Canberra is the political centre of Australia, and it can be easy to dismiss issues about business here in the Nation’s Capital. The truth, however, is that we have moved a long way from Canberra being a town of public servants. In fact, around two-thirds of all the jobs here in the ACT are actually in the private sector.
That’s right, Government jobs only make up a minority of employment here in Canberra, and, ultimately, it’s private sector employment that drives the economy. That means it’s really important that we have policy settings here in the ACT that are conducive to maintaining strong economic growth and that support a strong business sector.
The ACT Election is not far off, and the Canberra Business Chamber has been speaking up in support of policies that support a better business environment. We recently published our Vision for Business – including the aspirational goal that Canberra should be the greatest place in Australia to do business. The Chamber has invited all our MLAs to embrace that vision and put forward some suggestions as to how that can be achieved.
Our recommendations have focused on making the ACT more competitive for business so we can grow and attract new firms; making it easier to deal with the ACT Government; and making sure that we have the framework, infrastructure and resources to support growth.
There’s no denying that the ACT has seen good economic growth over many years, but business is under real pressure, with half failing to hit their business targets last quarter, and more having a negative outlook than a positive one. Federal Government spending has slowed down; interest rates are making it more expensive to do business; and many firms are feeling strangled by red tape and compliance requirements across both Commonwealth and Territory requirements.
The question is: how can we do better, and how can we drive greater prosperity that will support more jobs, higher wages, and ultimately, better public services through a stronger tax base?
There’s no simple solution, but there are steps we can take at a Territory level to improve the outlook for business. We are a high-cost jurisdiction. Although not all businesses pay it, we have by far the highest Payroll Tax in the country; one of the highest cost worker compensation schemes; and extra charges, fees and levies that can make it more expensive and more bureaucratic to do business here than just across the border in Queanbeyan. Looking hard at taxes, levies and other costs in order to try and be competitive would be a great start.
You can read our Vision for Business at canberrabusiness.com.
– Greg Harford, Chief Executive, Canberra Business Chamber
