff to be cut to meet the government's commitment to reduce spending on the employment of executive staff by $41.5 million over four years and, for each position to be cut, its classification, total remuneration cost and the date by which the position will be cut?

11. For each department and agency reporting to the minister:

What savings targets have been set for 2022-23 and each year of the forward estimates;

What is the estimated FTE impact of these measures?

12. For each department and agency reporting to the minister, will the minister advise what share it will receive of the $1.5 billion the government proposes to use over four years of uncommitted capital reserves held in the budget at the time it took office and the purpose for which this funding will be used in each case?

13. For each department and agency reporting to the minister:

What was the actual FTE count at 30 June 2022 and what is the projected actual FTE account for the end of each year of the forward estimates;

What is the budgeted total employment cost for each year of the forward estimates; and

How many targeted voluntary separation packages are estimated to be required to meet budget targets over the forward estimates and what is their estimated cost?

14. For each department and agency reporting to the minister, how much is budgeted to be spent on goods and services for 2022-23 and for each year of the forward estimates?

15. For each department and agency reporting to the minister, how many FTEs are budgeted to provide communication and promotion activities in 2022-23 and each year of the forward estimates and what is their estimated employment cost?

16. For each department and agency reporting to the minister, what is the total budgeted cost of government-paid advertising, including campaigns, across all mediums in 2022-23?

17. For each department and agency reporting to the minister, please provide for each individual investing expenditure project administered, the name, total estimated expenditure, actual expenditure incurred to 30 June 2022 and budgeted expenditure for 2022-23, 2023-24, 2024-25 and 2025-26.

18. For each grant program or fund the minister is responsible for, please provide the following information for the 2022-23, 2023-24, 2024-25 and 2025-26 financial years:

Name of the program or fund;

The purpose of the program or fund;

Budgeted payments into the program or fund;

Budgeted expenditure from the program or fund; and

Details, including the value and beneficiary, or any commitments already made to be funded from the program or fund.

The CHAIR: The allotted time having expired, I declare the examination of the portfolio of the Office of the Small Business Commissioner completed. The examination of the proposed payments for the Department for Innovation and Skills and the Administered Items for the Department for Innovation and Skills I refer to Estimates Committee A for further consideration.