Opposition leader Peter Dutton has pledged to lift the instant asset write-off to $30,000 on an ongoing basis and wind back major industrial relations reforms, putting promises to small business at the centre of the Coalition’s election campaign.
Assisting small businesses will “unleash the potential of the marketplace”, Dutton told supporters in Melbourne on Sunday, ahead of an election due by May 17.
Dutton reaffirmed the Coalition’s goal of expanding the instant asset write-off threshold beyond its current $20,000 limit, allowing small businesses to immediately deduct more business expenses.
That $30,000 limit should be ongoing, Dutton said, reiterating the Coalition’s belief the policy should be permanent instead of subject to legislative reapproval each year.
The Labor government handed down a $20,000 limit in its 24-25 federal budget, but that measure is not yet law.
A Coalition government will also wind back elements of the Labor government’s industrial relations platform, including changes to the definition of casual workers, Dutton said.
Under the Fair Work Act, a worker is casually employed if they have no firm advance commitment to work, based on a multi-factorial test, and if they’re entitled to casual loading under their employment agreement.
Labor argues the change will stop employers from exploiting workers, making it harder for them to employ staff on set hours and regular schedules without providing the entitlements granted to permanent employees.
But the Coalition believes the change has caused undue complexity for employers.
“We will revert to a simple definition of a casual worker,” Dutton said.
Alongside Dutton’s speech, the Coalition detailed its approach to small business policies in a new pre-election handbook, which pledges to reverse changes enacted by the Labor government.
The document paints the Opposition’s controversial nuclear power plan as a win for small businesses facing power price hikes, as opposed to prioritisation of renewable energy generation vision in Labor’s Future Made in Australia plan.
The Australian Building and Construction Commission, abolished in 2023, will be reintroduced by a Coalition government, the document states.
The Coalition says its competition policy will “give small businesses a fair go”, after pushing for authorities to gain corporate divestiture powers last year.
Labor stood against the proposal, arguing its efforts to bolster the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) and increase penalties for violations of competition law are strong enough deterrents.
Despite previously calling for new divestiture powers targeting corporate giants, Dutton argued “Australians are best served by smaller government which gets off their back, supports free enterprise, and rips up regulation”.
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Senior Business Journalist
Focused on the small business sector, David’s work covers the political, regulatory, and economic issues facing Australian entrepreneurs. Prior to joining SmartCompany, he was a reporter for Business Insider Australia. You can follow him on LinkedIn.
