SMALL BUSSINESSES ARE BEING IGNORED AGAIN UNDER GILLARD'S CARBON TAX
27-July-2011
Small businesses in Macquarie have been left to fend for themselves as they face all of the costs of the Gillard Labor Government’s carbon tax with no direct support to deal with the harm.
Local small businesses and family enterprises have been ignored as the Gillard government provides carbon tax carve outs and compensation for some sectors and has forgotten the small businesses that are the engine room of our economy, according to Louise Markus MP, Federal Member For Macquarie.
“Despite a chorus of concern from small business about the added costs of energy and inputs, no compensation has been provided and the risk to jobs and small business viability has been ignored,” Mrs Markus said.
“Macquarie small businesses will be worse off under the carbon tax and the Gillard Government doesn’t seem to care.
Annette and Danny Wotherspoon run the Rose Lindsay Cottage Bed and Breakfast in Faulconbridge, he is gravely concerned about the effect The Carbon Tax will have on his business.
“We rely on a disposable income for people to come and stay with us,” Mr Wotherspoon said. “The imposition of this Carbon Tax effects people’s cash flow making holidaying even harder.”
“Our electricity bill has risen significantly and this will only get worse under The Carbon Tax. People come here for luxury, they use the spa and other high energy things. The cost increase from this Carbon Tax will hurt.
“A lot of similar B&B’s are hurting due to the effect this Carbon Tax is having. I suspect some will be unable to stay open. This has a dramatic effect on the local economy.
“We use local cleaners, the local butcher, the local deli, our guests go to dinner at restaurants in Springwood. All of the money we generate is spent in the local community.
“The Carbon Tax will have a very damaging effect on The Blue Mountains economy.
”Mulgrave based company Australian Dynamic Technologies has been distributing mining related products for nearly 20 years in the area. Director Barbara Porter cannot recall a time when business has been this tough.
“We have never seen a period of such uncertainty,” Barbara Porter said. “The Carbon Tax has caused some of the bigger industries we deal with, such concern, that they have put any heavy expenditure in abeyance. Calls from customers looking for information, have slowed right down.”
“We try to be frugal but business costs have risen significantly. This will only get worse under The Carbon Tax. Our electricity and other necessary costs will continue to rise dramatically at a time when our customers are unable to purchase goods due to The Carbon Tax.
“This Carbon Tax will hurt and this government is giving us no help.”
“Macquarie families are already worried about cost of living increases, and cannot afford further price rises from local small businesses that are already trying to cope with failing consumer confidence,” Louise Markus said.
“Tough trading conditions means small businesses are on tight margins and have little capacity to simply absorb cost increases.
“This Labor-Greens carbon tax adds cost and builds on each and every stage of the supply chain.”
“These cost increases and lack of any compensation will particularly harm our smaller businesses where higher energy costs, longer supply chains and limited market power to push back on input cost increases will make difficult business conditions even worse.
“Small business efforts to find operating cost savings to offset cost increases from Labor’s carbon tax put even more pressure on small business employment.
“On the back of the Prime Minister’s emphatic statement ‘there will be no carbon tax under the government I lead’, almost 80 per cent of small businesses took Labor at its word and have not factored carbon pricing into their business plans” Louise Markus said.
Louise Markus added that it was particularly offensive to the hard working small businesses in Macquarie that the Government has produced household examples to help Labor MPs sell the toxic carbon tax they promised the nation wouldn’t face, but couldn’t be bothered assessing the impact of this new tax on Australia’s small businesses and family enterprises.