Employers welcome the Treasurer’s action to protect Australian jobs and businesses from the risk of class action lawsuits funded by unregulated parties, Business Council chief executive Jennifer Westacott said.

“Every dollar spent defending against opportunistic class actions is a dollar that is not spent on creating a new job or saving an existing one.

“Every minute spent defending a class action is a minute that is not spent on growing a business and getting people back to work.

“Our recovery must be jobs focussed and that means every resource businesses have should be focussed on getting Australians safely back to work and creating new opportunities.

“Of course businesses must follow the law and act responsibly but keeping markets well informed and protecting Australians from opportunists are not mutually exclusive.

“This is a good step towards ensuring the legal system provides appropriate access to justice and is not abused by opportunistic litigation funders. The parliamentary inquiry announced by the Attorney-General will be another opportunity to examine the need for further changes.

“We’ll continue to work with the government, unions and other stakeholders to put Australia in the strongest possible position to recover from this crisis by keeping people in work and creating new jobs.”