After two years of the Albanese Government, it is clear that Labor's economic vandalism is killing Australian businesses with builders, manufactures and small businesses bearing the brunt. Australian businesses are going to the wall because Anthony Albanese lied about his plan to deliver cheaper power prices and that he would 'rebuild Australian manufacturing'.
Labor has delivered an insolvency crisis across the Australian economy. According to the official Australian insolvency statistics for April, released by ASIC, insolvencies across construction have already exceeded the annual figure for 2022-23 and manufacturing insolvencies are set to exceed the 2022-23 figures by the end of May. This underscores an increasing rate of insolvencies across the Australian economy, which was already three times higher than the same period, just two years ago under the Coalition.
Businesses are going bust under Labor and it will only get worse. According to CreditorWatch's Business Risk Index released yesterday, one in 13 Australian hospitality businesses are facing failure in the next 12 months. This is attributed to the sector's exposure to discretionary spending of consumers "which has dried up as cost-of-living pressures mount." As CreditorWatch notes, hospitality businesses such as restaurants have been hit hard by cost pressures, with higher than ever power prices and cost of ingredients combining with weaker consumer spending. This report indicates that Western Sydney and South-East Queensland are the regions with the highest risk of business failures.
CreditorWatch has also found that business to business (B2B) payment defaults have hit a record high and are up 69.4 per cent year-on-year, as businesses struggle to pay their invoices. Their analysis shows a strong correlation between B2B payment defaults and business failure indicating there will be a continued and increasing trend in businesses going bust over the coming year.
Anthony Albanese's energy crisis is killing Australian small businesses. According to Research commissioned by Energy Consumers Australia and the Council of Small Business Organisations Australia (COSBOA), released today, energy hardship and financial strain is hitting small business harder than COVID-19. One in five small businesses are struggling to pay their energy bills on time and nearly half of small businesses are concerned about their ability to pay future energy bills. More than one in three small to medium-sized enterprises have experienced energy hardship during the past 12 months and rising energy costs are the number one factor which has impacted businesses' financial situation in the last 12 months.
In the face of a deteriorating economy, COSBOA was absolutely right to label the Federal Budget a, "missed opportunity to back small business".
As small businesses struggle to pay their power bills which have risen by thousands and thousands of dollars, Labor's response has been to give them $325, spread quarterly. The sector has rightly indicated this "won't even touch the sides".
As Australian manufactures fail in great numbers, Labor have committed an additional $22.7 billion for their Future Made in Australia proposal including $13.7 billion of corporate welfare, while their existing $15 billion National Reconstruction Fund is yet to spend a single cent.
Deputy Leader of the Opposition and Shadow Minister for Industry, Skills and Training and Small and Family Business, Sussan Ley, said Labor's failure to deliver real economic leadership had taken Australia in the wrong direction and it is only the Coalition, under the leadership of Peter Dutton, that has a proper plan to get Australian back on track.
"Because of Anthony Albanese's bad calls, Australian businesses are in their worst position since the Global Financial Crisis, with payment defaults the worst on record and Australian households hurting.
"After two years in government, Anthony Albanese's record is clear: weak leadership on the economy, weak leadership on national security, and a refusal to take responsibility for the dire situation facing Australians and their small businesses.
"Anthony Albanese and Jim Chalmers love to talk up the jobs they claim to have 'created' - well, if they want to take credit for employment outcomes, then they also have to take responsibility for these skyrocketing insolvencies."
