News

State welcomes new Federal laws to protect small business
By SBDC
April 28, 2008

State welcomes new Federal laws to protect small business (Minister Margaret Quirk) - 28/04/2008

Reforms to the Trade Practices Act, announced today by Federal Ministers Emerson and Bowen, will go some way towards helping level the playing field between big business and small business.


The State Government today welcomed Federal Government measures to better protect small business from predatory pricing and other anti-competitive behaviour.

Small Business Minister Margaret Quirk said the reforms announced today by Federal Ministers Emerson and Bowen would help level the playing field between big business and small business.

"These issues are of great concern to me, and I am pleased to see them being addressed so comprehensively at the Federal level," Ms Quirk said.

"As chair of the Small Business Ministerial Council in 2007, I wrote to the Treasurer on behalf of State and Territory small business ministers, outlining the ongoing difficulties experienced by small business operators when competing with large competitors.

"Anti-competitive behaviour including predatory pricing has been identified in a number of recent reviews of the Trade Practices Act, but the previous Government refused to properly address these issues.

"I particularly welcome the introduction of cheaper access to justice, as this will now allow small business operators to better assert their rights and more effectively seek redress."

The Minister will be pursuing further reforms to the Trade Practices Act, particularly those concerning creeping acquisitions and misuse of market power, at the Small Business Ministerial Council meeting in New Zealand in May 2008.