Page 5051 - Week 12 - Wednesday, 26 October 2011
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proposal to put a 45 day limit for payments to be made. If the payment is not made on an invoice within 45 days, a penalty rate of interest will be determined and paid to the business or organisation.
Secondly, there are concerns that some projects are too large when they comprise a combination of activities for smaller businesses to consider tendering to deliver these projects. The Canberra Liberals will ensure that, where it is feasible and economic to do so, larger projects will be broken down into smaller components to give small and medium businesses in the ACT the opportunity. This will facilitate those opportunities for smaller businesses to tender for projects which are appropriate to their size and capacity to perform.
Third, in the spirit of openness and transparency that has been trumpeted by the Chief Minister in this new era of openness and transparency, my motion seeks appropriate reporting of the performance of ACT government agencies in delivering timely payment of invoices. To date virtually all the information we have on payment performance has been obtained by the opposition as answers to questions asked on notice, and there is absolutely no reason why agencies should not be required to report on their performance in paying invoices.
As I have emphasised, the payment of invoices is critical to cash flow, and cash flow is a significant factor in the operations of the private sector businesses and hence to the overall economic activity in the ACT. Indeed, especially in tough times and times of uncertainty, as perhaps we are travelling through now, it is even more important that the ACT government is a good corporate citizen and pays all of its bills on time.
Fourth, the Canberra Liberals will require the Auditor-General to conduct audits to assess compliance by ACT government agencies with these requirements. The Auditor-General also will undertake reviews of ACT government tenders to determine whether smaller businesses are increasing their participation in ACT government contracts.
My motion seeks to enhance the role and contribution of smaller businesses in the ACT and to ensure that the vital work of our many community non-government organisations continues in a secure way. We are all emerging slowly from the effects of the global economic and financial crisis. Fortunately, Australia came through this crisis in relatively good shape, largely due, I think we all appreciate, to the good work of the Howard-Costello governments in low government debt and large federal government cash reserves, some of which was squandered recently. Nevertheless, one of the significant outcomes of this crisis has been a much more conservative and risk averse community. In this environment, in particular, it is essential for the ACT government as one of the major players in our local economy to ensure that our smaller businesses are able to continue operating as successfully as possible. I commend my motion to the Assembly.
MR BARR (Molonglo—Deputy Chief Minister, Treasurer, Minister for Economic Development, Minister for Education and Training and Minister for Tourism, Sport and Recreation) (4.23): The government recognises the importance of a vibrant small business sector. There are, at the latest count, around 23,000 small businesses in the
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