MATTERS OF PUBLIC IMPORTANCE

Ms WITTY (Melbourne) (16:11): Those opposite have once again tried to spin a false story around small and family businesses. This government, one I am proud to be a part of, actually understands the daily rewards and challenges of small businesses. How?

Because on this side we have lived it. Do you know who has run a small business? The incredible member for Eden-Monaro, and my good friend the member for Bullwinkel, who, on top of being a passionate and committed nurse, ran her own small business.

And the member for Macquarie has also faced the challenges and opportunities of running her own small business. This is just a fraction of the many members on this side who know the hard work and dedication of running a small business. So when those opposite want to throw labels around about who understands small business, maybe they could learn a thing or two from those on this side of the chamber.

There is yet another member on this side who has run a small business—yes, it's me. I know what it's like to worry about paying staff, paying rent and making sure there's enough money coming in. I even remember a day when the product that was spilled on the floor was worth more than I was going to earn that week.

So yes, I understand how hard it is, because before coming to this place I had a varied business life, including another role as a small business lender. I went into businesses and learnt how they operated and where their pain points were and I got them the funding they needed. I used my own experience in business to understand what they needed and to help them get support to grow their businesses.

I bring that experience with me as I represent the great electorate of Melbourne. Melbourne has more than 56,000 small businesses and more than a dozen small business associations. I've been meeting with them since being elected, because, for the first time in 15 years, they've had a federal representative who can be their voice inside government—unlike others, who spend their time shouting from the sidelines.

Having someone in government who knows the hard work they do means that small businesses in Melbourne have a direct voice into government, where decisions are made, rather than someone who is creating outrage just for the sake of it, turning that outrage into data harvesting. They have someone who gets the hard and rewarding work they do and is here to fight for them—and fighting for them looks like making the tax system work better and for small businesses and making it fairer.

The Albanese Labor government is making the $25,000 instant asset write-off permanent, giving small businesses certainty when they need to invest in new equipment. We are also making the two-year carry-back permanent, because anyone who's been in business knows they can have a good year followed by a bad year. Around 1.5 million sole traders will benefit from tax cuts, and this government is expanding capital gains tax concessions to all 2.7 million active small businesses.

The government is making tax settings more useful for small businesses and giving owners more certainty. And it is happening at a time when there are more than 265,000 additional active small businesses in Australia than there were when this government was first elected in 2022. Fighting for small business also looks like responsible economic management.

This government has created 1.3 million jobs. We've had the lowest average unemployment of any government in half a century. This government knows how hard Australians work because Labor is a party of everyday Aussies.

We are the party that stands up for small and family businesses and for the workers, because those two things are not separate. We know that when businesses succeed, workers succeed, and when workers are respected and paid properly, businesses grow and expand. Unlike those opposite, this government is acting on behalf of all Australians.

Unlike those on the sidelines, we are doing more than just arguing for the sake of arguing. We are getting on with delivering real change for everyday Aussies. I know what running a small business takes because I have done it.

I know members across this government who have done it. This Labor government backs the people who run small businesses, the people who work in them and the people who walk through their doors. We are getting on with the work and making Australia fairer and stronger for everyone.