This month we will celebrate World Micro, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises Day (MSME Day) on 27 June.

The Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman Bruce Billson says tonight’s federal Budget offers targeted measures to help small and family business deal with current pain points and headwinds.

Every business should be assured of the opportunity to compete on merit not just economic muscle and be able to defend their economic interest when the ‘rules of the road’ are infringed upon and their business is harmed.

The latest report card on the economy will be no surprise to small business owners. Economic growth is barely limping along.

The franchise sector is worth $135 billion and employs more than half a million people. There are some 70,700 franchisees in Australia and almost all of them are small businesses, as are many franchisors.

Despite a seemingly never-ending series of challenges over recent years, Australia’s small and family businesses continue to make a massive contribution to our nation and our communities. These are great people in plain sight, and we see them everywhere, every day.

It has been a tough year for small and family businesses coping with cost-of-living pressures not just on themselves, but their customers. 

Across our economy, small business merchants are paying higher fees and charges on electronic transactions than they otherwise should, worth a staggering $1 billion a year!

Small and family business owners are increasingly shouldering more risk for less reward as compounding regulations and economic challenges hit businesses.

The review of the Payment Times Reporting Act by Dr Craig Emerson found there has been no significant improvement by big business to pay their small business customers in a timely way, sadly echoing the woeful performance that we have been calling out.