18 May 2009

Brendan Smyth - sock puppet for the Business Council?

| johnboy
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The Liberals’ Brendan Smyth has put out a very odd media release in which he mostly just quotes the CEO of the ACT Business Council, Chris Faulks.

The complaint is that it’s hard to do business in the ACT.

Having been involved with the running of small businesses in the ACT I found this a little bit surprising as I’ve always found it very easy to get a business name registered which is about the end of the ACT Government’s involvement with information industries.

So I’m curious what those of you out there in other businesses think?

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here are some sites of interest if you are running a small business or are looking to set one up:
http://www.business.act.gov.au/doing_business_in_canberra

http://www.bep.gov.au/Business+Entry+Point/

both sites have a heap of info, and links to assist in understanding the processes and options available to you, very worthwhile.

I owned a small business in Canberra from 2003 – 2008 and also found it suprisingly easy to register the name and for me that was about it also. At the time I started there was 3 business advisory services in Canberra to which I utilised and attended the free seminars that were available at the time which helped.

By 2008 the was only one free advisory service left and they were asking for testimonials as they were pleading their case to the ACT government to stay afloat.

My decision to cease the business & move over the the public service was, in part, made by the dwindelling support offered by the ACT government.

Having lived away from the stresses of small business ownership for over a year now I can say without no hesitation that it was the right decision to make.

I feel for those in small business today who are trying to seek support/advice as you will most definately be facing an uphill battle.

People like Chris Peters (Business Chamber) and Jim Murphy (Business Club) have been propping up Brendan Smith for years. Smith is one of the most selfish politicians we have in the Assembly. For years he has been prepared to even undermine his own party to ensure his own political position and future. Smith’s vote fell away last election and he’ll continue to be a liability to the Libs.

as I said, running a business is hard. fact of life. The chamber of commerce hasn’t popped up and complained about the hardships yet, perhaps they are just enjoying the funding and another slap up meal…

Chris Faulk has started to rescind some of what she said earlier, leaving Brendan Smyth to hang out to dry.

These business groups, with Catherine Carter of the Property Council being the most shrill, do nothing but scream for the government to give them free reign. They want all checks and balances removed, increased self-regulation that they can manipulate, and massive handouts from government (ie taxpayers) to cover their capital costs.

Probably the worst aspect is that their lobbying power is so large. They have almost unlimited access to Ministers, very good funding from their members for all sorts of largesse (and not just free attendance at various lunches, dinners and cocktail parties), and are therefore able to skew decision-making in their favour, at the expense of Canberra residents. Do we live in a democracy? Yes, but one that favours big business and developers over citizens – dollars can speak much loder than votes.

Consultation’s pretty bad…

I mean, the majority of businesses aren’t members of Chris Faulk’s group yet govt just gives them a call and says consultation with business has been undertaken. Ironic, no?

speaking as a wholesaler, there are many, many startups every day here in the act. what seems to be a downfall for most is the apparent lack of market knowledge – they go after the government business, and ignore the small to medium businesses. sure way to fail.

Many of the new startups don’t seek out help from the ACT government in the ability to grow their business through assistance. The programs and initiatives in place are there to help them succeed.

The complaint that it is hard to business in the ACT is probably right, but then, it is harder to do business in sydney or melbourne, based on the numbers of businesses that fail due to many factors.

running a business is hard. it isn’t the govt’s fault, it is a fact of life. complaining won’t make it easier. working with the act govt to help ensure small businesses survive is a good start.

Clown Killer10:31 am 18 May 09

Not sure about this. My business operates across three states and the ACT. Really, there’s red-tape and administrivia where-ever you go. If anything I’d day that the bits of the ACT Government I regularly come into contact with are trying really hard to accommodate the needs of business.

I guess that if you were in somthing more regulated like hospitality then you might be getting some grief.

amarooresident210:15 am 18 May 09

What caf said, plus having to pay things like taxes, pay workers, provide a safe workplace and those sorts of things.

My experiences mirror yours. I suspect what they’re complaining about is that the Government is making it too hard for them to get their hands on free money (aka “business development”).

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