Small Business Development Fund

The Hon. R.I. LUCAS (14:29): Given that the minister will not guarantee that he will at least finalise delivery of grants to small businesses before the end of the financial year, can he indicate which small business associations and other groups he is currently consulting with which has led to this delay of some four months in finalising the guidelines for the $10 million Small Business Development Fund?

The Hon. K.J. MAHER (Minister for Employment, Minister for Aboriginal Affairs and Reconciliation, Minister for Manufacturing and Innovation, Minister for Automotive Transformation, Minister for Science and Information Economy) (14:30): I am happy to bring that back. I have personally been at forums with industry representatives who represent many small businesses where the small grants have been discussed. I don't have the exact names of all the organisations, but I will bring—

The Hon. R.I. Lucas: I believe that small grants have been discussed—it's the guidelines we're talking about.

The Hon. K.J. MAHER: Yes, the small grants and how they will work and how we can best use them, which will feed into the guidelines. I will bring back a list of a sample of those who have been consulted.