By Emily Chapman Laing
Local MPs Cassandra Fernando and Pauline Richards joined the Cranbourne Chamber of Commerce on Wednesday 5 July to showcase government initiatives in support of small businesses.
“Cranbourne Chamber of Commerce is vital for our community,“ Holt Federal MP Ms Fernando said.
“It provides crucial small businesses in the Cranbourne area an opportunity to come together and support each other for the betterment of everyone.“
A Q&A session following their presentations showed local business owners are concerned about more than just their businesses.
Chamber vice president Judy Davis questioned the politicians on what is being done to support complex mental health in Casey, and how this alarming issue is being managed.
With 19 per cent of Casey adults reporting high or very high levels of psychological distress, Ms Davis raised concerns over the lack of local professionals available to those who need support.
Ms Richards explained she was advocating for Casey to be involved in the Mental Health and Wellbeing Locals program run by the Victorian Government, which will see 50 Local Services open across the state.
Frankston and Dandenong have already been earmarked to receive two of the first 30 Local Services.
Leanne Petridis from Community Information and Support Cranbourne said demand for support is “increasing“, but “funding is not“.
“We need all of the help we can get,“ she said.
“We’ve been supporting the most vulnerable people in Cranbourne for 45 years.
“It takes a chamber, it takes businesses, it takes a community to make sure our most vulnerable people are supported enough to participate in the community.“
Ms Fernando said she understands this issue “intimately“.
“I look forward to continue working with Leanne on this matter,“ she said.
“I know there is often not enough funding to meet demand for the services that community information and support centres provide – and we must always strive to support them more.
“Tackling the rising cost-of-living is at the forefront of this Government’s priorities.“
A representative from a local charity questioned the MPs about further initiatives to assist with cost of living pressures, stating the energy relief doesn’t cover “the other things that have increased“.
The representative explained government seems to be “reactive“ in their approach to crisis, offering “knee jerk reactions“ when “s**t hits the fan“.
Ms Fernando said both she and the wider government have a “responsibility“ to deliver a better future for their communities and respond to community concerns.
This means it is necessary for government work to be both proactive and reactive, and that we need to walk and be able to chew gum at the same time,“ she said.
The Albanese Labor Government’s measures to provide cost-of-living relief for all Australians is an excellent example of this in action.
To tackle rising cost-of-living the Government has responded to community concerns by increasing many federal government support payments, including Jobseeker, Commonwealth Rent Assistance and Youth Allowance, to name a few.“
Chamber Treasurer Mina Baselyous asked about the relationship between the government and the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) in stopping inflation.
Ms Fernando explained it is important for people to remember the RBA operates as an “independent institution“.
“I know that the recent decision by the independent Reserve Bank to pause interest rates will be, for many Australians, some much-needed relief,“ she said.
“While this is welcome news, we understand that many people are under pressure from rising mortgage repayments and the increased cost of living.
“Inflation is continuing to moderate in our economy, but it is still higher than we’d like for longer than we’d like.
“Getting on top of this inflation challenge is the central focus of our government’s economic plan and it was a core focus of the Budget we handed down in May.“
A local small business owner brought things back to business by asking how the government is supporting small businesses experiencing a huge amount of pressure, particularly under the burden of wage increases which started on 1 July.
Ms Richards explained while wages are increasing, the tax-free payroll threshold for businesses is also increasing, from $700,00 to $900,00.
Ms Fernando said “it is disappointing to have a question couched in language that views the recent 8.6 per cent National Minimum Wage increase and 5.75 per cent Award Wage increase as negatives“.
“For many years, productivity has been consistently higher than wage rises—we effectively had a real wage rise freeze for the previous nine years of Liberal Government,“ she said.
“I am proud that the Albanese Labor Government unequivocally supported the recent wage increases by the Fair Work Commission—as well as directly supporting a 15 per cent wage rise for our Aged Care workers across Australia, who have long languished on low wages for such a vital service provided.
“We continue to support small businesses through several specific initiatives, as well as our broader economic plan to help ease inflation.“
Both Ms Richards and Ms Fernando gave speeches to the chamber, explaining the many initiatives Cranbourne has to look forward to.
Ms Richards addressed the “vibrant, generous and kind“ chamber, which she referred to as the “engine room of the community“, to explain the many places within Cranbourne seeing important government funding.
This includes the construction of a new SES station, the upgrades to Hall and Evans Roads, a new 3 storey public hospital as well as the upcoming opening of the Botanic Ridge Recreation Reserve.
Ms Fernando explained the Albanese Government has committed to $3 billion in energy relief to small businesses, as well as improving cash flow and reducing compliance for small businesses by temporarily increasing the instant asset write-off threshold to $20,000, from 1 July 2023 until 30 June 2024 and introducing the Industry Growth Program.
Small businesses, with aggregated turnover of less than $10 million, will be able to immediately deduct the full cost of eligible assets costing less than $20,000 that are first used or installed ready for use between 1 July 2023 and 30 June 2024.
The $20,000 threshold will apply on a per asset basis, so small businesses can instantly write off multiple assets.
In late 2023, the Australian Government will be launching a new Industry Growth Program providing advice and matched grant funding for small and medium sized enterprises and startups to commercialise their ideas and grow their businesses.
President of the Greater Dandenong Chamber of Commerce, Ross Raymond, was also in attendance and spoke to the members about the upcoming South East Business Conference on 30 August.
The aim of the conference is to drop “the seed of thought“ about where businesses in the south east want to be in 2050.
Mr Raymond anticipated representatives from every industry at the conference, alongside guest speakers Simon McKeon AO, Bernard Salt AM and Carolyn Creswell.
