Labor is for Australian Business
Labor understands that a high Australian dollar and increasing international competition is putting pressure on Australian jobs.
Only Labor has a plan to work with Australian industry to increase exports, help Australian businesses to grow and put Australian jobs first.
Like most businesspeople, Labor likes to plan for the future. Without world-class broadband, Australia will fall behind the rest of the world and our economy will suffer; our businesses won’t have the tools they need to match their competitors around the world.
In the 21st century, broadband is basic infrastructure – Australian businesses need it. It’s become an essential utility, just like electricity or water.
That's why Labor is delivering the National Broadband Network: high-speed, reliable, affordable broadband to every home and business in Australia.
The rollout of the NBN is ramping up quickly. High speed broadband to homes and businesses in cities and the bush is being rolled out right across Australia. By June this year construction will have commenced or be complete for more than 1.2 million homes and businesses.
The benefits of the NBN for business are clear: lower phone and internet bills, unprecedented opportunities to expand and reach new markets, the ability to use video conferencing, reach customers no matter where they are, digitise supply chains, and offer new, more convenient products and services.
The reliability and affordability of the NBN is going to dramatically improve access to technology, like cloud computing, that will allow businesses, particularly SMEs, to reduce costs and increase productivity.
The Coalition says Australia can’t afford to have access to the best communications system in the world. Labor says we can’t afford not to.
Tourism is important to Australia’s economy and Labor recognises the contribution of hard working small businesses which are the backbone of Australia’s tourism industry. Tourism employs more than 500,000 Australians and is particularly important to regional Australia, but challenges like the high Australian dollar and the Global Financial Crisis mean more than overseas TV ads are needed if Australia is to successfully compete for overseas visitors.
Through the Tourism 2020 plan, Labor is helping Australia’s tourism industry become more competitive by cutting red tape, investing in skills, and working with industry to seize the opportunities of the fast-growing tourist market in Asia.
Small businesses make a huge contribution to national prosperity and supporting Australian jobs. Labor is committed to building an environment in which small business not only survives, but thrives.
Labor is giving small business a stronger voice with the Minister for Small Business sitting at the Cabinet table for the first time in a decade and the appointment of the first Australian Small Business Commissioner, who represents the interest of Australian small businesses.
Enterprise Connect was established by Labor to offer advice and support to eligible Australian small and medium-sized enterprises to help them transform and reach their full potential.
All small businesses can immediately write-off the full value of assets costing less than $6,500, including motor vehicles. Small businesses can depreciate other assets (other than buildings) at 15 per cent in the first year and then in a single pool at a rate of 30 per cent. They can also claim up to $5,000 as an immediate deduction for motor vehicles (new or used) costing $6,500 or more. The remainder of the motor vehicle value will be pooled in the general small business pool.
Labor is also allowing companies to carry back tax losses of up to $1 million to get a refund against tax paid in the previous year. The loss carry back period will increase to two years from 2013-14. This can provide a tax benefit of up to $300,000 per year (limited to the balance of the company’s franking account) providing an injection of funds to invest in new ideas, equipment and markets.