Does the budget fall short in helping the small business recovery?

Despite some wins, overall the government’s budget falls short in assisting business owners who continue to face a cash flow crisis following the impact of the pandemic.

While investment in digital solutions for small business owners is welcomed, the budget does little to address the majority of small business owners’ concerns, say some small business leaders.

Budget fails small business

Chris Dahl, Director of Sales and Growth at Pin Payments suggests while it is encouraging to see the government finally investing in digital solutions and providing tax incentives for small businesses, more could have been done.

“Such measures will assist small businesses reluctant to invest in technology due to their constrained budgets. However, it will not necessarily contribute to their survival,” Dahl said.

“Small businesses have been hit the hardest in the last two years, and it’s disappointing that the government did not go further. Very little support was included to help with small business cash flow and depleted capital,” Dahl said.

With the skills shortage in full swing, Dahl did concede the government’s plan to incentivise training with rebates could prove a winner with business owners struggling to find skilled staff.

“Greater rebates surrounding staff training is a positive. The rebate will ensure talent feel nurtured, reduce mass movement in the market and promote business productivity,” Dahl said.

“[But] overall this budget falls short for small businesses given the severe disruption from the recent floods, global conflict, and the lasting effect the pandemic has had,” Dahl concluded.

Budget addresses some cost of living issues

Dahl is not alone in his opinion. Professionals Australia CEO Jill McCabe said that after two years of crisis and difficult economic times, Australians needed a budget that delivered real and sustainable measures to combat the increasing cost of living, a decade-long decline in real wages and growing job insecurity.

“While spending cash on short term one-off payments such as the small cut in the petrol excise and modest one-off payments to low-income Australians, the Federal budget measures fail to address the full cost of living pressures faced by Australian families now and into the future.

“With inflation expected to continue to rise, this budget does not provide lasting relief to families dealing with the spiralling cost of living. It doesn’t reduce the cost of groceries, power, rent, education, health, and of course housing.” McCabe said.

Technology investment welcomed

With CPA Australia research showing that Australian small businesses have some of the lowest levels of digital capability in the Asia-Pacific region, the professional organisation welcome the government’s planned cash injection to boost digital uptake in the small business sector. However, in a statement released today, the CPA says the measure does not go far enough.

“To have a bigger impact, the technology investment boost needs to go beyond 2023. The skills and training boost should be extended to sole traders and the range of training providers be expanded.

“What’s missing from this budget are measures to make it easier for small businesses to access professional advice. CPA Australia research shows that high growth businesses are much more likely to seek advice. The Government has missed an important opportunity to help businesses build resilience to manage future shocks and improve their profitability.”

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