Sunday, December 9, 2012
Inquiry to probe how regulators impact small business
07/12/2012 - The Productivity Commission will investigate how
federal and state regulators impact small business costs. Paul Osborne
Its report, due to be completed by September 2013, will examine how friendly regulatory authorities are towards small business.
Assistant Treasurer David Bradbury said on Thursday the way federal
and state regulators went about their operations could have a big
impact on the time and costs for small businesses.
A new regulatory and competition reform agenda was agreed at the
last Council of Australian Governments (COAG) meeting in April following
the inaugural COAG business advisory forum.
The second forum, to be chaired by Prime Minister Julia Gillard in
Canberra on Thursday, has been briefed on the new Productivity
Commission inquiry.
The commission's work will also complement that of the Small Business Commissioner, Mark Brennan, who starts work in January.
During the inquiry, small business operators will be able to raise
concerns about their interactions with regulators, Small Business
Minister Brendan O'Connor said.
Small business groups argue regulators take different approaches to
their roles, with some being heavy-handed on enforcement while others
work in more consultative and educational ways.
They also say many regulators don't take into account the size and nature of businesses and the cost burden of compliance.
One of the outcomes of the Productivity Commission's work is likely to be a new standard definition of a small business.
Gillards Unions Screw the rest of us with cost blow outs
A review by Chevron of the project estimates the project in north
Western Australia has increased from $43 billion to $52 billion.
The widely expected announcement of the extra cost comes as the oil
and gas giant plans its plant start-up for late 2014, leading to the
first liquefied natural gas (LNG) cargo in the first quarter 2015,
around a three month delay.
"The factors contributing to the increased costs and schedule
impacts include labour costs and productivity associated with Barrow
Island site infrastructure, logistics challenges and weather delays,"
Chevron said in a statement on Thursday.
In addition, a stronger Australian dollar and changes in the mix of
currencies since project began accounted for approximately one third of
the projected increase in US dollar outlays, the company said.
Chevron vice chairman George Kirkland said despite the cost blowout the economics of the project were still attractive.
"While investment requirements have grown, oil prices, which
directly impact the overall revenue stream, have increased by
approximately 80 per cent over the same time period," he said.
He added that the LNG capacity for Gorgon had increased by four per cent, to 15.6 million tons a year.
Chevron continued to discover additional gas resources which could
support future expansions of our Australian LNG developments, he said.
The news about the Gorgon cost blowout comes as Chevron announced
an overall international exploration budget of $37 billion for 2013,
including major investments in Australia, Nigeria, the US deepwater Gulf
of Mexico, Kazakhstan, Angola and the Republic of Congo.
Gorgon encompasses 11 gas fields and a 15 million tonne per annum LNG plant on Barrow Island expected to last at least 40 years.
Chevron operates Gorgon and has a 47.3 per cent stake, with fellow petroleum majors Exxon Mobil and Shell holding 25 per cent.
Sales agreements for up to 25 years have been reached for Gorgon with customers in China, India, Japan and South Korea.
Chevron added that its Wheatstone LNG project in WA is currently seven per cent complete and is on budget and schedule.
Gillard Looking after Cosumers
Gillard on power deal: Consumers may save $250 a year
As the Council of Australian Governments (COAG) meeting wrapped up
in Canberra on Friday, Gillard also secured signed agreements with
Victoria, South Australia, NSW, Tasmania and the ACT on launch sites for
the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS).
Western Australia and Queensland signed a broader agreement to
"learn" from the launch sites' development and implementation, but made
no further commitments.
Gillard said COAG had agreed to a package of electricity market measures which would help families and businesses.
"The agreement that we have reached will make a difference of $250
for Australian families on power pricing," she said, adding that some
savings would start to flow through from 2014.
West Australian Liberal Premier Colin Barnett said he did not think
the $250 would be delivered, but "hopefully future price increases will
be less than they would have been".
NSW Liberal Premier Barry O'Farrell was hopeful the figure could be
achieved, but said further steps were needed, including capping wages
for power sector workers in NSW and axing expensive green power schemes.
Victorian Liberal Premier Ted Baillieu, who had sought more "teeth"
for the Australian Energy Regulator, said the authority's "still a bit
gummy" and needed to be separate from the Australian Competition and
Consumer Commission.
Under the reforms to be rolled out by the states are rule changes
to stop over-investment in networks, a new advocacy body to give
consumers a voice on price determinations and an extra $23 million in
federal funds over four years to beef up the energy regulator.
Energy retailers would offer a wide range of innovative products,
such as smart metering and air-conditioner technology, so consumers had
more choice on how they used power.
Big corporate energy users will be rewarded for moderating the power loads they put on the system during peak times.
South Australian Labor Premier Jay Weatherill said the reforms
would ease the pain of power bills while ensuring reliable supply.
"We must have an electricity market that works not just for the big end of town, but for consumers," he said.
Energy Retailers Association chief Cameron O'Reilly said the
package would ease regulation and "ultimately the consumer will win".
After signing a $6 billion funding deal with NSW on Thursday for
the full rollout of the NDIS in the state from 2018, Gillard said she
did not expect other states to do the same immediately.
"We can now work through with other states and territories and reach long-term agreements about the NDIS," she said.
The leaders also had a "brief discussion" about schools funding and
Gillard said the Gonski reforms would be the centrepiece of the next
COAG meeting in early 2013.
But talks on harmonising environmental approval processes for major projects collapsed.
Gillard said the states had such divergent views on the matter that
the issue was heading toward the "regulatory equivalent of a dalmatian
dog".
But there was agreement on ensuring businesses only need to provide
one set of documentation to state and federal environmental agencies
and work on streamlining the system would continue into 2013.
Queensland Premier Campbell Newman said progress on the issue was
"disappointing", while Barnett said the approvals talks had gone
"backwards".
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)