The 2009-10 NSW Budget provides a number of initiatives for small business including payroll tax, business development programs and cutting red tape to support jobs through challenging economic conditions.
The Budget has largely been given the thumbs up by industry groups. Unions NSW secretary Mark Lennon said the budget was “socially responsible and economically wise” in the tough economic conditions; while credit rating agencies Moodys and Standard and Poor’s have reaffirmed the state’s AAA rating.
Measures for business include:
- Payroll tax – payroll tax will be reduced by 5.75 percent to 5.65 percent from 1 January 2010, and then reduced to 5.5 percent from 1 January 2011 saving NSW businesses around $2.7 billion by the end of 2012-13.
- Reduce red tape – the Government has committed themselves to reduce the cost of red tape for business and industry by $500 million by June 2011.
- Small business development – $20 million will be allocated to NSW small business to support jobs growth and retention through improved business skills, expanded markets and the adoption of innovative business practices.
- Western Sydney and NSW Regional Employment Funds – The Government will establish two employment funds with an investment of $19 million over two years: A Western Sydney Employment Fund ($4.4 million) and a Regional NSW Employment Fund ($2.6 million). The funds will help to secure jobs in these regions.
- Workforce training – $670 million will be invested over four years to deliver 175,000 extra training places for job seekers and existing workers in skill shortage areas. A further $6 million will be invested over two years to retrain workers who have lost their jobs and assist them to return to work.
NSW Treasurer Eric Roozendaal has spruiked the state budget in a lunch in Sydney today to the Committee for Economic Development, calling the budget a “beacon of hope”, while Opposition Leader Barry O’Farrell has labelled it a “fantasy.”
“They’re based on fantasy figures which offer neither families nor businesses across NSW the certainty and the hope they need in difficult times.”
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