E&OE

Bran Black, BCA CEO: Well, look firstly, thank you everybody for coming out to see us this morning. I think it's important that you have here representatives from Australia's businesses right across the economy, all sectors, small, medium, large, and we're all united in our call for both sides of politics to prioritise a genuine long-term economic plan that recognises the challenges that we face as a nation, and most importantly, recognises the critical contribution that successful businesses play in making sure that our country has the prospects that it needs to succeed long into the future.

There are many challenges that we're facing as a country. Of course, we've got the immediate challenge in front of us in terms of global uncertainty, with the imposition of tariffs, we have an intergenerational timebomb in terms of our demographics, and of course, we've got low productivity presently sitting at negative 1.2 per cent against the long-run average of positive 1.2 per cent. There’s so much more that we need to do in that space.

So there are challenges around us, and what that emphasises is that we need to do everything that we can to control what we can control, and that means taking the effort to invest in policy that supports Australia to be the best place to invest, that it can be, supporting businesses to make those investments, ultimately growing the size of the pie, so that we have more to share around for all Australians.

The challenge that we face right now is that we're not seeing that businesses are choosing to invest in Australia when they are given the choice. Obviously, businesses, if it's just a question of, should I invest in Australia or should I invest elsewhere, they will always choose Australia all things being equal, but the challenge right now is that things aren't equal, and we need to see policy that helps businesses make the call to invest here in Australia.

As I say, as business representatives, we're here calling for the same thing, a long-term, genuine economic plan. Critically that means to back in businesses to be successful and means backing their capacity to grow the economy. We've seen some positive policy on both sides of politics in this election, but we need to see so much more, given the scope and the size of the challenges that we face. We need to see policy that addresses the challenges that we see in relation to our regulatory red tape prohibitions on business, we need to see policy that addresses the taxation challenges that we have, that provides for a sustainable and affordable system moving forward, we need to see policy that restores a sense of balance to our industrial relations system, and we need to see policy that genuinely cuts approval times to attract business to our shores.

We're all united around these policies and so in summary, these business groups recognise the challenges this country faces and say that the best thing that we can do is invest in long-term plans that will see Australia prosper now and into the future. Thank you very much. I’ll hand it over to my colleagues.

Luke Achterstraat, COSBOA CEO: Let me quickly tell you about a lady called Kathryn Loveridge. She's a mum of three kids, she lives in Moonta in regional South Australia. She runs a business called The Moonta Collective, it's a boutique gift store. She employs two people on a permanent part-time basis. Kathryn has had to shut her business down from five days a week to three days a week, simply because she's financially better off to be closed for those two days.

We have a massive problem in Australia where people like Kathryn are not being rewarded or recognised for their entrepreneurship. Kathryn has had to take a job as a school teacher to top up her income, which is a great and noble thing to do, but we have a risk-reward ratio problem for small business in Australia.

Small businesses come in all shapes and sizes, in fact, businesses come in all shapes and sizes. The reason that COSBOA is really happy to be affiliated with this campaign today is that we need better policy settings for all businesses in Australia. We can all agree on the need for better productivity, for better innovation, for reduced red tape, and to actually see a rising tide that supports all boats in the Australian economy.

What's at stake if we don't do this? From our point of view, 2.6 million Australian small businesses, half of whom are telling us they are worried about keeping the doors open. This is the largest private sector employer in Australia, supporting 5 million jobs. They're also telling us that they're spending up to 15 hours per week on paperwork and on red tape. So the talk from the Treasurer and the Shadow Treasurer last night about, how do we boost productivity in this country, well, how about we give some hours in the day and the week back to small and family businesses so they can get on doing what they do best, their operations, delighting customers and employing people.

Bran makes a really excellent point, we can only control what we can control, there's global uncertainty, and we need to see how that pans out. But why should this place, the Australian Parliament, add uncertainty to small businesses trying to get a fair go, take the instant asset write-off, the annual festival of game playing, the pantomime that occurs with that. Why can't we as an Australian Parliament simply lock that in and give small businesses at least an ounce of certainty with respect to that.

Let me just conclude about why I feel working with my colleagues here from other peaks is really important, it's important for the future. We need to challenge both major parties and in fact, everyone in this place to put forward a positive plan for Australian enterprise. We're talking about living standards here, but we're also talking about the future of regional, remote and rural Australia, who we know really rely on small businesses. But we're talking about the next generation as well, the amount of small business owners I talk to, and they say my children have seen how hard I've worked for little reward and they don't want to follow in the family business, that is a heartbreaking outcome.

We need to really arrest this decline of young people going into small business, we need to make sure that they have that risk-reward ratio right, so that we actually will remain a strong part of the economy, because we know that small businesses drive a lot of that competition, that innovation and as both my dear friend Bran often says, the two-way trade between small and large business represents $700 billion. It's a huge trade and transaction that we rely on, so, we need a plan for the future to set up small business for success, because if small businesses succeed, all of us will succeed. So thanks for your time. It's my pleasure to hand over to Andrew McKellar.

Andrew McKellar, ACCI CEO: Thanks Luke. We're not yet at the halfway point in the Federal Election campaign, but I think today is a very timely reminder, business groups coming together to remind the major parties that we are at an important inflection point. From the point of view of the global economy, I think in the recent weeks, we've seen, very well illustrated, the significance that global developments can bring to the Australian economy.

We need to ensure that in this campaign, the major parties are taking the opportunity to address the long-term challenges that face business, that face the Australian community, the Australian economy. We have to focus on building competitiveness, productivity, we have to do more to get the budget back into shape so that we can weather those potential challenges in front of us, that we can have the buffers in place to invest when we need to and of course, we need to have a focus on ensuring that we are internationally competitive, that we can attract that mobile, viable capital to Australia, for productive purposes in the Australian economy, and we need to be competitive there.

It's been a quarter of a century since anyone seriously attempted to undertake tax reform in the Australian economy. If we can't address those sort of challenges in the next term of government, then the consequences for Australia can be dire. Another area, of course, is small business and we do urge the major parties, we just want to see the major parties unequivocally supportive of the needs of small business in the years ahead.

Compliance, as has been stated, dealing with red tape for small businesses, it's a growing burden, it makes it more difficult for anyone who wants to start, own, operate their own small business, to take on that challenge, to make a success of it, to grow their business, to create jobs and employ more Australians. One of the key ways that we can make that task easier is to focus on how we can reduce that compliance burden. Thank you.

Margy Osmond, TTF CEO: What the business community needs is certainty. We're very pleased to be part of this group today and going forward, looking for that longer-term economic strategy that will deliver that certainty to the Australian business community and wider community. We're in the business of creating jobs, and those jobs make it possible for Aussie families to pay the bills. So, it's incredibly important that all parts of the political spectrum understand and work more closely with the wider business community.

From the tourism and transport sector’s perspective, we're one of the biggest exporters and the biggest supporters of regional Australia. For us, the issues are as wide as the critical need for a sustainable aviation fuel industry in this country, through to a better, seamless border and cheaper visas, and just the general need to make it easier to do business as tourism operators and transport operators. So, we're particularly pleased to be part of this group today.

Samantha McCulloch, AEP Chief Executive: Now, our abundant oil and gas resources have been a major source of Australia's competitive advantage. It underpins reliable, affordable energy for Australian households and businesses, and it's the source of one of our most valuable exports. Our industry is contributing $100 billion a year to the Australian economy, it's supporting 215,000 jobs, and it's one of our most productive sectors, but all of this is at risk.

We've seen investor confidence damaged, we're seeing our international competitiveness eroded due to regulatory uncertainty and instability, protracted delays in the approvals system, market interventions and general policy upheaval. Now this is why we're joining with other business groups here today to call for both major political parties and all political leaders to commit to reforms that will drive growth and productivity across the economy.

Now that means regulatory approvals that are timely and provide certainty for the industry, it means competitive tax and fiscal settings, it means policy certainty and stability for investment, and it does mean recognising the long-term and critical role of gas for our economic and energy security.

David Inall, MGA CEO: Our organisation has been representing the interests of independent grocery stores, retailers since 1898. That's more than 125 years, and now we're seeing the organisation and the industry at a crossroads like never before. The complexity of the legislation that small, family-owned businesses are meant to navigate is now borderline impossible.

We employ as an organisation, a team of lawyers and an HR professional to assist members in navigating industrial relations legislation. The Fair Work Act is more than 1500 pages long, the general retail industry award is more than 100 pages long. It shouldn't require a team of lawyers and HR professionals to assist family-owned businesses just to get on with their day.

In many smaller towns in Australia and regional and remote Australia, our member is the only store in town. They are the main employer in town, many of them have never, ever said no to sponsoring the local soccer, footy, cricket team, but increasingly, they are under pressure whether it's cost of doing business. Much of the media through this campaign and through this whole parliamentary term has been the impact of the cost of doing business on consumers, which, of course, we understand, but our members are endeavouring to add value on the business side, because the cost of doing business equally impacts then, whether it's insurance, leasing, cost of goods, employment and logistics.

Now is the time for both sides of Parliament to come out with a very clear pathway forward. It's just it's fantastic that this group has come together, quickly and with very similar messaging, because the pressures on industry today is like we've never seen.

Dean Long, ATIA CEO: It's a pleasure to be here with my colleagues from the leading industry groups in Australia. There is no doubt this is such a diverse business representative coalition that we have here today. The message is clear, reform that drives better outcomes for Australians is at the heart of Australian businesses. For the travel industry, we are absolutely committed to working for greater productivity outcomes, making sure our smaller members, that 72 per cent are owned and managed by women, that over 50 per cent are in rural and regional Australia. Without their commitment to their local communities and supporting people on their travel journey, many people will be left stranded.

Over 20 million Australians booked with an ATIA member last year alone. It is the professionalism, the support and the dedication that those women and those hard-working individuals do to support people on their journey, is what keeps people safe, which is actually what brand Australia is all about. We are very proud to be working with our colleagues today and call on both sides of government to do real reform that empowers the private sector to employ more people, to drive better community outcomes, to make sure that Australia truly continues to thrive.

Bran: Thanks so much everybody, very happy to answer any questions.

Journalist: Bran, can I just ask, the Coalition have said that they are going to have a sort of mid-year review when it comes to something like multi-employer bargaining. Are you satisfied with where the Coalition is at when it comes to IR reform? They’ve also said, obviously, they’re not going to repeal other elements of Same Job, Same Pay.

Bran: We do really need to look at our industrial relations system very seriously. What is apparent is that there is a sense of balance to our industrial relations system that needs to be restored. We know that we're out of balance because of the productivity figures that we're seeing. We're at negative 1.2 per cent productivity over the course of the last 12 months. And why that's important is that it's ultimately productivity that enables us to drive real wages growth. That means that people feel they have more money in their back pocket at the end of the working week because they do.

The challenge we have right now is that whilst we've seen people's wages increase, that hasn't been backed with productivity, and the result is that they haven't seen real wages growth, and they feel it at the end of the week, after they pay the bills, that they have less money, as I say, because they do. So, we've got to look at those parts of our economy that we know make a difference, in the context of driving business investment that fuels productivity growth, a big part of that is industrial relations.

So, we do want some prioritisation of looking at aspects like multi-employer bargaining, looking at intractable bargaining, some of those key reforms that the Government introduced over the course of the last 12 months that are real dampeners of economic growth and productivity across the economy.

Journalist: Can I just ask again sorry, are you satisfied with the Coalition’s commitments on this three weeks out from an election?

Bran: We certainly want to see more progress made, we want to see more commitments in terms of the industrial relations landscape, simply to restore that sense of balance that is important. We know that it's important that we take account for workers needs and for trying to deliver the pay rises that all Australians should seek to enjoy.

But at the same time, we've got to balance that with the capacity for businesses to invest, because when they invest, we're able to drive that productivity that produces that real wage growth, that is ultimately the sign of success. So, we need to see a stronger focus on restoring balance to our industrial relations system.

Journalist: The Coalition has effectively tried to cauterise the industrial relations part of it. It doesn't really want to buy into the agenda you're after, Labor doesn't really want to buy into the agenda you’re after. Every time business groups are out there, all people are really hearing is, you guys don't want to pay me that much, and they're frustrated by that. Are you actually doing a very good job of selling your message to convince the political parties to convince voters this is something that they should be caring about at this election? I mean, it seems like neither side of politics is really engaging with your agenda at this stage because they don’t see it as politically palatable.

Bran: At times such as this, where there is so much uncertainty, as we mentioned before, the best thing that we can do is control what we can control, and that means creating an environment that attracts business to our shores. So, we will continue to advocate this message in the lead up to the election, but importantly beyond that as well. And we'll do that together, united as business groups, because we know that by acting together, we've got the greatest prospect of driving home that message that is ultimately business being successful drives our country to success, when Australian businesses succeed Australia succeeds, and we are advocating for policies that produce successful businesses, that drive greater prosperity across the country for all Australians.

Journalist: Can I ask you please, Mr. Black, to rate the quality of the debate on the economy last night, and also, secondly, your views on which party has the most interventionist policies and concerns that you might hold?

Bran: I think what is clear is that whether we're talking about Coalition or the Government, we need to see more ambition in terms of policies that have been put forward to account for the challenges that we  are facing. It's absolutely clear that those challenges are deep, and they are concerning. Whether we're talking about tariffs or whether we're talking about global uncertainty and challenges that pertain to the global environment before tariffs were on the international agenda, whether we're talking about those demographic challenges that we have, knowing that we are leaning into a future in which there are proportionately fewer people to pay for, proportionately a greater share of retired Australians in need of healthcare, and knowing also that we have these poor productivity rates sitting at six decade lows. These are real challenges, they require real solutions, and we will continue to make the case for those.

Journalist: Bran, the Prime Minister's favourite line is every Australian is going to get a tax cut mid-year. Would you like to see every business get a tax cut under a future government?

Bran: We think that it's really important that you do provide cost-of-living assistance to Australians at times that they're doing tough. But we also see that businesses are doing particularly tough now as well, and we are increasingly uncompetitive relative to our competitor nations overseas. By way of example, we've seen that Canada, just in the last couple of weeks, has announced that it will dispense with the federal layer of approvals for major projects. Our major projects are bogged down in red tape, and they are becoming increasingly difficult to get through the system.

Indeed, an independent law firm has described the EPBC system as the single greatest impediment to the green energy transition. So, across the board, what business is looking for is certainty and the confidence to invest, and be that through taxation arrangements, or industrial relations arrangements, or deregulation, or through looking at other means to support businesses, all of that is important to drive our economy forward.

Journalist: Can I ask a question of Luke and potentially Andrew as well, just about small businesses. Last year the issue of small business definitions was something that we reported on for a few weeks. There was a real momentum, and it even got to the point where Jane Hume said ‘yeah the definition, there’s too many of them, they’re very confusing, and it’s something we should look at.’ We’re now in April, it hasn’t been talked about by the Coalition since. How do you feel about that, is that a disappointment?

Luke: Look, the process has been slow, that is the reality. The Fair Work Ombudsman is looking at the definition of the small businesses under the Fair Work Act. It's currently 15 head count. I'm sure Andrew is of the same view, we believe that is not fit for purpose. For a lot of small businesses, I'm sure David's independent grocers, a lot of them will employ more than 15 people, probably even more than 20 and 25 people. A lot of them might be part-time, they might be casuals. So, we've been calling for that number to be significantly increased and, look, to the credit of the Fair Work Ombudsman that review is due to conclude later this year, the middle of this year, so we will wait and see how that unfolds. We've been involved in that process quite closely.

Why is it important? It is important because, as David says, we're talking about a lot of independent, family-owned businesses who don't have the armies of lawyers, who don't have the large internal HR team. I think, Ron, to your point, I actually think we're at a bit of a turning point now where a lot of small businesses are just fed up with the complexity that is the Fair Work Act, 1500 pages, as David says, the complexity, the fact you have to do a 15 factor test in real time to satisfy the government that you are, in fact, employing a casual worker. To me, it's just borderline lunacy.

So, we welcome the Coalition’s commitment that they will revert to a more simplified version of casual workers. So, there are a few things that we need to reel in too, but I am of the view that a lot of people out there in punter land who are running these businesses are just fed up with how complex IR is. Let's be clear here, we want to pay people well, we want high productivity, but when it is so complex to actually put someone on your books in this country, it is going to have the inverse effect. You are going to see more people potentially on these contracts, or more people missing out on jobs entirely. So, we really need to see that small business definition made fit for purpose and modernised to ensure that genuine small businesses are treated as such under the Act.

I think it also referred to the broader harmonisation of the definition of small business. I'll say this, if the European Union that comprises 25 member states can all agree on one definition of small business, I think the Commonwealth of Australia probably can too. But a lot of small businesses are frustrated, depending on what time of day it is, the colour of their eyes, who they're talking to, their status can shift and change very, very quickly so that is a broader piece of work that will require attention under the current government.

Journalist: You talk about certainty, whether it's a Labor government or a Coalition government in the next election, how do you get that certainty when we’re dealing with the Trump administration and which leader was … Albanese and Dutton …

Andrew: Certainty is absolutely fundamental, and I think that applies to big business, that applies to small business. We operate, and we have operated for many years on the basis of a rules-based regime, which is predictable. We have followed those rules. We're now seeing a situation where there's significant disruption in the US administration which is obviously following a different path for the time being.

I think we have said all along, we've got to play the long game. Ultimately, those chickens will come home to roost if a different approach is followed. So certainty is important, I don't think we should go with an overblown response, I think we've got to be calm, we've got to work through these issues in a consistent manner, and I think work to convince the United States that that's the best way to deal with things, because we have been a reliable and trusted trading partner, and ultimately, that's going to be in their best interest.

So, we've got to work with friends and allies, our economic partners as well. Nobody will win if there's a trade war between the United States and China, no one will come out of that well. We don't want to see the worst-case scenario playing out. So, I think calm, patient diplomacy, working to get those outcomes.

Just to go back to the point on the small business definition, I agree largely with what Luke had to say, this is fundamental for small businesses. What we want to see from the major parties is unequivocal support for small business. I think there are some good things that have been put on the table during this election campaign in terms of policies that do potentially support small business, but I think a lot of the things that have been said at times have been taken wrongly, been mischaracterised, whenever we talk about adjusting the definition of small business in the Fair Work Act, the unions, for example, go straight to the issue that's about stripping away entitlements and changing entitlements, nothing could be further from the truth.

What we're trying to do is make it easier for someone who wants to start, own, operate their own small business, who wants to employ people, create jobs and employ more Australians. So if you can, do that, if you can make it easier to take on a casual employee, if you can make it more predictable about all those arrangements that you've got to go through, the risk is if you get into a situation where there is uncertainty in the workplace, that it becomes so hard for a small business that doesn't have all of the resources of a larger business to support those actions. So, I think that's absolutely fundamental.

Support for apprentices, to take on apprentices, that's important, certainty in the areas of things like the instant asset write-off. We go through, each year, this situation where it's extended for a year as a budget measure, the legislation doesn't get passed until nearly the end of the financial year. That doesn't provide certainty for small business. It should be a permanent feature of the tax system, it should be at a higher rate, really, I think at the moment, the definition of a small business is too low, it needs to be extended. We need to recognise that we don't want to put in place a barrier for growing small businesses in the economy.

Journalist: There’s talk amongst business leaders in the US about the prospect that Donald Trump will now start to go to his allies and demand that they need to impose similar levels of tariffs on China as part of an allied group, working against what they see as a strategic threat.

Are you concerned that that would be the next stage of Donald Trump's agenda, and what would you be telling the government about the possibility of when he says ‘why aren't you hitting China as well, I'm doing the heavy lifting?’

Andrew: Look, I think that's been recognised as a possibility for some time obviously, that would be of concern from Australia's point of view. China is our number one trading partner, and that's not likely to change any time soon, so it would certainly not be in Australia's interest to be in any way contemplated, that we would impose trade measures along with the United States.

Just as we have said, the United States has announced that it will impose 10 per cent tariffs on Australian goods going into the United States, we’ve said we should not retaliate. Let's work with the Americans and ultimately, this is a self-inflicted injury that they are imposing on their own economy. They are not going to be winners in the long term. That may have to play out and be demonstrated to them in practice but from our point of view, absolutely there is no way that we should be contemplating, and I'm sure the Australian Government won't be contemplating any such approach.

Journalist: Bran, you’ve got members who are obviously operating in all those locations. Is it something that they're concerned about? You're hearing back from them because of the worry this could be coming down the pipeline?

Bran: We have heard this as a possibility for some time, but the point that I would make and reiterate the points that Andrew said, is that we would be saying to government, and we have said consistently to government, that we must operate in Australia's national interest and continue to operate in Australia's national interest, and that means recognising that our economy is, to a very large degree, successful because of the free trade system.

One in four Australian jobs is trade dependent. It makes sense for us to back in that free trade system that has enabled so much of our success. We've been fortunate, I think, so far, to be well-led in terms of the government's engagement with the United States, not simply making the case for why Australia should be exempt. Let's remember that that was a process in 2017 that took a significant amount of time before we did prove successful in that regard, but also in continuing to put the case for why free and open trading arrangements are most appropriate. Australia should continue to do that in that regard.

Journalist: Would you like to see one of those politicians or the Opposition Leader or the Prime Minister come out and sort of say that, that they wouldn’t engage in a tit for tat or succumb to pressure from the US?

Bran: We think that the Australian Government should continue to make the case that Australia's interests are always put first. That's what's happened so far, that's what should continue to happen, and Australia's interests are best certain by making the case for free and open trading relations, not looking to impose tariffs. We've deliberately not gone down that path so far. We should continue the course that we’re on.

Journalist: Don Farrell has kicked off talks with the EU again on that free trade deal. How important will it be to sign new free trade deals like that considering, what we’re seeing out of the US?

Bran: I think it's very important indeed. It's always going to be important, and I really will stress this point, it's always important to have diversification of trading arrangements as a priority for any country. In the same way that it's important for any business to look at how it can diversify its customer base.

Australia needs to be looking at how it can diversify into the EU for additional support for finalising free trade agreement in that regard, but also what we can do in markets like India to take our existing free trade arrangements and make them even better. I know that that's a focus for our government officials, it should very much continue to be. It should always be a focus for the reason that I mentioned, but in these times of uncertainty, the emphasis and the priority that we give to diversifying and having better relationships all around the world only increases as well.