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.
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