Grievance Debate

SMALL BUSINESS

The Hon. I.F. EVANS (Davenport) (15:07): It is hard to imagine the state has ever seen a state government more dismissive of small business, a state government which has such a lack of regard for small business, and a state government that has such a lack of respect for small business than this government. There are two telling examples just this week that illustrate the total disregard that this government has for small business.

I speak of the Premier's attitude to payroll tax; the Minister for Small Business's absolute silence on payroll tax cuts for small business; and the Deputy Premier's backflip on health and safety codes. The government's lack of respect for small business comes from the top. It comes from the Premier. We all remember back in March 2012 when we were debating small business in this house, the Premier said:

Many of you here have run a few into the wall, and many of you have just inherited something from mummy or daddy.

This was the Premier who put on the Hansard his total disrespect of the family business sector which is primarily the small business sector in this state: 'you have just inherited something from mummy or daddy'. That is what the Premier said, and then today, he stands up and says that offering payroll tax cuts to business is a bad thing. Essentially that is what he said: no trickle-down effect, and that is a bad thing.

We ask the Minister for Small Business—we do have one in South Australia, no-one ever hears from him on small business matters, but we do have a minister for small business—what is his view about the payroll tax cuts? The Business Development Council that reports to the small business minister is on the record as wanting the payroll tax threshold to be increased from $600,000 to $800,000. The very advisory group the government set up for small business makes that recommendation and the Premier pours scorn on it.

There is a very big difference between the government and the opposition in relation to small business, and the message is very simple. The Labor Party wants to make it more expensive to run your business: pick carbon tax, pick mining tax, pick car park tax and pick that they do not want to give payroll tax rebates. That is distinct from the Liberal Party: think no carbon tax, no mining tax, no car park tax, and we are offering payroll tax reductions.

The reality is that I have never seen a government have such a low regard and disdain for the small business sector right down the cabinet. It is led from the top right down the cabinet. We all know what the Premier is on about today. He has brought back Mr Morris to be his communications director. He is rewriting Kevin Foley's lines about lazy oppositions. Kevin Foley used to run that out about every second Thursday. Mr Morris has told the Premier to man up. Obviously, things inside the party are not going too well. The polling may not be as good as Mr Morris or the Premier want and the reality is that Mr Morris has told him to man up.

This is a premier who said they were not going to announce and defend. On 1 January, they introduced new work health safety codes. In 2012, during estimates committees, we told the government repeatedly that the HIA said they were too expensive, too complex and would put up the price of housing. The government totally ignored and poured scorn on our argument. They introduced the codes on 1 January this year, and here we are in November, 11 months later, and what did the government announce yesterday? They announced they are now going to consult the Housing Industry Association about the codes. They have been in place for 11 months. This is the classic announce and defend style of Mr Rann that the Premier said he was going to get rid of.

Mr Speaker, if you go down the front bench of the government you have a small business minister who hardly has been sighted, you have an industrial relations minister who does not consult on his own health and safety codes, you have a treasurer who says payroll tax as announced by the opposition will not help small business. There will be a very stark difference between the government and the opposition in 2014 on small business policy.